PUBP 4640: Patents - Part 2

Design Patents

Protects new, original, and ornamental designs for an article of manufacture.

Utility patent

Protects any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter.

35 U.S.C. § 101

Defines the scope of utility patents, including what can be patented.

35 U.S.C. § 171(a)

Defines the scope of design patents, including what can be patented.

Design element functionality

Design patents are not granted for elements that are primarily functional, but they can be functional to some extent.

Apple v. Samsung

A patent infringement case involving design patents, resulting in significant damages.

International Patent Protection

Options include the Paris convention and PCT, allowing for international filing and protection.

Grace period

Time after disclosure to file a patent, with variations in duration across different countries.

European Patent Office (EPO)

Grants patents enforceable in 39 member states, with consistent requirements but different patentability standards.

First to file

The U.S. is now a 'first to file' country for patents.

Provisional patent

A placeholder to protect an invention without requiring claims, with a draft application and various components.

Submarine patents

Patents kept secret while standards are developed, to be avoided through disclosure requirements.

Patent Claims

The patent owner's exclusive rights to what is claimed, including types like apparatus, method, and means + function claims.

USPTO Patent Dashboard

A resource providing patent statistics and information, possibly including application and grant data.

Patent Enforcement and Defenses

Options for patent owners and accused infringers, including ignoring, negotiating, or litigating infringement claims.

United States District Court

A venue for patent litigation, where validity, infringement, damages, and injunctions can be decided.

International Trade Commission

An alternative venue for patent litigation, with the ability to judge validity and infringement.

Validity

The legal status of a patent being legally binding and enforceable.

Infringement

The action of violating a patent holder's exclusive rights by making, using, selling, or offering to sell the patented invention without permission.

Injunction

A court order prohibiting a party from performing a certain act, such as importing infringing products.

Administrative Law

The body of law that governs the activities of administrative agencies of government.

USPTO

United States Patent and Trademark Office, responsible for granting patents and registering trademarks.

ITC

International Trade Commission, responsible for investigating and ruling on matters of international trade, including patent infringement involving imported goods.

District Court

A state or federal trial court that has jurisdiction over cases arising within a specific judicial district.

Burden of Proof

The obligation to prove a disputed assertion or charge.

Clear and Convincing Evidence

A higher standard of proof than preponderance of the evidence, but lower than beyond a reasonable doubt, often required in civil cases involving patent validity.

Preponderance of the Evidence

The standard of proof in a civil case, requiring that the existence of a fact is more probable than its nonexistence.

Declaratory Judgment

A binding judgment by a court defining the legal relationship between parties and their rights in the matter before the court.

Inter Partes Review (IPR)

A trial proceeding conducted at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board to review the patentability of one or more claims in a patent.

Post Grant Review (PGR)

A trial proceeding conducted at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board to review the patentability of one or more claims in a patent, available within 9 months after a patent is issued.

Anticipation

A ground for invalidating a patent claim when the subject matter of the claim is not new or novel.

Obviousness

A ground for invalidating a patent claim when the subject matter would have been obvious at the time the invention was made to a person having ordinary skill in the art.

Literal Infringement

Infringement that occurs when every element of a patent claim is found in an accused product.

Doctrine of Equivalents

A legal rule that allows a court to find infringement even if the accused product or process does not literally infringe the express terms of a patent claim.

Remedy for Infringement

The compensation or relief sought by a patent holder for the unauthorized use of their patented invention, including damages, injunctions, and post-trial briefing.

Willful Infringement

The intentional infringement of a patent with knowledge of the patent and without a reasonable defense for the infringement.

Irreparable Injury

Harm that cannot be fully compensated or rectified by monetary damages.

Appeals Court

A court that hears appeals from a lower court and has the authority to review and overturn the decision.