Is Your Invention Really Inventive?

Young scientists and engineers working on cutting edge science may face every day the importance of protecting intellectual property rights. Though there exists a pressure for being first in publishing a new scientific result or technological achievement, in parallel, there is also a need to seek patent protection for genuine ideas which promise commercial success. What sort of subject-matter is patentable in the US and in Europe? Does the concept of prior art in the US patent law differ from that in Europe? Is it possible that your own written publication would prevent you from obtaining a patent for the same subject? This short presentation aims at giving an idea about the differences of the US and European patent systems and to introduce basic elements of their legal framework – such as the concept of novelty, inventive step, intervening prior art etc. In order to promote better understanding of the issues at stake, examples will be given from the semiconductor industry, LED manufacturing industry and computer inventions.

Speaker: George Vida, European Patent Office