A patent is a legal document that gives the owner exclusive rights to use and profit from a certain invention. In England, Patents are mainly governed under the Patents Act 1977 and are granted by the Intellectual Property Office (UK IPO).
The 1977 Act stated several requirements for granting a patent, such as:
- The invention must be new and involves an inventive step;
- Made or used in any kind of industry;
- Not made contrary to public policy or morality; and
- Must not be excluded under section 1(2) and (3) or section 4A of the same Act.
For example:
Patent protection is not available for mere discoveries, scientific theories or mathematical methods, as these are considered to be part of the fundamental knowledge of mankind.
Also, under s.1 (2), Patent protection is not available for works that fall within the scope of copyright law, such as books, paintings, sculptures, and musical compositions.
Under section 25, the granted patent will be valid for 20 years from the date of filing the application. The registered owner will then have the right under section 60 to prevent others from making, using, importing or selling a product that falls within the scope of his patent without permission unless it is for experimental or non-commercial purposes.