You might think you’ve hit the absolute gold mine with your new invention. But before you get too excited, you have to make sure that your invention is unique. Any business approach revolves around an idea. This idea can be anything from a product to a brand new invention. But regardless of what this idea is, it has to be unique. And you have to make sure it stays that by patenting it. Inventors look at all kinds of factors that determine whether or not an invention is unique. If you’re interested in what these factors are, then you’re at the right place. In this article, we will look at how to know if your invention is truly unique.
Table of Contents
Check With the Official Patent Office
img source: unsplash.com
First things first, we have to explain what a patent actually is. A patent is an expensive piece of license that simply states you have the rights to an invention. These rights include ownership rights, production rights, and or selling rights.
In the world of inventions, a patent is the most important factor that determines whether a particular invention is unique. If it is unique, then you can absolutely patent it and become the sole owner of that invention.
So the first thing to do is to check with the official patent office. You can do this online by visiting their website. Once there, you will have to search the database for relative keywords and you can even inspect the image database.
But regardless of what your business plans are, do know that a patent can make or break a potential, future, business.
Check With A Trademark Library
img source: unsplash.com
There is a chance that, upon checking the official patent website, you will have to take extra steps to make sure your invention is unique. Maybe someone patented your idea under a different name, and maybe that’s the reason why you cannot find it in the patent database.
There could be any number of reasons as to why you cannot find it. This, although a good thing, does have its risks. For example, you might think that your patent is unique but it actually isn’t.
To prevent a costly mistake and plenty of unnecessary paperwork, make sure to check with your local trademark depository library. These trademark libraries have all the resources you need to help you match your invention with existing ones. Again, you can check the patent website regarding where these libraries are but do make sure to check them as they could provide the answer to this problem.
Do An In-depth Search
img source: unsplash.com
When it comes to patenting inventions, there are a few things to take into consideration. The first one is to know what you can and cannot patent and trademark. What makes an invention unique is the thing you can actually patent. So, you will need to determine what makes your idea unique. Is it the service it provides, is it the product itself, is it parts of the products, materials used, or perhaps the entire system?
There are lots of things to take into consideration. But in most cases, the thing that you can actually patent is the problem that the invention solves.
Thus, you will need to do an in-depth search of the unique elements of your invention. To do that, navigate to the official patent office website and add relevant keywords. You can even include entire phrases as that drastically narrow down the search. Make sure to also include synonyms as chances are someone else might be using another word.
Doing this can be hard stuff. But an inventor must make sure their idea is unique. However, that doesn’t mean you have to go solo. There are all kinds of ways to make sure your idea is unique and get the help needed to patent it before someone else. To do that, check out this page.
How To Make Sure Your Invention Can Be Unique?
img source: sandersons.co.uk
It’s safe to say that certain inventions can be unique, while others cannot. In other words, you have to make sure that your invention is patentable.
There are a couple of things that no one can patent. According to the official governing body for patents, the things that no one can patent include:
- A discovery
- Scientific or mathematical theory or method
- Aesthetic creation
- A scheme
- A computer program
- Doing business
- Presentation of information
- Surgical or therapeutic treatment
- Diagnosis
If your invention is any of these, then it cannot be unique.
But let’s dive a bit deeper as to why that’s the case. If we go by the official term, a patent is a set of unique rights that potential inventors may obtain. These rights can be obtained for any period of time.
In order to obtain these rights, you need to make sure that your idea can indeed be patentable. So the natural place to start is to look at whether your idea’s strengths and unique points qualify. Like we mentioned earlier, you do this by repeating the previous steps.
What Happens If Your Invention Already Has A Patent?
img source: studybreaks.com
This is where most inventors give up. Every week we see thousands of new patents being issued to inventors. That means there is a very high chance that someone has already come up with your idea.
If you’ve already started using your idea for commercial purposes, then you might get sued by the official owner of the idea. If this person would somehow find out about it, then do know that you will be in trouble.
Most such cases occur because the person using the protected idea has no clue how patents work. These cases usually get resolved pretty easily but do know that it is a risk you shouldn’t take.
If sadly, your invention isn’t unique, then you might get in hot waters if you use it commercially. If you want to avoid that, make sure to get in touch with a professional that will find out whether or not your invention is unique.
