Different types of patent applications
Provisional patent application
A provisional application is filed when you are not quite ready with your invention and you want to borrow the time to work further on the research and development of your invention and at the same time you don’t want to lose on priority date. A provisional specification may or may not have claims. Filing a provisional application gives you 12 months of time within which you need to file a non-provisional (complete) patent application. If you fail to file a complete patent application within 12 months from the filing of a provisional patent application your application will be abandoned.
Non- provisional (Complete) patent application
The Non-provisional (complete) patent application/specification describes the invention fully and completely along with the best mode and complete set of claims.
Convention Application
When an applicant files the application for a patent, claiming a priority date based on a similar application filed in convention countries, it is called a convention application. You can file the application in the USPTO within twelve months from the date of the first filing of a similar application in the convention country.
Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) – International Application
Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) is an international agreement for filing patent applications having an effect in up to 150 countries.
“PCT is administered by World Intellectual Property Organization WIPO, and it’s primary objective is to provide a system where you need to make only one patent application which would be searched by at least one International search authority and examined by at least one selected International Preliminary Examination Authority IPEA”
It is important to remember that pct does not provide the grant of patent it only facilitates a single application which would be taken from searching to examination stage centrally and which would be applicable for all the signatory countries in pct. Currently, the number of countries associated with PCT are 150.
The application is to be filed in the English language within 12 months from the date of filing in US.
PCT-National Phase Application
This is an application filed in USPTO claiming the priority of international filing date is called PCT National Phase application. First, the international application is made as per (PCT) and then the first application, can enter the national phase in US within 30 months from the international filing date or priority date (whichever is earlier).
Divisional Application
if the patent application filed at USPTO contains more than one invention then a divisional application is filed, which is discloses and claims the distinct invention which was part of the parent patent application.
Continuation Application
this application is filed in continuation of the same invention in a non-provisional patent application. in this case, the disclosure of the invention remains same as parent application and would not contain any new matter.
Continuation-in-Part Application
in this case we can add new matter compared to the parent patent application. A continuation-in-part application is a patent application which is adding matter not disclosed in the earlier non-provisional application. we would be getting a new priority date for the newly disclosed matter.
- Indian Patent Office, Govt. of India
- Patent Facilitator for Start-ups, Startup India Govt. of India
- Bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Telecommunication engineering.
- Author of multiple books on Patents and IPR including a best-selling book on “How to patent an idea in India” which has been selected as the “Memorable Business Book of 2018” by Amazon
- Books are included in the syllabus of Educational Institutions as textbook and reference book on subject of IPR and Patents
- For over 15 years, Prasad has helped protect the intellectual property rights (IPR) of more than 1800 clients, including individuals, entrepreneurs, and educational institutes. This includes patents, trademarks, designs, and copyrights.