1. Limited legal monopoly granted to an
individual or firm to make, use, and
sell its
invention, and to exclude others from doing so. An invention is patentable if it is
novel, useful, and non-obvious. To
receive a patent, a
patent application must disclose all details of the invention so that others can use it to further
advance the
technology with new inventions. Patentable items fall under four classes (1) Machine: apparatus or
device with interrelated parts that
work together to perform the invention's designed or intended functions, (2) Manufacture: all manufactured or fabricated items, (3) Process: chemical,
mechanical, electrical or other
process that produces a chemical or physical
change in the
condition or
character of an
item, and (4)
Composition of matter: chemical compounds or mixtures having properties different from their
constituent ingredients.
In most of the world, patents are granted on the 'first to apply' basis, with a
protection period of 7 years (India) to 20 years (European Union). In the US, they are granted for 17 years on the 'first to invent' basis.
Responsibility of identifying, locating, and suing the patent violators, however, rests solely with the patent holder; patent law provides only means of
prosecution and determination of just compensation.