A patent is an exclusive right conferred on person or legal
entity to exclude others from making, using, and selling the
patented invention for a limited time period. The patent can be a
utility or design patent. Utility patents are granted for new and
useful processes, articles, machines and any improvements while
design patents are granted for new and ornamental design of
manufacture. The utility patent protects the method an article is
created and used. On the other hand, design patent protects only
the ornamental appearance of the invention.
Search for patents
Any type of invention requires a thorough search and analysis to
verify its novelty. Large organizations, lawyers, SMEs, and
researchers conduct patent searches in leading patent databases to
determine the relevance of their inventions in light of the
existing art. Patents include technical and legal information. Some
of the reasons organizations need to conduct patent search are:
