Patent Questions Explored

Patents provide powerful protection for a researcher's discovery but determining whether or not to file a patent, and deciding where and when to file, are complex legal and business decisions. In fact, patenting may not be the best commercialization strategy.

What is a patent? A patent is a document which grants an inventor the right to exclude others from making, using or selling his or her invention in the Issuing country for a period of 20 years from the date of filing the patent. Applications require a full description of the invention. All applications issued or not, are published 18 months after filing unless they are withdrawn. More than 120 countries have similar but widely-varying patent legislation.
What can be patented? To be patentable, an invention must be new (not previously known), not an obvious variation of something existing and must be useful. It could be an article of manufacture, apparatus, machine, compound, composition of matter, a method or process, or software.
The Value of Patents - Patents promote the progress of science and technology by encouraging companies to commercialize new technologies. The protection period gives the patent owner sufficient time to recoup his/her investment in developing and bringing the technology to market. The second important benefit is that all patented technology is published, advancing technological knowledge. In fact, not patenting technology can sometimes delay commercialization because companies may be reluctant to invest the development monies without some assurance that others cannot simply copy and market the invention once it is publicly available.
What Is The Cost? For an invention of average complexity, filing applications and obtaining issued patents will cost in the neighbourhood of $30,000 (Cdn) per country. Maintenance fees for the duration of the patent will add another $5,000 to $6,000 over the term of the patent. Nonpayment of a maintenance fee will result in an abandoned patent. International filings outside of Canada and the U.S. can exceed several hundred thousand dollars to obtain issued patents.
Other Protection - In today’s environment of rapidly-changing markets, it is possible the invention could become obsolete before the patent is issued. Protecting the technology as long as necessary through copyright or as a trade secret may be a better alternative. UTI can provide you with more information on intellectual property protection alternatives.

Patenting, like any international application of law, can be extremely complex. UTI has the training, experience and expertise to guide you through the important decisions involved in patenting and other aspects of technology commercialization.