You can sell your product for up to one year and then file a patent application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. However, it isn’t recommended because someone else can easily steal your idea based on your marketing efforts. Of course, nothing that you do for the first year of commercialization will prevent you from getting a patent. However, if someone else … [Read more...]
Bars to patentability
The bars to patentability are public use, offer for sale and printed publication. After one year from the earliest of one of these events, the inventor is barred from seeking patent protection.
Browse related articles below.
Can you patent an existing product?
You've just seen a product and think that it is incredible. You want to start selling it, but first, you want to know if you can get a patent on that existing product. You cannot get a patent for an existing product for two reasons. First, you are not the inventor. Second, the existing product is not new (i.e., novel). But, nonobvious improvements to the product and new … [Read more...]
Experimental use of invention jeopardizes validity of patent
By experimental use, I mean testing an invention. Conducting a test in public can jeopardize the resulting patent if a patent application was not filed before public testing started. The patent can be invalidated in at least two ways. First, the patent can be invalidated if an alleged infringer successfully argues that the public testing qualifies as a public use under 35 … [Read more...]
On sale bar applies even if offer doesn’t publicly disclose details of invention
In Helsinn Healthcare v. Teva Pharmaceuticals (Fed. Cir. 5/1/17), the Federal Circuit held that under the America Invents Act (AIA), if the existence of the sale is public, the details of the invention need not be publicly disclosed for the on sale bar to apply. The Federal Circuit made clear that to the extent that the existence of an offer for sale of the invention is public, … [Read more...]
Printed publication may include web pages
1. Printed publication being a category of prior art includes online content Patent laws require that the invention be new and non obvious over existing information in the public domain. Information about the invention can enter the public domain and become prior art through various means including but not limited to posting information on the internet which may be deemed a … [Read more...]
No supplier exception to the on-sale bar
Summary The time between conception of a product and marketing of that product has many landmines that can destroy an inventor’s ability to obtain patent protection. In The Medicines Company v. Hospira, Inc. (Fed. Cir. 2015), The Medicines Company’s patent was invalidated for being on sale for more than one year even though no product was sold to a customer. The Medicines … [Read more...]
Pitfalls of one year grace period under the FITF rules
Under current U.S. patent laws, the first inventor to file (FITF) a patent application on an invention is awarded the patent. This means that if two individuals separately file patent applications on the same idea, then the person who first filed its patent application in the U.S. Patent Office will be awarded the patent. The Patent Office merely looks to the filing dates of … [Read more...]
Be wary of marketing invention before filing a patent application
Entrepreneurs typically undertake a number of efforts in order to sell a product. They demonstrate their products to the public and one-on-one to buyers. They may engage in cold calls to set up customer meetings, place informational content on a website to provide more information about the product and attach files to e-mails. These efforts can be broadly categorized as a … [Read more...]