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How to read a patent?Karen Curé

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Patent Application (A-doc)

- After 18 months published

- Search Report

- English, French or German

- Limited legal value

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Granted patent (B-doc)

- Takes 3 to 7 years

- Shorter than application

- Translated in local language

- Strong legal value

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Reasons to read a patent:

- Scientific information

- Prior Art

- Company information

- How to copy

- Other players in the field

- Are we free to produce / market?

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Why do we read a patent?

PRIOR ART FREEDOM TO OPERATE

Is our invention still new? Are we infringing?

Consider the whole document (as any other publication)

Consider the claims

(description of the claims to interpret the claims)

Legal status of the patent is not important

Check legal status

Check search report

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1. Title page: Administrative data

2. Description: Scientific data

3. Claims: Juridical data

Different parts of a patent

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TITLE PAGE

- Title (product, method, process, use)

- Abstract (“secret molecule”)- Applicant: owner of the patent- Inventors- First filing date: priority date- Publication number- main drawing

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INTRODUCTION

Scientific information

- Technical field

- Background information- Situation of the technical problem

- Description of the most relevant prior art

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INVENTION

New and inventive

- Solving drawback of prior art

- Inventive step: “Surprisingly”

Most important advantages

- other technical problems : “in a preferred embodiment...”

- Drawings, grafics, examplesPractical info

First claim

Other claims

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DESCRIPTION (details of the invention)

• Explanation of the claims.

• “Reservoir” of technical information, needed for amending claims.

No scientific value

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THE CLAIMS

• Legal interpretation (no scientific relevance)

• Claims– Protection scope of different types of claims– Dependent and independent claims– Preamble + invention– Claim with different features– Difference between EP and US claims

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INVENTION (example)

• Blue pigment in fish feed– Technical problem:

• To colour fish fee blue not inventive

• Blue pigment is surprisingly an anti-oxidant inventive

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CLAIMS Fish feed with blue pigment

Process for a fish feed with blue pigment

Product

Method

Use

Method to prevent oxidation in fish feed

Use of blue pigment in fish feed to prevent oxidation

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• 1. Feed for aquatic organisms characterised in that said feed comprises a blue pigment

2. feed according to claim 1, characterised in that said blue pigment is patent blue.

3. feed according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that said feed comprises at least 50 mg/kg, preferably more than 100 mg/kg and most preferably more than 150 mg/kg of said blue pigment.

4. Method to prevent oxidation in fish feed characterised in that said fish feed comprises a blue pigment.

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• Feed for aquatic organisms, like fish and / or shrimp, wherein said feed comprises more than 50% lipids, of which said lipids comprises more than 30% highly unsaturated fatty acids characterised in that said feed contains a blue pigment.

INVENTIONPrior art

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• Feed for aquatic organisms characterised in that

Said feed comprises :

A. More than 50% lipids

B. Vitamin C

C. Blue pigment

Infringement when: A+B+C or A+B+C+X

No infringement when: A+B or A+C or B+C or A or B or C

Infringement when: A+B+D when D is a logic equivalent for C

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EP US - Claim

European model

Feed according to claim 1or 2

characterised in that said feed

comprises

at least > 2% blue pigment,

preferably > 10%,

more preferably > 20%

and most preferably > 35%

American model

Feed according to claim 1 wherein said feed comprises > 2% blue pigment

Feed according to claim 1 wherein said feed comprises > 10% blue pigment

Feed according to claim 1 wherein said feed comprises > 20% blue pigment

Feed according to claim 1 wherein said feed comprises > 35% blue pigmentAND / OR

AND

OR± 15 claims ± 50 claims

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Search Report

• X- documents Novelty• 2 Y- documents Inventive step• A documents Same technical field

Will the patent be ever granted?

Literature review

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Why do you read a patent?

- Scientific document Introduction + Invention

- Company profile Title page

- To know the process Examples

- Copying Examples + legal status (claims) + SR

- To know competitors Title page + invention + claim 1

- Freedom to operate Legal status + claims (description)

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PRIOR ART FREEDOM TO OPERATE

PUBLICATION LEGAL DOCUMENT

- Scientific document- Info competitors- Info processes, products- Market information

- You want to copy - You are accused of infringement

Legal status of the patent is not important

Check legal status

Check search report

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- Where to get patent documents

patent databases:

- Espacenet: free

- Delphion: UGent

- more databases incorporated

- downloading documents: easier

- statistics, graphics

- patent alert system