This article has been written by Saksham Sharma, a B.A. L.L.B. V Sem student of S.S. Jain Subodh Law College, Jaipur.

Abstract

Drafting a strong patent application in India involves various key steps to ensure its strength and efficacy:

1. Invention understanding: Clearly define the invention, its technical aspects and innovative elements. understand its newly invented step and industrial applicability to determine its patentability.
2. Detailed drafting: provide a detailed and comprehensive description of the invention, emphasizing its technical workings, components, and functionalities. use clear language and diagrams to help understanding.
3. Thorough patent search: conduct complete search to ensure no identical or closely related patents exist. this step helps in crafting a unique and non-obvious patent application.
4. Supporting documentation: include any necessary technical drawings, diagrams or examples that strengthen the understanding and support the patent application.
5. Legal and procedural observance: Ensure the patent application observation with inida’s patent laws and regulations. fulfill all formal requirements and attach to procedural guidelines including the correct form, fees, and documentation.
6. Professional assistance: Consider engaging a patent attorney or agent experienced in indian patent law. their expertise can significantly enhance the application’s quality and chances of success.
7. Timely filing: file the application promptly to secure priority and prevent any loss of rights. filing early can also safeguard against others seeking similar patents.
8. Response to examination reports: Address any objections or queries raised during the patent office examination promptly and effectively. respond professionally providing clarifications and amendments where required.

 

Introduction

Creation start progress, and patents play a critical role in protecting and encouraging creation. if you have developed a newly creation, it is crucial to secure a patent to safeguard your intellectual property rights. A well drafted patent statement is the base of a successful patent application. 

What is a patent

A patent is a legally enforceable document granted by a government authority that provides inventors with exclusive rights to their inventions for a specified period. it allows creators to stop others from making, using, selling their inventions without their consent. patents encourage innovation by providing inventors with an incentive to disclose their inventions to this public while ensuring they can enjoy commercial benefits.

What is patent drafting or patent writing

Patent writing is the process of drafting a detailed document that describes a new invention or creation. it involves capturing the originality, functionality and uniqueness of the creation in a way that satisfies legal requirements for obtaining a patent. A patent is a legal right granted by a government that gives the inventor exclusive rights to their invention for a certain period.

Provisional Specification

Before filing a patent application in india, patent applicants are required to understand the complete process of patent filing. In nature, a patent is acquired in india by filling an application for the grant of patent through following documents:

• Form 1 ( Application for grant of patent)
• Form 2 ( Provisional or complete specification)
• Form 3 ( Statement and undertaking under section 8 of patent act,1970)
• Form5 ( Declaration as to inventorship)
• Form26 ( Authorization of a patent agent or any person in a matter or proceeding under the patent act)

Basic format of a patent application includes:

• Background

• claims

• summary

• abstract

• drawings

• detailed description

• Background: It is important that the problem that is currently faced in the prior art is described with specific detail and without any doubt. The current invention might be able to solve multiple issues in the prior art, but it is important to identify the problem that the invention is solving since this regard is of great importance as far as claim drafting is concerned. information about existing technologies or solutions that the invention seeks to improve upon. this helps to highlight the novelty of the creation. 

• Claims: Precise, specific and legally enforceable statements that define the scope of protection. this claims outline the boundaries of what the patent covers, there can be broad claims covering the overall creation and more specific claims covering individual aspects or components.

• Summary: The summary is a brief version of the invention which is recitation of the independent claim and dependent claims of the application is simplified language. In other words, the basic idea behind the invention and its working is explained in the summary.
• Abstract: A concise summary of the invention providing an overview without technical jargon.
• Drawings: A list of drawings that represent the features of the invention are illustrated in a serial order with figure labels. Examples of drawings include mechanical or structural, flow charts, tables etc.
• Detailed description:  The detailed description is targeted to focus on the novelty and inventive step along with recitation of the claimed portions with the various drawings. 

 

Patent drafting: The most challenging aspect of patent application

Patent drafting is the hard aspect of the patent application. intellectual property right provides the applicant with the right of excluding others from using the same originality. 

The difficulty of drafting

The innovative step are still in their infancy in certain circumstances, making defining the patent’s scope challenging. this will create a more difficult situation where the drafting must cover the most space possible from the basic innovative procedures.

As more experiments with the creation are implemented, there is a risk that the patent’s scope will be alter simultaneously. the shift in the inventive step will result in a change in the boundaries of patent claim boundaries. before reaching the entire specification, re-drafting may be required at a several levels.

When the available data is insufficient to support the claim’s breadth in the patent, sufficient data can make drafting difficult. the claim’s breadth must be complemented adequately with valuable data to acquire sufficient protection.

In some situation the applicant must provide thorough description for any person versed in the field to understand the invention. it is hard for the writer to inject life into the statements when there is little data.

The patent is not written with the average individual in mind because the person working on the patent have the necessary technical knowledge and drafting skills, the drafting must adhere to the claim language. 

 

The significance of patent drafting 

To attain benefit from patents, the patent owner must reveal his invention in a patent specification and establish the scope of his exclusively. if the inventions are not sufficiently disclosed in the patent specification, the applicants patent rights are likely to be cancelled. the claim should not be drafted to be defined much broader of narrower. competitor can quickly get around the patent in both circumstances. the process of obtaining a patent is time consuming and costly before preparing a patent, it is highly recommended that you seek practical guidance and assistance from qualified professionals.

 

Drafting tips for an effective patent specification:

To write an powerful patent specification, consider the following tips:

1. Conduct prior art search: before drafting your patent specification perform a thorough search to identify existing inventions or publications similar to yours. analyzing prior art will help you understand the novelty and non obviousness of your invention and enable you to tailor your specification accordingly.
2. Ensure clarity and precision: Use clear and concise language throughout the patent specification avoid doubts, excessive technical jargon, and acronyms that may hinder understanding. write in a manner that can be understand by a person skilled in the relevant field. precise language ensures that your inventions is well defined and protected.
3. Focus on originality and inventive step: highlight the unique aspects and advantages of your invention compared to existing solutions. clearly communicate the novelty and inventive step to justify the need for patent protection.
4. Complete description: ensure that the patent specification covers all aspects of the invention, leaving no room for no doubt or misinterpretation. include alternative image, variations, and possible modifications to demonstrate the broader scope of the invention. A complete description strengthens the patent and guards against potential workarounds.

 

Stepwise Patent procedure in india

Step1: Write down the invention (idea)with as many details as possible.

Start write things in a word processor document and you will find getting more clarity about your idea. 

Step2: Patent search (optional step)

In this step, we need to check if your creation is new as it one of the patentability criteria in india. 

we need to have at least some aspects of the creation as novel when we compare our creation to existing arts and originality search report generated would communicate whether we are any 100% overlapping prior arts by making detailed search and analysis of all aspects of our creation. conduct a thorough patent search to ensure that the creation is new and does not infringe on existing patents. this step helps in determining the patentability of the creation.

Step3: Patent drafting

patent writing is the process of a patent application that is:

• capable of protecting the broadest possible scope of an invention
• capable of successfully going through the examination process till the grant of a patent
• capable of being commercialized or enforced

There are various rules and care to be taken while writing claims, writing detailed descriptions, writing different image of the originality, describing original step etc.  which a first timer or inexperienced patent writer may miss and hence end-up not getting proper protection for invention( sometimes even rejection of patent)

Step4: Filing the patent application

When a patent is drafted and reviewed by you( inventor), it would be filed in the government patent office and a receipt would be generated with the patent application number.

patent pending status after filing patent application:

when you file patent application in patent office, you can write patent pending, patent applied or patent application number for your product or service. it serves many purposes like:

• Establishing your firm as expert in the industry in minds of your customers since you have applied for patent.
• employees, clients, banks and even investors consider you or your firm with different weightage when they see patent application number
• writing patent pending on product or on website be a message to competitors who would rethink about copying your invention and most important of all once you file patent in patent office you are free from the fear of others copying your idea or invention , since you have secured the priority date or the first filling date in the patent office.

Step5: Publication of the application

The patent application is published after 18 months from the filing date or priority date, whichever is earlier. The publication is done in the official journal of the Indian patent office.  the patent application is published within 30 days from the request form early publication.

Step6: Request for examination

File a request for examination (RFE) within 48 months form the filling date or the priority date, whichever is earlier. If the request is not filed within this period, the application is treated as withdrawn.

Step7: Respond to objections

The most of patent applicants will receive some type of disapproval which would be indicated in the first examination report. You should analyaze and understand the examination report with a patent agent and create a written response to the objections raised in the examination report. If there are no objections or if the objections are resolved, the application is published again, and any person can oppose the grant of the patent within 4 months from the publication date.

Step8: Grant of patent

If no opposition is received or if the opposition is unsuccessful, the patent is granted. the term of a patent in india is 20 years from the filling date.

Step9: Issuance of patent certificate

Upon successfully overcoming any objections and completing the formalities, the patent office issues a patent certificate.

Step10: Renewal of patent:

After the grant, patentee must pay renewal fees to keep the patent in force. The renewal fees are due annually from the second year onwards.

 

Conclusion

Creating a strong patent application in india involves various key steps. Firstly, conduct thorough research to ensure your invention is novel and inventive. provide detailed description, including drawings if applicable, to clearly explain how the invention works. It’s crucial to include claims that precisely define the scope of your invention. Additionally, ensure the application meets all the formal requirements outlined by the Indian patent office. To enhance the strength of your application, consider engaging a patent agent who is well versed in Indian patent laws. they can guide you through the process, increasing the likelihood of a successful patent application.

 

 

References

• https://intellectvidhya.com/how-to-write-a-patent-application/
• https://patentattorneyworldwide.com/in/writing-patent-application-patent-drafting/
• https://www.mondaq.com/india/patent/1316890/how-to-draft-a-good-patent-application
• https://updates.anandandanand.com/how-to-draft-a-good-patent-application/?utm_source=mondaq&utm_medium=syndication&utm_term=Intellectual-Property&utm_content=articleoriginal&utm_campaign=article