Main purposes of this module
- to provide an overview of how inventions which are worthwhile to protect from a business perspective can be analysed to determine whether they are also protectable from a legal perspective
- to provide support in defining the technical problem, searching the invention and determining whether it is in line with the business strategy
Topics covered in this module:
- Identifying the best inventions
- Defining the technical problem
- Searching the invention - analysing prior art
- Reviewing whether it is still in line with the strategic business purpose
More information
Key requirements for patentable inventions are novelty and inventive step (non-obviousness). To obtain legally strong patents it is therefore advantageous to have a good understanding of the prior art before starting to draft the patent application.
Different databases, search tools and search strategies can provide complementary information on the prior art.
Prior art documents which relate to the same or a similar problem as the invention should be carefully analysed. Once the prior art has been established, a reassessment of the strategic relevance of the invention needs to be undertaken.