What is a Patent? Meaning and Importance Explained

Introduction

Creativity is at its peak when it is protected, and the ownership stays with the creator itself. Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) are legal rights provided to people’s creations, such as inventions, designs, artistic works, discoveries, etc. Intellectual Property Rights allow the creator to keep ownership of their work and prevent people from copying or using it without the permission of the creator. Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), such as trademarks, copyrights, industrial designs, etc., are issued by the government so as to protect the works of individuals and to protect the ownership of creative human minds. IPRs are provided for some time of 15 to 120 years, where Patents are provided for 20 years; Copyrights are provided for 70 years after the creator’s death and 95 years after the publication; and Plant Varieties are provided for 15 to 18 years and so on. 

In the rapidly evolving world, patents play a vital role in fostering innovation and protecting intellectual property. This protection safeguards the inventor’s market share, maintains competitiveness, and prevents unauthorized use. These can be granted for a number of inventions, including new products, technologies, etc. Protecting the IPRs is the best way to motivate and incentivize inventors and businesses to invest and build up new ideas, knowing they will have exclusive rights to their creations for a specified time. Without patent protection, investors might hesitate to invest in research and development, knowing that the competitors could easily replicate their work. Patents stimulate creativity in fields like medicine, engineering, technology, etc. Patents, while playing a crucial role in international trade, also help to protect the value of innovations across borders. Patents allow inventors to sell their innovation exclusively at a higher price and help them gain profits. Overall, Patents are essential in fostering creativity, advancing technology, and contributing to economic and social progress.

What is a patent?

The word “Patent” comes from the Latin word “patēre”, which means “to be open”. The Patents Act,1970, governs patent ownership. A patent is a territorial right granted by the Government of India which lasts up to 20 years. It gives the owner the ability to prevent others from using, selling or making their innovation for a given period. The owner has the exclusive right to stop others from commercially exploiting the patented invention for 20 years within the country or the region in which the Patent was provided. Patents play a vital role in fostering innovation and protecting intellectual property. Patents also provide benefits to society by providing public access to technical information about these inventions, thus accelerating innovation. Patent protection does not allow third parties to commercially use, make or sell the invention without the owner’s consent. If the same is carried out, the patent owner can approach the court and seek remedies for the patent infringement. 

Essential elements of Patent

• Exclusive rights: Patents grant exclusive rights to the owner of the inventions for a specific period. 
• Legal Protection: Patents provide legal protection to the inventor’s inventions without them being used by any third party.
• Disclosure of information: In exchange for the exclusive rights given to the owner, the owner must disclose basic technical information about their invention, allowing experts to understand how the invention works. 
• Novelty: The invention must be novel, i.e., the result must not be obvious but should be a result of an inventive activity.
• Utility: The invention must be capable of being used in an industry.
• Law and Morality: The invention must not be contrary to law or morality. 

Types of Patents

Utility Patents

Utility Patents protect the functionality of a product, process, software or any machine. 

Design Patents

Design Patents protect the design or image of a product, such as a shape, design or layout.

Plant Patents

Plant Patents are issued to applicants for plants that can reproduce sexually, such as seedlings, mutants, hybrids and cultivations.

How to Obtain a Patent?

The basic requirements for obtaining a patent are patentable subject matter, utility, novelty, non-obscurity, and enablement. To get a patent, the very first step is to fill out the patent application. This application often includes some primary sections such as:

• The Invention Title: It provides an understanding of the invention or the idea of what the owner has invented. It describes the subject matter and the features of the invention and is concise (15 words or 500 characters). 
• Prior Act: It describes the problem in the market that the new invention, idea, or product addresses. 
• Invention Summary: It provides an accurate and concise description of the proposed idea. This summary is written in language understandable to the general public as the people reviewing the patents are not always in the same field. 
• Drawings and Descriptions: The patent application may even include drawings. These drawings can be of specific parts and measurements or general overviews. 
• Detailed Description: This section is often detailed but direct and omits irrelevant information. This is where a patent application describes how to make and use the item.
• Claims: This section forms the legal basis of the application. 
• Scope: Claims are often designed to be as broad as reasonably possible to best protect against patent infringement, which only occurs when a competing invention includes the same elements of a claim. By drafting broader claims, a patent is more difficult for competitors to design around while avoiding infringement.
• Characteristics: Patent claims are often complete, supported, and precise. Claims should be independent sentences and provide clarity to the reviewer without the help of additional terms like “strong” or “major part”. 

Duration and Renewal

In India, the Patent is granted for 20 years from the date of application. However, if the Patent is filed under the PCT, i.e., The Patent Cooperation Treaty, the Patent is valid for 20 years from the international filing date. 

To renew a patent, the owner must apply with the authorities, and the renewal fee must be paid before the due date, failing which the Patent will cease to be effective. The owner may reinstate a lapsed patent within a six-month grace period coupled with the penalty charges. Once the Patent expires, the invention becomes a part of the public domain and can be used by anyone without the owner’s consent. 

Advantages of Patents

Patents provide their owners with control over their inventions. These valuable assets provide a competitive advantage. 

• Protection from Infringement: A patent filing provides legal protection for 20 years. It offers an inventor exclusive rights, and no one can manufacture or sell the invention without consent. It shall protect the market share for the inventor, remain in competition, and not permit use without authorization. 
• Encourages Innovation: Protecting the game-changing ideas of creative minds is essential in order to promote innovation among people. Patent protection, granted by the government, helps protect these innovations. 
• Increased Profits: By reducing the competition in the market, patents can lead to higher profits for the creators.
• Prevents theft of invention: Patents give a right to prevent others from using the inventions of other people without authorization. The creator has exclusive rights over the invention. 
• Commercial Advantage: Patents provide the creators with a competitive edge in the market. 
• Prestige: Patents bring a degree of prestige, trust and increased brand value to a company. 
• Valuable Assets: Patents can be considered valuable assets as they can be sold anytime or used as collateral. 

Challenges in protecting/ granting Patent Rights in India

Except for these general international requirements of patentability on inventions that need to be new, possess an inventive step and industrial application, this Indian patent act has provisions covered under Section 3 on exceptional grounds relating to inventions that render the subject matter unfit for patentability. 

Computer-related inventions

Section 3(k) bars patentability of computer programs. This objection exists as default for all computer-related inventions. The decision in such cases is not consistent, with different controllers forming their views in terms of the requirement of hardware and whether it must meet the patentability criteria.

Patentability of derivatives of pharmaceutical substances

Section 3(d) restricts patentability of derivatives of a pharmaceutical compound. A derivative has to show a significant difference in therapeutic efficacy with respect to the parent compound for overcoming the barrier of Section 3(d). Based on the explanations and decisions of courts, the Section 3(d) objection should raised only for derivatives of pharmaceutical substances. However, the objection is invariably raised for all applications relating to pharmaceutical drugs, even in the case of innovator compounds. 

Patentability in the life sciences/ biotechnology sector

The life sciences sector faces hurdles in terms of the patentability of in-vitro diagnostic methods and kits because they fall within the category of diagnostic/treatment methods. Further, isolated DNA sequences are also subject to objections for not satisfying the novelty requirement. Thus, the patentee, in such cases, faces problems in convincing the controller of the patentability of the subject matter. 

Challenges in the enforcement of patent rights in India

Patent rights in India can be enforced through civil courts. However, there are no special IP courts set up to deal with these cases. Some challenges in the enforcement of the patent rights can be;

Backlog and time for final decision

The fundamental challenge in the enforcement of patent rights is the time it takes for the court to make a final decision. A patent lawsuit often takes approximately 5-7 years to be finally decided after the trial if contested by the other party. The Commercial Courts Act is helping to speed up the process with case management hearings and time-bound trials. However, the backlog of cases at the court and the shortage of judicial officials have an impact on the time it takes for the final decision on a case. 

Subject matter experts

Section 115 of the Indian Patent Act provides for the appointment of a scientific adviser to assist the courts in giving opinions on technical aspects of a matter. The courts have not frequently used the provision. The appointment of a technical expert in patent infringement suits will not only help to improve the quality of the decision but also reduce the period of the final decision.

Conclusion

Intellectual Property Rights, and patents in particular, are the bedrock for the protection and nurturing of creativity and innovation within a knowledge-based economy. Patents are potent weapons that an inventor can avail; they confer on the former exclusive rights over an invention for a specified time of usually 20 years. This exclusive control prevents the invention from being misused, replicated, or commercially used to the benefit of only the inventor, and thus, the latter stays competitive, enjoys his money, and recuperates the research and development investment. Patents represent the essential incentive to keep the innovative process going by seeing that rewards are met to creators of any good idea for stimulating further innovation within the field of science and technology and arts.  

Patents are essential beyond the individual inventor or corporation. The critical role of patents in contributing to technological progress, augmenting economic growth, and helping further society can come about if they create the conditions that foster protected intellectual property. For instance, inventions in medicine, engineering, or biotechnology rely on protection through patents, among many others, to inspire breakthroughs that will take on these global challenges- disease prevention, climate, and sustainability. Through patenting, complicated problems have innovative solutions, which will not allow the idea or the technology to be taken away without permission to fulfil the benefits.