| PATENTABILITY |
 |
What it is: Patentability searches help
you decide whether your idea or development is capable
of being patented.
Why it's important: You should consider
patenting any invention which is relevant to new
product development. Even minor inventions can have
commercial potential for exploitation in their own
right — by licensing for example — and patenting
them in time can protect this potential. It is also
possible to protect inventions relating to processes
and methods of manufacture which you would not want
your competitors to copy.
| VALIDITY |
|
What it is: A validity search helps you
identify patents that could be used to attack the
validity of a claimed invention on the grounds of
novelty or obviousness.
Why it's important: These searches are
important when framing responses to infringement
action.
| INFRINGEMENT |
|
What it is: Infringement searches identify
patents already held by a competitor on a product
or process that you are considering using.
Why it's important: Infringement search
results are perhaps the single most useful piece
of information that a company can possess about patents.
If a patent is already held by a competitor, the
knowledge of its existence can help prevent you from
being sued for patent infringement. Conversely, if
one of your patents is infringed, you will be able
to take action against the offender.
