Patent Application Questions

What is a patent application?

A patent application is defined as a request that is waiting at the patent office for the approval of a patent for a creation that is stated and claimed on that application. The patent application includes an explanation, includes the official forms and letters that relate to this type of application. The expression patent application is also known as the process of applying for a patent.

What are the different types of patent applications?

There are six different types of patent application, these different types include:
1. Ordinary Application- which is the first application for patent that is filed in the Patent Office without claiming the main concern from any application.
2. Convention Application- this application is when an individual files for a patent application and the person claims a main concern with the date that is based on the same or similar application that is filed in at least one if not more of the convention countries.
3. PCT- International Application- A PCT international application provides efficient process for a patent application in many countries at that same time.
4. PCT- National Phase Application- As for this application an individual must enter into the national phase which means to file a national phase application in each country that they wish to enter. The individual can enter the national phase in up to at least 138 countries within 30 to 31 months, all which depends on the countries laws.
5. Application for Patent of Addition- This application is made for a patent for any improvements or changes.
6. Divisional Application- this application in one that has been divided from another application. The individual should at any time before being allowed the patent can file for another application. If he or she requests or if a protest comes about by an examiner as to if the claims are released in the complete arrangement that relates to more than on creation.

For more information pertaining to Patent Applications turn to the thousands of Experts for fast and reliable answers.

If an U.S. patent application shows that it was abandoned how does someone get this problem fixed if they cannot contact the attorney in which filed the patent application?

In this case, the individual can file a petition to renew the abandoned patent application, if the individual waits to contact the Office the action letter will be considered accidental. The individual will have two month grace period from the date that they had received the notion of the abandonment to renew the application. Now, if the individual does not respond in a timely fashion the application will be considered “dead” and the individual will then have to start the application process all over again.

In the state of Texas if someone had filed a patent application and a examiner had been assigned, now the owner wants to make some changes, should the individual go ahead and do this or wait to hear from the examiner?

Since, the individual has more than likely already received a first Office Action, the individual would need to contact them with any changes to their claims. The Examiner will take into consideration these different changes and will either present a notice of allowance or another Office Action will reject the changes. It is wise to wait for the next time the individual will speak with the Examiner before making any other changes, because the changes may be pointless. The individual can contact the Examiner and request that the two of you set up a time to talk about the application and see if either one comes to an agreement on the changes then that could be allowed. This process can often times be very time consuming, some applications are still is examination for over 5 years.

If a patent application has many creators, does that mean that the whole patent is owned by all these creators?

In this case, that would be true; the ownership would be considered equal between everyone involved, unless otherwise stated. The patent alone does not affect with the issues of ownership. The ownership between everyone that is involved would need to be stated in a private contract and/or agreement. With that being said there is no guess as to who shared the ownership based on the number of claims that is given by each creator.

The patent application can take up to many months or even years to be granted. So when decided on a patent application make sure that each step is done properly so no one will have to go back and redo it or wait any longer. There are Legal Experts online who can provide patent application help. Before jumping into something that you are not completely informed on contact these Experts