Defining novelty
The standards for meeting patentability criteria under the
Patents Act 1970 are emphasised to reward the contributors of an
invention. Among these criteria, novelty is a vital and absolute
condition for patentability. An invention is considered
'novel' if it is not in the public domain anywhere in the
world, and is analysed using existing expertise in the relevant
field of technology.
Sections 2(1)(l) and 2(1)(j) of the Patents Act highlight the
difference between a new invention and an invention. A
'new invention' is defined as:
"any invention or technology
which has not been anticipated by publication in any document or
used in the country or elsewhere in the world before the date of
filing of patent application with complete specification, i.e., the
subject matter has not fallen in public domain or that it does not
form part of the state of the art".
