What's the difference between invention patent and utility model?

(1) The utility model is less creative than the invention patent. Compared with the existing technology before the filing date, the requirements of China's patent law have outstanding substantive characteristics and remarkable progress; The requirement of utility model is that it has substantial features and progress compared with the existing technology before the filing date. The invention emphasizes outstanding substantive features and remarkable progress, while the utility model only mentions substantive features and progress. Obviously, invention is more creative than utility model. (2) The scale of utility model is smaller than that of invention. Because invention is a new skill plan for goods, methods or their improvement, it can be commodity invention, method invention and improved invention. Not only in the invention of goods, but also in the invention of fixed goods or non-fixed goods. Moreover, in addition to the existing special rules of the patent law, any invention can be patented according to law. The scope of the utility model patent application is much narrower, which is limited to the practical new technical scheme proposed by the shape, composition or combination of goods. In this way, all kinds of manufacturing methods can not apply for utility model patents. At the same time, it is impossible to produce utility models for products that have nothing to do with shape, structure or their combination. Therefore, the scope of utility model is much narrower than that of invention, and it is only limited to the transformation planning related to the shape, structure or combination of goods. (3) The maintenance period of utility model patent is shorter than that of invention. China's patent law clearly stipulates that the maintenance period of utility model patents is 10 years, counting from the date of request. The maintenance period of invention patents is 20 years. In contrast, the maintenance period of utility model patents is much shorter than that of invention patents. This is because in general, the invention process of utility model is rougher and simpler than that of invention, and the time to show benefits is much shorter. Therefore, the law stipulates that its maintenance period is correspondingly short. (4) The examination and approval process of utility model patent is simpler than that of invention patent. According to the provisions of China's Patent Law, if the Patent Office starts to examine whether it meets the requirements of the Patent Law after receiving the request for a patent for utility model, it may make an announcement without substantive examination, notify the requester and issue a patent certificate for utility model. For the invention patent, it needs to pass the substantive examination, and both the examination procedure and the time are much more messy and long than the utility model. To put it simply, invention patents are expensive, difficult and long-term, and utility model patents are much simpler, so it is relatively easy to apply for some.