1. Patent System of India
Presented by
Debabrata Debbarma
MBA(SOM,NIT AGRTALA)

2. Intellectual Property Rights(IPR)
• Intellectual Property Rights are statutory
rights once granted allows the creator(s) or
owner(s) of the intellectual property to
prevent others from exploiting the same
commercially for a given period of time.

3. Governing Laws in India for IPR
• Patent Act 1970
• Trade Marks Act (1958 original) 1999
• The Copyright Act 1957
• The Design Act 2000
• Geographical Indication of Goods (Registration
and Protection) Act 1999

4. Invention and Innovation
• An invention means a new product or process
involving an inventive step and capable of
industrial application. [Section 2(1)(J) of Patent
Act 1970]
• An innovation means the successful exploitation
of new ideas in the form of a useful machinery or
process, by any person, using his/her own
intellect.
• All the inventions are the innovations and are
patentable, but all the innovations are not
patentable inventions.

5. The Patent System
• A patent is a contract between the inventor or
applicant for the patent and the State, whereby
the inventor or applicant gets a monopoly from
the state for a certain period in return for
disclosing full details of the invention.
• The patent system ensures that information on
new inventions is made available for eventual
public use so as to encourage technical and
economic development.

6. Why is Patent necessary?
• To enjoy the exclusive rights over the
invention: If the inventor does not get the
patent rights over his invention and introduce
his product/process based on his invention in
the market, any body can copy his invention
and exploits it commercially.

7. History of Patent Acts in India
Year Event
1856 Act for protection of inventions on the basis of British law of 1852
1859 Patent monopolies called exclusive privileges
1872 Patents and Designs Act
1883 Protection of Inventions Act 1888 Inventions and Designs Act 1911-1947
Modern patent era by Patents and Designs Act. First time an authority call
Controller General of Patents appointed
1959 Justice Ayyangar’s report
1967 Patent Act bill introduced in the Parliament
1970 The Patents Act passed by the parliament
1972 The Patents Act-1970 came into force on April 20, 1972
1994 Amendment by ordinance to include Exclusive Marketing Rights (EMR’s)
1999 Amendment passed by the parliament. New patent amendment bill
referred to select committee
2003- 2005 Patents Act 1970 with second amendment comes into force Patent Act
1970 (2005 Amendment) comes in to force from 1-1-2005

8. What is Patentable?

9. Patentable Subject Matter
In order to be suitable for patenting an invention
must be
• Related to a process or product or both
• Novel : An invention is considered to be novel if it
has not been disclosed to the public at the time
that the patent application was made
• An inventive step : A feature of the invention that
involves a technical advancement and an
economic significance and also makes the
invention not obvious to a person skilled in the
art

10. Patentable Subject Matter (cont.)
• Capable of industrial application : Invention is
capable of being used in any kind of industry
• Not fall under section 3 and 4 : It includes the
following
1) Frivolous Inventions: Inventions contrary to
well established natural laws. [Section 3(a)]
e.g. 100% efficiency machine
2) Commercial exploitation : primary use of
inventions which is contrary to public order or
morality. [Section 3(b)]
e.g. gambling machine.

11. Patentable Subject Matter (cont.)
3) Mere Discovery of a Scientific Principle or
formulation of an Abstract Theory or discovery of
any living thing or discovery of non–living substance
occurring in nature [Section 3(c)]
4) Mere arrangement or re-arrangement or
duplication of known devices, each functioning
independently of one another in a known way
[Section3(d)]. .
E.g. A bucket fitted with torch
5) Inventions falling within Section 20(1) of the
Atomic Energy Act, 1962 are not patentable
[Section 4]

12. Types of Patent Applications
• Ordinary Patent Application: It is a simple
application for patent without any priority
claim and not being convention or National
Phase Application.
• Convention Application : An applicant who
files an application for patent in a convention
country can make convention application in
India within 12 months from the date of basic
application.

13. • PCT- International Application
The Patent Cooperation Treaty or PCT is an
international agreement for filing patent
applications. However, there is nothing called
as a 'world patent'
The PCT application does not provide for the
grant of an international patent, it simply
provides a streamlined process for the patent
application process in many countries at the
same time.

14. • National Phase Application under
PCT
The PCT-national phase must follow the
international phase. The applicant must
individually 'enter into the national phase'. i.e.
file a National phase application in each county
he wishes to enter.
If the applicant does not enter the national phase
within the prescribed time limit, the International
Application loses its effect in the designated or
elected States.

15. • Patent of Addition
Patent of addition is an application made for a
patent in respect of any improvement or
modification of an invention described or
disclosed in the complete specification already
applied for or has a patent.

16. • Divisional Application
A divisional application is one which has been
"divided" from an existing application.
The applicant, at any time before the grant of a
patent, can file a further application on the
ground that the claims disclosed in the complete
specification relates to more than one invention.
A divisional application is useful if a unity of
invention objection is issued, in which case the
second invention can be protected as a divisional
application.

17. Stages from filing to
grant of a patent

19. Filing a patent
• File an application for patent with one of the patent offices
based on territorial jurisdiction of the place of office or
residence of the applicant /agent.
• Pay the required fee
• Information concerning application form and details of fee
available at www.ipindia.nic.in

20. Formality Check
• An Examiner immediately checks the formal
requirements before accepting the application
and the fee
• Issue of application number and the cash
receipt is done on the same day

21. Publication
• Application is kept secret for a period of 18
months from the date of filing
• In 19th month, the application is published in
the official journal – this journal is made
available on the website weekly
• Applicant has an option to get his application
published before 18 months also on request.

22. Request for Examination
• Application is examined on request
• Request for examination can be made either
by the applicant or by a third party
• A period of 48 months, from the date of filing,
is available for making request for
examination

23. Examination
• Application is sent to an Examiner within 1
month from the date of request for
examination
• Examiner undertakes examination w.r.t.
– whether the claimed invention is not prohibited
for grant of patent
– whether the invention meets the criteria of
patentability

24. Issue of FER
• A period of 1 to 3 months is available to
Examiner to submit the report to the
Controller
• 1 month’s time available to Controller to vet
the Examiner’s report
• First Examination Report (FER) containing gist
of the objections is issued within 6 months
from the date of filing of request

25. Response from the Applicant
• 12 months’ time, from the date of issue of
FER, is available to the applicant to meet the
objections
• If objections are met, grant of patent is
approved by the Controller – within a period
of 1 month

26. Pre-grant Opposition
• After publication, an opposition can be filed
within a period of 6 months
• Opportunity of hearing the opponent is also
available

27. Examination of Pre-grant Opposition
• Opposition (documents) is sent to the
applicant
• A period of 3 months is allowed for receipt of
response

28. Consideration of
Pre-grant Opposition
• After examining the opposition and the
submissions made during the hearing,
Controller may
– Either reject the opposition and grant the patent
– Or accept the opposition and modify/reject the
patent application

29. Grant of a Patent
• A certificate of patent is issued within 7 days
• Grant of patent is published in the official
journal

30. Renewal Fee
• To be paid within 36 months from date of
recording in the register [sec 142 (4) ]
• No fee for 1st and 2nd year
• Renewal fee, on yearly basis, is required to be
paid for 3rd to 20th for keeping the patent in force
• Delay up to six months from due date permissible
on payment of fee for extension of time
• Patent lapses if renewal fee is not paid within the
prescribed period

31. THANK YOU