File a Patent in India
File a Patent in India
A patent is a right granted to an individual or enterprise by the government that excludes others from making, using, selling or importing the patented product or process without prior approval.
Every Indian inventor who wants to protect his/her intellectual property, irrespective of their sector, looks through ways on how to file a patent in India. Patent filing in India requires proper documents and is a fairly complicated ordeal, however, with the right legal guidance it can be done easily.
Why filing a Patent in India? - Benefits
Granting of a patent is a form of encouragement for innovations and inventions, and once a patent applicant files for it he or she becomes the exclusive owner of the invention if the patent is granted.
Filing a patent in India is important as it restricts the contenders from copying, selling or importing the inventors’ creation without their permission, and it is valid for a period of 20 years from the date of application of the patent.
A patent, like any other intellectual property, can be transferred or sold by the inventor.
ADVANTAGES OF OWNING A PATENT
A patented product is likely to improve brand perception and potentially enable your business to charge a premium.
Additionally,
i) Patents can increase your business revenues while slowing down rivals for years to come.
ii) With exclusive rights, the owner of the patent controls the use of the invention for a full twenty years.
iii) Patents can be sold and licensed like other forms of property
How to get a Patent in India? – A detailed patent filing process
Patents can be secured by following the below-mentioned steps:
The procedure for the grant of the patent begins with the
Step 1: Filing a patent application:
Idealization: Here, you need to clearly pen down the idea or concept, clearly mentioning the key details about the invention and the desired patent.
Visualization: Visualize your idea and elements like diagrams that explain more about the invention.
Verification: Verify whether your invention is patent-able as defined in the Indian Patent Act. Some inventions may not be patent-able, and it is necessary they meet the patent-ability requirements such as:
- Novelty
- Non-obviousness
- Usefulness
- Patent able subject matter
Drafting a patent application is an art in itself. Seeking the help of a patent professional will be a wise choice here. If you are in the initial stages of research and development process, then it is best to file an optional preliminary application called provisional patent application.
Step 2: Preparation of patent-ability report: Authorized patent professionals or patent agents will then do an extensive research and prepare the patent-ability report, which includes analyses based on the above-mentioned criteria.
WHY PROVISIONAL PATENT APPLICATION IS A GOOD IDEA BEFORE FILING THE PATENT APPLICATION
A provisional patent application secures your date and work. This means that none of your competitors can file for a similar invention once an provisional patent application is filed.
- As India follows the first-to-file system, this ensures that the holder of the provisional patent would also be granted the permanent patent
- There is a buffer time of 12 months to further develop your invention and to specify the its complete details. The application gets abandoned upon expiry of 12 months of the application
- The cost and resource involved for provisional patent application are less when compared to the permanent patent
- The provisional specification helps you assess the market potential of your invention before taking the final plunge and filing a complete specification.
- Once you are ready with your R&D and your invention’s detailed specifications, you can go in for a complete patent application.
Step 3: Publication of patent application: The application is then published after 18 months. A request to early filing of application can be made along with a prescribed fee.
PLEASE NOTE:
A. Patent Examination: would be a formal submission of request for patent examination that must be filed within 48 months from first filing the patent (provisional patent or complete patent). If failed to file within the time frame, per the Patent Act the application will be treated as withdrawn by the patent office. The examiner then conducts a comprehensive investigation and releases the first examination report called patent prosecution.
B. Patent objections: It is common that patent applicants receive objections, like “inconsistent or unclear claims”, “invention lacking novelty”, etc. Hence, it is mandatory to analyse the patent examination report and draft a proper response to the objections.
Grant of patent: Once all the patent-ability requirements are met, the patent grant notification will be published in the Patent Journal.
How to make money from Patenting your invention?
Any patent holder looks for ways to monetize the patents and wants to enjoy the fruits of his hard work and research. The two ways to earn from it are:
LICENSING A PATENT:
A patent owner can license his idea to another and give rights to the licensee to sell or make the patented invention. The patent holder can control these rights. A license agreement must include upfront payment and royalty percentage. Royalty is the percentage of the revenue earned from the licensed product over a period of time.
SELLING OF PATENT:
A patent can be sold to anyone within the country where the invention is patented. By selling patents, inventors can usually demand a lump-sum payment and is best in the long run. He can be free from maintenance fees for the patent office, litigation fees and most importantly free from worrying about future economic recession.
Publication of Filed Patent
The Indian patent office keeps every patent application confidential until it gets officially published in the Patent Journal.
The publication of filed patent happens automatically after 18 months from filing the applications, and there is no need of any request to be raised.
To get the patent published in advance, the applicant has to initiate a formal request and it will get published within 1 month of the request.
The publication date does matter the most as the inventor is entitled to protect his work legally post publication.
Licensed Patent agent in India
A licensed patent agent in India is an individual registered for practicing before the Indian Patent Office. Patent agents will help in filling out the necessary forms, contacting the patent office, prosecuting patent applications, and in following up with any issues that arise during the filing of patent. To become a patent agent, the individual should be a citizen of India above 21 years of age and must have cleared the patent agent examination.
A patent examiner is the person who sends the list of rejections and at times when there arises the need to modify the patent application, patent agent can intervene and address the issue or argue against the rejection.
PATENT ATTORNEY
Often the terms “patent lawyer” or “patent agent” are interchangeable but still there are some differences between both at some instances. Patent lawyers are legally qualified to provide advice on intellectual property, infringement and represent others in a court of law. They are also registered with the bar council whereas a patent agent generally holds a degree in engineering, science, and technology.
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