Uncovering The Complexities Of Utility Patent Law In The United States

• Better understanding utility patent law.
• Knowing the utility patent filing process.
• Getting a heads up on some of the conditions that need to be met for a utility patent.

What Is Utility Patent Law?

Utility patent law in the United States is the area of law that regulates inventions and protects inventors.

This area of law can cover anything that is written down, no matter how far in the past. It can be translated from other languages, be a study, or patent applications that went abandoned. It does not have to be a patent necessarily.

Typically, a utility patent application needs to describe an invention that is not abstract, and that is new, and useful. This law does not cover things like mathematical formulas since they are completely abstract. Interestingly, in recent years, certain types of software have been considered abstract.

What Conditions Must Be Met For A Utility Patent?

Being granted a utility patent requires your invention not to be abstract, meaning it must be useful, new, and inventive. As such, it should have some fundamental or substantive difference from the existing patents and publications, even if small.

How Do I File A Utility Patent?

There are several steps in the process of filing a utility patent in the United States.

We recommend having the inventor or inventors write down a first draft explaining the invention with a few drawings displaying the product. If the invention is a method, include some steps like a flow chart. Some patent applications have something like 30 to 40 figures included in them.

After the patent attorney sees that first draft, they will generally ask several questions that hone the details. This is because the patent application needs to show that the invention can actually be created.

Eventually, you will also get to the claims portion of the process – the most important part of the patent application. Your lawyer will likely write down precisely what you want to protect in this invention. In the future, if the patent gets issued and you see a competing product, that competing product will have to meet every word in the claims. If it does not, you may have a case of infringement on your hands.

Your power is really in the claims, and getting those details right from the outset is critical. The claims should also show a few versions of the invention and specification, which is the main body of the patent application. You will want to display several versions of your invention. Doing this will enable you to put those different versions into the claims. Only one of those versions may be approved by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. If you are building on existing patents or publications, you can mention them and incorporate them by reference. The main point is to focus on what is new and to describe what problem your invention solves.

With the guidance of a skilled attorney for Utility Patent Law Cases, you can have the peace of mind that comes with knowing that we’ll make it look easy.

For more information on Utility Patent Law in the United States, an initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (425) 968-5342 today.