What are the objects of patent rights?
The objects of patent rights, also known as the objects protected by patent law, refer to Inventions and creations for which patent rights should be granted according to law. According to Article 2 of my country’s Patent Law, the objects of patent law include inventions, utility models and designs.
1. Invention
Invention refers to Products and methods Or new technical solutions proposed for its improvement. An invention must be a technical solution, the result of the inventor's application and combination of natural laws in a specific technical field, rather than the natural laws themselves. Therefore, scientific discoveries do not fall within the category of inventions. At the same time, inventions are usually intellectual achievements in the field of natural sciences, and achievements in the fields of literature, art and social sciences cannot constitute inventions within the meaning of patent law.
According to the provisions of the patent examination system, inventions are divided into two types: product inventions and method inventions. They can be either original inventions or improved inventions. . Product invention is the invention of new products or new substances. This kind of product or substance has never been seen in nature, and is the result of humans using the laws of nature to act on specific things. If an item is completely in a natural state and exists without anyone's processing or transformation, it is not a product invention stipulated in my country's patent law and cannot obtain patent rights. Method invention refers to the invention of means and steps used to solve a specific technical problem. Methods that can be patented usually include two categories: manufacturing methods and operating methods. The former such as product manufacturing processes, processing methods, etc., and the latter such as testing methods, product usage methods, etc. Improvement inventions are technical solutions that substantially innovate existing product inventions or method inventions. For example, Edison invented the self-incandescent lamp. The incandescent lamp is an unprecedented new product, and you can apply for product invention; the method of producing the incandescent lamp can apply for a method patent; filling the inert gas with the incandescent lamp has a certain quality and lifespan. Significantly improved, this is an improvement based on the original basis, and you can apply for an improvement invention.
2. Utility model
Utility model refers to the design of a product Shape, structure or combination thereofNew technical solutions that are suitable for practical use. Utility model patents only protect products. The product should be an entity manufactured by industrial methods and occupying a certain space. All related methods (including the use of products) and naturally occurring items that have not been artificially manufactured are not protected objects of utility model patents. The above methods include the manufacturing method of the product, the method of use, the communication method, the processing method, the computer program and the use of the product for specific purposes. For example, a gear manufacturing method, a dust removal method in a workshop, a data processing method, a naturally occurring rain flower stone, etc. cannot obtain utility model patent protection.
The shape of a product refers to the definite spatial shape of the product that can be observed from the outside. The technical solution proposed for the product shape can be a technical solution proposed for the three-dimensional spatial shape of the product, such as improvements to the cam shape and tool shape; it can also be a technical solution proposed for the two-dimensional shape of the product, For example, improvements to the cross-sectional shape of profiles. For products with no definite shape, such as gaseous, liquid, powdery, or granular substances or materials, their shape cannot be used as the shape feature of a utility model product.
The structure of a product refers to the arrangement, organization and interrelationship of the various components of the product. It can be a mechanical construction or a circuit construction. The mechanical structure refers to the relative positional relationship, connection relationship and necessary mechanical cooperation relationship of the components that constitute the product; the circuit structure refers to the determined connection relationship between the components that constitute the product.
3. Appearance design
Appearance design is also called industrial product Appearance design refers to a new design that is aesthetically pleasing and suitable for industrial application, based on the shape, pattern, or combination of the product, as well as the combination of color, shape, and pattern.
The carrier of the design must be a product. Product refers to any item produced by industrial methods. Handicrafts, agricultural products, livestock products, and natural objects that cannot be produced repeatedly cannot be used as carriers of designs. Generally, the color of a product cannot independently constitute a design unless the color change itself forms a pattern. The combinations that can constitute an appearance design include: the shape of the product; the pattern of the product; the shape and pattern of the product; the shape and color of the product; the pattern and color of the product; the shape, pattern and color of the product.
Shape refers to the design of product shape, that is, the appearance outline presented by the movement, change, and combination of points, lines, and surfaces outside the product, that is, the shape of the product. The structure and appearance of the product are the result of simultaneous design and manufacturing; pattern refers to the arrangement of any lines, text, symbols, and color blocks.Graphics formed by columns or combinations on the surface of a product. Patterns can be produced by drawing or other means that reflect the designer's pattern design ideas. The pattern of the product should be fixed and visible, and should not be occasional or need to be seen under specific conditions; color refers to the color or combination of colors used on the product, and the true color of the materials used to make the product Not the color of the exterior design.
Objects not protected by patent law
1. Violate the law, social ethics or hinder public interests inventions and creations. National laws refer to laws formulated and promulgated by the National People's Congress or the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress in accordance with legislative procedures. It does not include administrative rules and regulations. If the purpose of the invention is contrary to national laws, patent rights cannot be granted. For example, equipment, machines or tools used for gambling; drug paraphernalia, etc. cannot be granted patent rights. The purpose of the invention itself does not violate national laws, but if it violates national laws due to misuse, it does not fall into this category.
2. Scientific discovery. It refers to the revelation of objective phenomena, change processes, and characteristics and laws in nature. Scientific theory is a summary of the understanding of the natural world and a broader discovery. They are all extensions of people's understanding. These recognized substances, phenomena, processes, characteristics and laws are different from technical solutions to transform the objective world. They are not inventions and creations in the sense of patent law, and therefore cannot be granted patent rights.
3. Rules and methods of intellectual activities. Intellectual activity refers to the movement of human thinking. It originates from human thinking and produces abstract results through reasoning, analysis and judgment, or it must be used as a medium to indirectly act on nature to produce results. It is only The rules and methods that guide people to think, identify, judge and remember information do not constitute a technical solution because they do not use technical means or utilize natural laws, nor do they solve technical problems or produce technical effects. For example, traffic driving rules, grammar of various languages, speed algorithms or oral judgments, psychological testing methods, various games, entertainment rules and methods, music scores, recipes, chess scores, computer programs themselves, etc.
4. Diagnosis and treatment methods of diseases. It is the process of identifying, determining or eliminating the causes and lesions of living people or animals. Excluding disease diagnosis and treatment methods from the scope of patent protection is based on humanitarian considerations and social ethics. Doctors should have the freedom to choose various methods and conditions during the diagnosis and treatment process. In addition, this type of method directly targets living human or animal bodies, and is theoretically considered not to be part of the industry and cannot be used inIndustrial utilization does not constitute an invention within the meaning of patent law. For example, pulse diagnosis, psychotherapy, massage, various immunization methods to prevent diseases, plastic surgery or weight loss for therapeutic purposes, etc. But drugs or medical devices can be patented.
5. Animal and plant species. However, patent rights may be granted for methods of production of animal and plant varieties.
6. Substances obtained by nuclear transformation.
7. The design of the pattern, color or combination of the two on the printed matter, which mainly serves the purpose of marking.
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