Patent Documents

Patent documents are published by national, regional or international Patent Offices. Patent Documents contain information on inventions, for which a patent is requested or has already been granted, or for which a utility model has been registered. There are several kinds of documents: publications of the unexamined application, publications of the examined application, patent specification, utility model and translations of all these documents or parts of them. All these kinds of documents are frequently grouped together under the term "patent".

Patent Documents as Sources of Technical Information

Each year, more than one million patent documents (patent speciations) are published, based on inventions. Investigations have shown that only a small proportion of inventions are described in other sources in addition to their appearance in the patent literature. This is why patent information is such an indispensable means of acquiring knowledge on the state of the art, and why it is so important for innovation processes. Unfortunately, the double nature of a patent document (i.e. the fact that it is both a technical document and a legal document) is frequently perceived as hindering the accessibility of its contents.

Patent Compared to Design (Utility Model)

A patent or design (utility model) confers on its proprietor exclusive rights of use for the invention, though these rights are limited in time and limited in territorial scope. The rights can be sold, and licences can be conceded. A patent is often the only means of preventing imitations of products, which have been researched, developed and launched at significant cost to the product originator. There are a few essential differences between designs and patents: designs (utility models) can only be used to protect products, not processes, a preclusive period to novelty of six months applies, and the duration of validity is shorter.

Obtaining a Copy of a Patent Document

If you are having difficulties obtaining a copy of a patent document, contact us to obtain a copy for you.