Patent Rights

When an invention officially and legally belongs to its creator, then that person holds a patent on their invention.U.S Statutes affirm that official patent owners have "the right to exclude others from using, making, offering for sale, or selling" of that invention within the United States. You should seek the assistance of patent and trademark attorneys to learn more about patent rights and patent infringement.

Are you interested in getting a patent on an invention? Contact our Intellectual Property Advisors to find patent and trademark attorneys in your area.

Patents allow for a select set of rights approved by the state where the patent was registered. In order to qualify for these rights the potential patent owner must submit at least one claim explaining and defining the invention. The invention must be new, original, and functional. A patent affords the right to prevent others from the reproduction, use, or commercial application of the invention without the explicit permission of the inventor. It is not however, a right to use the invention. Nevertheless, the patent holder can sell, lease, license, transfer, or even give away the patent. Anyone who builds on and markets the expanded upon patented invention before the patent expires is committing patent infringement. A patent is not a right to build an invention, it is an exclusionary right designed to keep others from claiming the invention. An inventor can take an existing invention under patent and add an improvement to it, thereby creating a better version of the original invention. This invention cannot be produced without the permission of the original patent holder.

There are three main types of patents. They are as follows:

• Plant Patents: This is for individuals that successfully discover and asexually reproduce a new plant
• Utility Patents: These may be granted to anyone who discovers/invents a new type of machine or process
• Design Patents: These may be granted to anyone who invents an ornamental design

So, who can apply for a patent? Usually, it is only the inventor. An exception to this rule may be made if the inventor is deceased, cannot be found, or is legally insane. In other circumstances, more than one inventor may apply for a patent as joint inventors if they created the invention together.

What is something that you can't get a patent on? You cannot get a patent on a suggestion or idea. In the case that a patent will not apply to your idea or concept, you can try to register your concept as a trademark, copyright, industrial design, or trade secret. All these types of intellectual property rights afford similar laws to different ideas of original thought, concept, or design.

Are you interested in getting a patent on an invention? Contact our Intellectual Property Advisors to find patent and trademark attorneys in your area.