Patent Registration
Protect Your Business Right Now
What is it?
A patent is a property title with a validity period granted by the State, which gives the holder the right to prevent third parties from exploiting his creation without his prior authorization. A patent is territorial, that is, it is only valid in the country in which it is filed and granted. If the holder has an interest in exploiting the patent in other countries, the document must be extended to the countries of interest within a pre-established period of 12 months from the filing date.
Technically, the correct term to refer to this protection is “patent application”, but we will use the word “registration” to simplify understanding for the reader.
What are the types of patents?
There are two types of patents. An invention patent is valid for 20 years from the date of application, while a utility model patent is valid for 15 years from the date of application. At the end of its term, the patent registration falls into the public domain and can be used by anyone.
What can be patented?
Some examples:
- Machines and machine parts;
- Chemical products;
- Tools;
- Innovative solutions for general problems
Anything that is new, presents an inventive step and has industrial application, that is, can be reproduced industrially, can be patented.
How to search for a patent?
The first step is to understand the objective of the search, such as:
- Establish what is already registered in the world, assess the possibility of granting a new product, adjust forms of protection based on prior art to support a new filing, avoiding technical requirements and improving the level of the application.
- Support research and/or development of new products, study competitors’ production, anticipate solutions, avoiding research expenses, establish improvements based on existing products.
- Search for patents in the “public domain”, in order to guarantee free production and commercialization in Brazil.
List all patents in a patent family, establishing the countries of filing, amendments or additions, time history, to assess market possibilities, global reach, evaluation for purchase/licensing (in which it is necessary to inform the patent or PCT number).
- Search for all patents filed by competitors, which can be used as additional information about new products or lines of research by the competitor. Searches must be made in the name of the company and individuals linked to it.
Therefore, it is ideal to understand these needs before searching for patents, which is carried out through the databases of the main patent offices worldwide. The VILAGE Technical Department carries out this consultation, preparing a detailed report with the data located.
VILAGE Process of How to Register a Patent
VILAGE is a specialist in Patent Registration, with years of experience in transforming ideas and projects into patent application reports of all levels, from the most complex to the simplest. And if your idea does not yet have a project or prototype, we offer a complete solution, from the conception of the project to the Patent Registration.
And what is the first step to register a patent?
The first step is to answer a questionnaire provided by VILAGE with simple questions about the product and what motivated the solution to be patented, including a summary of the invention, drawings and/or images, if you have them.
Completed questionnaire. What’s next?
The next step is to prepare the technical report. But don’t worry: we have an exclusive team of Patent Engineers from various areas, including technical drawing specialists who are able to design schematics, structures, drawings and views of inventions or processes, producing a highly qualified and accurate patent report, thus ensuring your safety and agility.
This report must comply with the standards of INPI – National Institute of Industrial Property – the body responsible for improving, disseminating and managing the Brazilian system of granting and guaranteeing intellectual property rights for the industry.
VILAGE has a specialized technical team to advise you and write your patent registration report with clarity and descriptive sufficiency in the most representative technological segments in patent applicant at INPI.
Everything is ready to file the patent application, now what?
Great! Now, the VILAGE administrative team will check all the patent documentation and procedural aspects, both in the filing phase and in the monitoring of the process, monitoring the INPI deadlines and publications.
Furthermore, after filing your registration request, you can monitor all the steps in real time, since VILAGE makes the InfoVILAGE management system available exclusively to its clients. Through this system, available on desktop and mobile apps, you can monitor the execution of our services and check the updated status of your processes in Brazil and abroad at any time and from any place. We work with absolute transparency.
Can I protect my patent abroad?
You must obtain this protection if you are interested in exporting your product.
Among the various alternatives, there is an international treaty to which Brazil is a party (PCT) and which makes a temporary reservation for registering its patent in more than 140 countries.
The main objective is to simplify and make invention protection more cost-effective. Initially, the patent is protected in the member countries of the treaty and, 30 months after filing, the PCT application must be filed in each member country of interest. This makes it possible to evaluate the results of investments and analyze in which country patent registration will be necessary and advantageous.
How can I speed up the approval of my patent?
The INPI (National Institute of Industrial Property) created more than 15 resolutions that shorten the examination time for a patent registration application to approximately 2 years, if there are no major technical-administrative issues in the process.
Examples of priority examinations include Green Patent applications, which, due to their success, have become a definitive program. In addition to Green Technologies, priority is given to: Age, Serious Diseases, Unfair Competition, PPH (Patent Prosecution Highway) with several countries, Startups, Health Products, Micro and Small Businesses, ICTs, among others.
Freedom to Operate (FTO)
The Freedom to Operate (FTO) of patents is an essential analysis to assess whether an invention or product can be commercialized without infringing third-party intellectual property rights. The FTO process is especially important in sectors where the development of new technologies is constant, such as the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and technology sectors.
Here are the main points about patent FTO:
- Purpose of FTO: The main purpose of FTO analysis is to verify whether a product, technology or process can be introduced into the market without violating third party patents that are in force.
- Detailed Search: FTO research involves analyzing patent records in multiple jurisdictions to identify active patents that may have an impact on the commercialization of a given product or process. This analysis takes into account both granted patents and patent applications in the process of approval.
- Geography: The FTO must be conducted in all countries or regions where the product will be marketed, as patent rights are territorial.
- Claims analysis: During the FTO search, a detailed analysis of the claims of active patents is carried out to verify whether the technology or product under development could infringe these rights.
- Solutions: If any risk of infringement is identified, the company can:
– Change the product or process to avoid infringement.
– Negotiate a license to use the patent with the patent holder.
– Attempt to invalidate the patent, if there are legal grounds. - Ideal timing: FTO should be done in the early stages of product development to avoid financial and legal risks once the product is already on the market.
FTO is a fundamental practice to protect the company’s interests and ensure smooth business operations without the risk of future litigation.
Frequently Asked Questions
A patent registration grants its holder exclusive rights to use, commercialize and license the protected product/process. This title also prevents third parties from using, importing or commercializing the invention without the holder’s authorization for the duration of the patent, which is an important tool in combating piracy and unfair competition. It also rewards the inventor for innovation, encouraging the development of new inventions, without the fruits of his research being usurped by third parties.
The main steps are:
- Realization of the idea into technology – ideas are not patentable;
Filing of the patent application with the INPI (National Institute of Industrial Property) – submission of the technical report, containing all the content of the invention to be protected; Publication of the application in the RPI (Industrial Property Journal) – for the society’s information;
Annual fees – from the 24th month onwards, the applicant must pay the annual fees;
Request for technical examination – approval for the application to be analyzed;
Graduation of the patent application – decision by the examiner to accept the application, i.e., the application met the patentability prerequisites that would prevent the granting of the patent title;
Granting of the Letter Patent – issuance of the Registration Certificate, upon payment of the grading fee.
A prototype of the invention is not necessary to apply for a patent, however, it is necessary to prepare a report that technically describes, in a complete and detailed manner, all the steps, requirements and operation of the invention correctly and successfully.
After launching the product on the market, it is necessary to check whether the date is still within what is called the Grace Period in Brazil, which is a 12-month period for applying for patent protection, counting from the date of the first disclosure of the invention. After 12 months from the disclosure, the invention becomes public domain and can be used by anyone interested in the product.
First, it is necessary to assess whether the change has sufficient characteristics to constitute a new patent (changes in material or dimensions, for example, do not always constitute sufficient inventive action for a new patent application). Depending on the degree of the change, it is possible to file a utility model or a certificate of addition (associated with an existing invention patent).
It is essential to patent the product in the country to which it will be exported, to avoid problems with customs, piracy and unfair competition in that country as well. The registration of a patent is territorial, that is, it is only valid in the country where it was granted, therefore, to have the same rights granted in Brazil, it is necessary to request protection in each country of interest abroad.
It is not possible to obtain a worldwide patent, since the granting of a patent has territorial validity, as provided by law (national and international). To assert a right, it is necessary to have a patent granted in each country of interest.
It is unethical to patent existing products, since this procedure may result in lawsuits for unfair competition. A patent registration for existing products/processes is considered “weak” and may be revoked, since, by not having its protection requested in Brazil previously and within the deadlines provided for by law, this invention is already in the public domain here, that is, society is already allowed to use this invention without the need for registration or payment to the patent holder abroad.
