The United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO or USPTO), established in 1802, is an agency under the U.S. Department of Commerce. It is primarily responsible for providing patent protection, trademark registration, and intellectual property certification for inventors and their related inventions.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office is an important agency that handles national patent and trademark application and approval procedures. It is affiliated with the U.S. Department of Commerce. The main responsibilities of the United States Patent and Trademark Office are to provide patent protection, trademark registration and intellectual property certification for inventors and their related inventions.
The United States is one of the earliest countries in the world to implement the patent system. Article 1, Section 8, Clause 8 of the Constitution of the United States, enacted in September 1787, clearly stipulates: "For the advancement of science and useful arts, Congress shall have power to secure for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries." This is also the legislative basis for the United States Patent Act.
The first United States Patent Act was signed by the President of the United States on April 10, 1790. The current law was enacted in 1952 and was subsequently revised twice, in 1984 and 1994. On November 29, 1999, then-US President Clinton signed the American Inventor Protection Act, which directly included many important provisions in the current law, including changing the non-public review system to an early public delayed review system.
USPTO Examination Process
The current U.S. Patent Law divides patents into three types: invention patents, design patents and plant patents, with a protection period of 20 years from the date of application.
Section 111 of the United States Patent Act (35 U.S.C. §111) clearly stipulates the patent application: the patent application shall be submitted by the inventor or his authorized person in written application documents; and all relevant fees shall be paid within the statutory period. Therefore, the four major elements of a U.S. patent application are: 1. Description (i.e., description of the invention and at least one claim); 2. Drawings (if necessary); 3. Affidavit or declaration (usually signed by the inventor); 4. Fees (various statutory fees payable). Among them, the first two elements are the basic conditions for obtaining an application date.
USPTO patent application approval process:
The inventor or his authorized person submits the application → the USPTO acceptance department receives it, determines the date of receipt and gives an application number → the application department conducts a formal review and determines the application date, completes document processing and data collection, and the rights transfer department handles matters related to rights transfer → classification → the application is assigned to the examination department for examination according to the classification number. The examination process mainly includes: 1) Formal examination and search 2) Substantive examination 3) Applicant's response 4) Reexamination 5) Final decision → If you are dissatisfied with the decision, you can appeal to the Patent Appeals and Interferences Board.
Before the 1999 amendment to the U.S. Patent Act, patent applications were not published before they were granted and were kept confidential by the USPTO. To be consistent with the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, the United States Patent Act, as revised in 1999, stipulates that patent applications shall be published immediately after 18 months from the filing date or priority date, and the applicant may also request early publication.
