This Handbook provides an overview of federal patent and trademark law. Information discussed includes types of patents and trademarks, duration of registration, requirements for obtaining, a guide to the application process, protecting your patent or trademark, and much more in 18 pages of materials.
Patent Application For Software In San Diego
State:
Multi-State
County:
San Diego
Control #:
US-003HB
Format:
Word;
PDF;
Rich Text
Instant download
Description
Free preview
Form popularity
FAQ
Yes, you heard it right! Your apps and app ideas can be patented, with the only condition being to meet the eligibility criteria of novelty. However, please note that the app code cannot be patented, as it falls under the category of law covered by copyrights.
Software copyright protects the original work of programmers and software developers by giving them the right to sue infringers for statutory damages. Software ideas are not copyrightable unless they are in tangible form.
A software invention, for example, could be protected under copyrights (how human expression authored computer-readable code), patents (a useful, novel, and non-obvious method, device, or system), or both.
A patent application often includes the following primary sections: Invention Title. The title's objective is to provide a clear understanding of the invention or idea. Prior Art: Context and Novelty. Invention Summary. Drawings and Descriptions. Detailed Description. Claims. Scope. Characteristics.
The simple answer is yes, you can patent software. However, there are strict rules to follow as to what software or software-related inventions can be patented. Let's begin by taking a brief look at what the requirements for obtaining patents in general are before applying these rules to software.
The short answer is no, you can't patent the code itself. However, you can patent the systems and methods that the code uses. Software patents are important because they protect your unique features and prevent others from copying your innovations.
Software-related inventions are patentable. To qualify as an invention, however, there must be "a creation of technical ideas utilizing a law of nature" although this requirement is typically met by "concretely realising the information processing performed by the software by using hardware resources".
Patent application forms can be found on the USPTO website. All of the forms related to patent applications can be found on the link here, or by navigating to the USPTO website and clicking on the “Forms” link under the “Apply for a Patent” section on the “Patents” page.