The invention patent

Patent: this is the qualification with which the State gives exclusive control over the use of an invention to its inventor. This control is limited to the inventor’s territory, so to prevent others from producing, selling or using the invention. The patent lasts a maximum of twenty years from when the patent application is placed. The patent holder, in exchange, must reveal and describe the invention (protection in exchange of communication).

Invention: a new (that is to say not previously shared with the public before being deposited) and original solution (that means it is considered not obvious by  an expert in the field) of a technical problem that can be industrially applied.

Italian patent: to require an Italian patent it is necessary to deposit an application (even via computer) directly to the UIBM (Italian office for patents and trademarks) or to the offices of the chamber of commerce.

Foreign patent: the deposit of a patent abroad or the extension of an Italian patent abroad can be carried out nationally (that means a patent application is deposited in each country of interest for the same invention), or it can be carried out referring to unified procedures controlled by international agreements, such as:

• European patent: this is the European unified issuing procedure, at the end of which, the inventor is the holder of as many patents as the number of states he asked protection in. A European patent becomes effective separately for each country and is valid in a specific territory.
• International patent or PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty): this is the international unified deposit procedure, at the end of which,  the inventor must continue the issuing procedure in every chosen country. Through the PCT it is possible to ask for an international preliminary examination to receive an opinion about the patent possibility. This is not binding for the national offices that must singularly decide about the issue.