Acquiring a patent for an invented product is an expensive deal. You have to go through a lot of processes before you finally get the legal rights. Be it a patent attorney, paralegal, or draftsman; everyone has a charge. But do you know you can reduce these charges during your patent acquisition journey? Just by hiring an experienced patent researcher, you can save the time and money you have planned to invest further in an existing idea. A patentability search or novelty search report contains comprehensive information on whether or not your concept matches prior art. It makes it clear if your invention is new and original.
In the best scenario, if your novelty search report reflects that your invention doesn’t relate to any prior art, you can proceed further to file your patent application. However, if it establishes the connection to any prior art, you should drop the idea of filing a patent application then and there. It’s because the USPTO issues patents only for inventions that are considered to be new, helpful, and non-obvious.
However, even if your idea or invention is found to be existing, there are certain things you can do to make things work. For example, you can think about ways to make the existing invention more worthwhile, add extra features to it, or invent something new, taking cues from it. Doing this will reduce the chances of your patent getting rejected and improve the chances of getting it accepted.
By the way, you can also consult an expert patent researcher or patent attorney about what you should do next when your novelty search report isn’t in your favor. Since they have extensive experience in what they do, they can provide you with a few actionable tips and tricks.
Now let’s see some of the significant reasons why novelty search is essential:
1. Improves litigation strength
The best part of conducting a novelty search is that it lets you strengthen your patent application to a great extent. That means if you have completed a patent search that does not cover various ideas or technologies, you can submit the same report to USPTO with your patent application. This will help the examiner understand the limitations of the invention in a better way.
What’s more, it would act as a deterrent to your competitors who wish to challenge your patent in the USPTO office based on uncovered references. Finally, since the examiner will already be informed about your uncovered references, you will have improved chances of getting your patent granted.
2. Leads to better claims
When you get to know about the uncovered information related to your technology, you will be able to draft broader claims. The patentability search will also give you an idea of how you can change the scope of the invention if your idea is already patented.
From your point of view, you may think that the device or product you have created doesn’t exist in the market, so your patent can be granted. But what you might not know is that various patents are not commercialized for multiple reasons.
There could be an issue in the agreement between the inventor and its company regarding monetization. Or, the inventor might be seeking a buyer who would not be readily available for the moment. The fact of the matter is that hundreds of patents might not have taken the form of a machine or device yet, but are in the documents.
3. Satisfy the Duty of Disclosure
Another benefit of a patentability search is that it establishes the difference or similarity between your patent and prior art. That means the claims, summary, and idea; everything will have a different or similar scope. So, according to the US patent office, any person filing a patent application must disclose all known information in the patent application.
It’s because they think every inventor has a “duty of candor and good faith” that also includes “duty of disclosure”. If you don’t follow this rule by the US patent office, your patent may get canceled.
4. Preserve the doctrine of equivalents
If you don’t know, the doctrine of equivalents is a rule in patent law that says a party can be accountable for infringement even though he or she does not infringe every limitation of a patent claim precisely. This is a powerful legal rule that prevents your competitors from creating similar inventions.
5. Determine the value of an invention
The businesses and more giant corporations involved in making money through patented products can determine the value of an invention through a patentability search report. Not just that, they can also confirm the novelty of the idea and determine the competition in the market through it.
Conclusion
As you just saw, there are multiple advantages of obtaining a patentability search report; you must not skip this step during your patent acquisition journey. Instead, look for a trusted patent search firm with years of experience in carrying out the patent search and ask them to provide you with a comprehensive search report for your patent.
