July 2, 2007
Patent Protection
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Patent protection provides security to the patent applicant against patent infringement. Patent infringement would occur if someone made, used or sold your patented door lock without your permission in a country that has granted you... |
Patent protection provides security to the patent applicant against patent infringement. Patent infringement would occur if someone made, used or sold your patented door lock without your permission in a country that has granted you a patent, during the term of the patent.
If you have patent protection and you believe your patent is infringed, you may sue for damages in the appropriate court. The defendant may argue that infringement on your patent protection did not occur or may attack the validity of your patent. The court will determine who is right, basing its decision largely on the language of the claims. If what the defendant is doing is not within the wording of any of the claims of your patent, or if the patent is declared to be invalid for any reason, there is no infringement. When you obtain a patent in United States and Canada, you enjoy patent protection that will enable you to sue infringers for all damages sustained after the grant of your patent.
The Patent Act does not require that patents be marked as “Patented.” However, marking an article as patented for patent protection when it isn’t is against the law. You may wish to mark your invention “Patent Applied For” or “Patent Pending” after you have filed your application for patent protection. These phrases have no legal effect but may serve as warnings to others for patent protection and that you’ll be able to enforce the exclusive right to manufacture the invention once a patent is granted.
In obtaining patent protection it is important to do patent search. This will determine if your invention has ever been patented before. Don’t count on obtaining patent protection until it’s actually in hand though.
After doing a preliminary search, patent protection also entails that one should apply for a patent. A patent application consists of an abstract, a specification and often drawings. The abstract is a brief summary of the contents of the specification. The specification comprises:
1. a clear and complete description of the invention and its usefulness;
2. claims which define the boundaries of patent protection.
Your specification must be so clear and complete that it will enable anyone with average skill in the technology to make or use the invention.
Information you specify as protected by your claims cannot be used freely (copied, manufactured or sold) by others until the patent expires. Information not protected by your claims can be used immediately by anyone. The challenge is to draft the claims so that your invention is defined broadly enough to provide maximum patent protection against potential infringers, while at the same time being sufficiently specific to identify your invention and distinguish it from all prior inventions.
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