Today, I would like to take a closer look at intellectual property rights, especially “patent application process and specification”.
1. Patent application
The invention itself cannot be submitted to the institution in charge of patents (in Korea, the Korean Intellectual Property Office). Instead, a patent is submitted by describing the invention in the form required by the Korean Intellectual Property Office. Basically, the form set by the statute includes a description of who invented the invention and who, if any, an agent, i.e., who has the rights to the patent. And a detailed description of the invention, a detailed description that can be implemented as claimed by a third party who understands and implements it, is required. Finally, a description will be included as to whether the described invention conforms to the inventive step and novelty as a patent, and whether it can be used in industry. Factors to consider when filing a patent application are as follows.
2. Things to consider when applying for a patent
A patent is equivalent to 1 invention. A single patent cannot claim multiple inventions. However, there are exceptions, which are called as group 1 inventions. This is a system that makes it possible to describe all of the various technologies as one patent, exceptionally, if the technical characteristics of several inventions are the same or there is a technical commonality.
Second. The patent you are applying for will be the first application (priorism or earlier applicationism). The Korean Intellectual Property Office recognizes inventions only by those who first applied for a patent as of the date. In other words, even for the same invention, it depends on when you report it to the Korean Intellectual Property Office to decide whether or not you can have the exclusive right to the invention. If multiple patents are filed for the same technology on the same date, the Patent Office recommends an agreement between the applicants, and without an agreement on who owns the patent right, there will be no patent.
The third is a decision between patent application and know-how. The process of determining whether disclosure of technology is beneficial to the person or not, or whether it is beneficial to retain the technology as know-how, because it becomes technology disclosure when filing for a patent. Here are some things to consider for this:
- Is it easy or difficult to detect infringement and claim rights when obtaining a patent?
- Is it easy or difficult to keep confidentiality?
- When technology is disclosed, is it easy or difficult for me to be damaged by overtaking by latecomers?
- see if there is any possibility that competitors can imitate the technology in a non-disclosure state
- Is there a need to do patent marketing (an advertisement like “I have a technology! It's my technology!”)
*It is necessary to secure evidence, such as research notes on technology development, in preparation for claiming the right to a know-how.
The fourth is the patent application period and country. Again, a patent application refers to the disclosure of a technology. Therefore, be aware of the fact that it is a technology disclosure, and evaluate the invention in various aspects such as what the life cycle of the invention is as a technology, how long it takes until the patent office recognizes it as a right, and how much it costs to apply for a patent. It is necessary to carefully consider the extent of the economic benefit. Acquisition of patent rights is ultimately to make money. Therefore, when considering the country where the patent application is filed, it is right to apply for patents in the order of earning more money from the country. Also it would be necessary to evaluate the potential growth of the market, the existence of competing manufacturers, and the effectiveness of protection of patents. .
In summary, a patent application starts with inconvenience and hope for a thing, and the idea of a solution leads to the completion of a specific design for a technical means to achieve the goal. There is a process for preparing a description of the invention in the required format, that is, preparing a specification and filing an application. Even if an invention is made, the claim to the invention depends on the document, that is, the specification submitted to the Korean Intellectual Property Office. Although we will learn more about it in the next lecture, it is better to make the claims in the specification “as broad as possible” as far as “consistent with the inventive step and novelty of the invention”.
Today, we learned about intellectual property rights, especially “patent application process and specifications”. Next time, we will have time to discuss the same topic in a little more detail.
*I am a student learning IP, not an IP expert. Translation is also by Google translator and my own, insufficient English skills. I wanted to deliver the IP related contents in the perspectives of a student. I hope my blog helps people like me.
*The above is what I learned from Professor Moon's intellectual property lecture, which can be viewed through K-mooc. Here is the link to the lecture (you may not be able to view it without logging in).
kmooc.kr/courses/course-v1:YeungnamUnivK+YU21900+2021_01/course
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