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Difference between revisions of "State of the art"

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('''Prior art''' is any proof that an idea was already part of the state of the art before a patent application was filed.)
 
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The '''state of the art''', in patent law, is the set of published ideas for a given domain. Any idea that is part of the state of the art is called a piece of '''prior art'''.
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The '''state of the art''', in patent law, is the set of published ideas for a given domain.
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'''Prior art''' is any proof that an idea was already part of the state of the art before a patent application was filed.
  
 
==What can be used as prior art?==
 
==What can be used as prior art?==
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* source code
 
* source code
 
* ...many other things...
 
* ...many other things...
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==Invalidating a patent==
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Two approaches are possible with prior art:
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# Using just prior art: show that someone else previously did what's described in some or all of the claims
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# Combining prior art with obviousness: show that someone previously did something similar, and argue that in light of this new information about what the state of the art was, the claims of the patent are too obvious
  
 
==Related pages on {{SITENAME}}==
 
==Related pages on {{SITENAME}}==
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* [[What is patentable]]
 
* [[What is patentable]]
 
* [[First-to-file or first-to-invent]]
 
* [[First-to-file or first-to-invent]]
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* [[Invalid patents remain unchallenged]]
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* [[Invalidating harmful patents]]
  
 
==External links==
 
==External links==
  
* [http://www.pubpat.org/findingpriorart.htm How to Find Prior Art Tutorial], audio and slides, by [[Dan Ravicher]]
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* [http://www.pubpat.org/findingpriorart.htm How to Find Prior Art Tutorial], audio and slides, by '''[[Dan Ravicher]]'''
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_of_the_art Wikipedia article: State of the art]
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* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_of_the_art State of the art], '''Wikipedia'''
* [http://www.patentlyo.com/patent/2010/03/the-relevance-of-invention-date-in-patent-prosecution-six-posts.html The Relevance of Invention Date in Patent Prosecution (six parts)], Patently-o, March 2010
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* [http://www.patentlyo.com/patent/2010/03/the-relevance-of-invention-date-in-patent-prosecution-six-posts.html The Relevance of Invention Date in Patent Prosecution (six parts)], March 2010, '''Patently-O'''
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* [http://peertopatent.tumblr.com/tutorials#prior_art Peer-to-patents tutorial list: Learn about prior art]
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* [http://priorartdatabase.com/ the IP.com prior-art database] - check: I think this is used by the USPTO.  Right?
  
  
 
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[[Category:Understanding the patent system]]
 
[[Category:Understanding the patent system]]

Latest revision as of 19:48, 29 December 2011

The state of the art, in patent law, is the set of published ideas for a given domain.

Prior art is any proof that an idea was already part of the state of the art before a patent application was filed.

What can be used as prior art?

Some examples:

  • ads
  • marketing materials
  • manuals
  • conference proceedings discussing the idea
  • source code
  • ...many other things...

Invalidating a patent

Two approaches are possible with prior art:

  1. Using just prior art: show that someone else previously did what's described in some or all of the claims
  2. Combining prior art with obviousness: show that someone previously did something similar, and argue that in light of this new information about what the state of the art was, the claims of the patent are too obvious

Related pages on ESP Wiki

External links