Patentability

Patentability is the legal eligibility of an invention for patent protection. It is assessed under requirements such as novelty, inventive step, and industrial applicability.

Novelty: A patentability requirement that an invention must not already be disclosed in prior art. Novelty asks whether any earlier disclosure contains the claimed invention.
Patent examination: The administrative review of a patent application to determine whether it meets legal requirements. Examiners assess patentability by comparing claims with prior art and applying statutory tests.
Patent infringement: The unauthorized making, using, selling, offering for sale, or importing of a patented invention. Patentability concerns whether protection may be granted; infringement concerns conduct under an existing patent.
Software patent: A patent whose claims cover software or a computer-implemented invention. Software claims raise jurisdiction-specific questions about eligible subject matter and technical contribution.
Patent disclosure: The public description of an invention required in a patent application in exchange for potential exclusive rights. Patentability depends on adequate disclosure, which also makes technical knowledge publicly accessible.
Inventive step: A patentability requirement that an invention must not be obvious to a person skilled in the relevant field. This test excludes inventions that follow plainly from existing knowledge.
Patent application: A formal request to a patent office for protection of an invention. The application presents claims and disclosures that the office evaluates for eligibility.
Freedom to operate: An assessment of whether a product or process can be commercialized without infringing others’ intellectual property rights. An invention can be patentable yet still fall within another party’s enforceable claims.
Biotechnology patent: A patent covering a biotechnological invention, such as a biological material, process, or application. Biotechnology tests novelty and industrial applicability while confronting rules for biological subject matter.
Patent term: The period during which a patent can provide enforceable exclusive rights, subject to applicable law. A patentable invention may receive time-limited protection rather than permanent control.

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