Octrooiencentrum

8 important questions on Octrooiencentrum

Kinds of protection/ intellectual property

- Industrial property
- Designs
- Trademarks
- Patents

What is a patent?

A temporary right issued by the government of a country which gives you the right to prevent your competitor:


  • To produce
  • To import
  • To have in stock
  • To trade
  • To use in company


Beware: Patent applications and granted patents are published.
The 'social contract' implicit in the patent system
- reveal invention
- Get exclusivity
... so that others can learn from it and improve upon it!

Requirements for a patent

You can apply for a patent for anything technical.


You only obtain the patent right when it is:
  1. New (worldwide)
  2. Inventive
  3. Industrial applicable (solution for a problem)
  • Higher grades + faster learning
  • Never study anything twice
  • 100% sure, 100% understanding
Discover Study Smart

Misunderstanding with a patent I am protected

Your own responsibility to detect infringement


• You have to start a legal procedure yourself


• Patents can be nullified (novelty, inventive step)

PCT= worldwide procedure





  • Central application for 137 countries WIPO
  • Filing in: English, French, German, Spanish, Japanese, Chinese of


Russian
  • Novelty search and preliminary examination
  • Publication 18 months after filing


• Procedure stops after 30 months (no grant!)


• Procedure continues in countries or regions of choice (By sending PCT application to national office)

Found a document? whats next?

• Check the status: (Is the application granted and is it still valid)


  • Negotiate about a licence
  • Buy the patent
  • Develop another technique

What not to do when considering filing a patent application



• No publication prior to filing
e.g. no article, press release, conference


presentation/poster/proceedings or blog entry


• No sale of products incorporating the invention prior to filing


• No lecture or presentation prior to filing
except under a non-disclosure agreement (NDA)


  • Seek professional advice soon!
  • File before others do!

Importance of intellectual property

• Essential business asset in the knowledge economy
- Swedishsteel-makerSandvik:20%ofitsvalueisfromIP!


• Increases funding for innovative projects
- WithoutIPmanyinnovativeprojectswouldnotbeprofitable


because anyone who wanted could simply copy the results


• Protects small innovative firms
- Dolby® Laboratories
- W.L.Gore&Associates(Gore-Tex®)


• Needed to release IP into the public domain under controlled conditions:
- Linux(GPL):improvementsmustbefreetoo!

The question on the page originate from the summary of the following study material:

  • A unique study and practice tool
  • Never study anything twice again
  • Get the grades you hope for
  • 100% sure, 100% understanding
Remember faster, study better. Scientifically proven.
Trustpilot Logo