Have you ever wondered what work went in to the technology which enables your computer to function efficiently and improve as time goes on?
Patents play a key role in providing an incentive for companies and inventors to innovate and improve upon existing technologies.
One important player in this process that is commonly overlooked is the Patent examiner. A patent examiner is essentially the filter through which inventors are awarded a patent. In short, patent examiners determine whether a claimed invention deserves a patent, based on the current laws and the prior art available.
A patent examiner receives a patent application with the following:
A patent abstract, drawings, specification and claims.
The examiner then reads and understands the patent application and constructs a search strategy to determine whether the invention is novel, then either rejects the patent or allows the patent with an office action. This can go on for years and usually requires multiple office actions to iron out the details of the invention, and clarify the claims.
During my two and a half years as an examiner, I examined over 100 applications, and only allowed 3 patents! This is not uncommon for my area of technology (computer architecture) because the technology is already well developed and there is a lot of prior art available.
Here are the patents which I issued:
Patents play a key role in providing an incentive for companies and inventors to innovate and improve upon existing technologies.
One important player in this process that is commonly overlooked is the Patent examiner. A patent examiner is essentially the filter through which inventors are awarded a patent. In short, patent examiners determine whether a claimed invention deserves a patent, based on the current laws and the prior art available.
A patent examiner receives a patent application with the following:
A patent abstract, drawings, specification and claims.
The examiner then reads and understands the patent application and constructs a search strategy to determine whether the invention is novel, then either rejects the patent or allows the patent with an office action. This can go on for years and usually requires multiple office actions to iron out the details of the invention, and clarify the claims.
During my two and a half years as an examiner, I examined over 100 applications, and only allowed 3 patents! This is not uncommon for my area of technology (computer architecture) because the technology is already well developed and there is a lot of prior art available.
Here are the patents which I issued: