In accordance with the current rules, patents can be obtained only on a working process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter (Menell, Lemlev, & Merges, 2018). Objects belonging to these categories can be protected by the government regarding the laws related to intellectual property. At the same time, natural substances or ideas cannot be provided with patents because of the existing legislation (Menell et al., 2018).
Moreover, the office investigates a proposed invention to determine if it possesses some of the following characteristics. They should be novel, or not previously suggested by other individuals, obvious, for a specialist to understand how they can be used in real-life conditions, and useful (Menell et al., 2018). Only if a hypothetical invention has these elements, it can be patented. There are some alterations in these criteria because of the emergence of new technologies and methods to perform various activities.
For instance, computer software, business methods, and results of genetic experiments can also be patented because of their contribution to the development of science and society (Menell et al., 2018). There are also some new suggestions that can be included in the criteria to guarantee that innovative ideas are protected.
The modern patents consist of two central parts which are specification and claims. The first element is devoted to the detailed description of how the proposed invention, solution, or process works. As it has previously been stated, to be patented, an object should be obvious to a specialist who investigates it. For this reason, this part ensures that there are no misunderstandings in the basic principles according to which a new invention works (Menell et al., 2018).
There can also be illustrations and schemes contributing to the improved understanding of the idea that is going to be patented. Specification part is also needed for an inventor to acquire the monopoly right for the distribution and sales of the object by providing its clear description to the patent office (Falvey, Foster, & Greenaway, 2004). The second part of a patent is claims which can be described as identification of characteristics that are protected by the provided patent. This is another essential part of this document as it can be used to indicate if some other patents or inventions correlated with the offered object or infringe the already existing patent.
The process of acquiring a patent is now standardized and consists of several stages. For instance, technology providing an opportunity to transform plastic garbage into fuel has been invented. First of all, a careful and detailed description of this approach including the record of every step should be created. It will help to negotiate with the patent office later. Second, it is critical to ensure that the invention possesses all the qualities mentioned above, such as novelty, usefulness, and obviousness to be considered by specialists (Falvey et al., 2004).
One should also search pervious patents related to this field to ensure that there is no infringement of rights or problems that might arise because of the inappropriate use of intellectual property (Menell et al., 2018). A person should also prepare and file an application to the patent office to ensure that the new idea will be protected by the law (Menell et al., 2018). These steps are necessary to guarantee that all peculiarities of the hypothetical invention will be considered and there will be a positive outcome of the whole process.
The existing legislation considers intellectual property (IP) one of the values that should be protected to create the further evolution of various spheres and relations within society. At the moment, there are four main types of IP protection that can be used in various situations. These include patents, trademarks, trade secrets, and copyrights that are introduced to provide owners with an opportunity to prevent other individuals from using their inventions or business ideas illegally (Menell et al., 2018).
The choice of the appropriate tool depends on the peculiarities of the case and what sphere is affected. For instance, if an organization uses the trademark similar to another one, an owner can use this tool to issue this very organization and insist on providing some additional penalties to compensate losses. The existence of all these tools can be considered a guarantee that IP will be protected and there will be no precedents resulting in serious infringement of people’s rights.
Any individual has an opportunity to choose where he/she wants to work and the time when to move from one to another company. In accordance with this statement, a company can hire an employee who worked at another corporation at any moment as there are no barriers to it. At the same time, there are some aspects that should be considered. First of all, a new employee has no right to share some information about the functioning of the previous company that can be determined as IP and protected by the existing laws (Davoudi et al., 2017). This information cannot also be used to acquire a competitive advantage because of the unethical competition. In such a way, a recruit should be warned about the impossibility of these actions and prohibited to engage in such activities.
References
Davoudi, P., Fartash, K., Zakirova, V., Belyalova, A., Kurbanov, R., Boiarchuk, A., & Sizova, Z. (2017). Testing the mediating role of open Innovation on the relationship between intellectual property rights and organizational performance: A case of science and technology. EURASIA Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 14(4), 1359-1369.
Falvey, R., Foster, N., & Greenaway, D. (2004). Intellectual property rights and economic growth. Internationalisation of Economic Policies, 1-24.
Menell, P., Lemlev, M., & Merges, R. (2018). Intellectual property in the New Technological Age 2018. New York, NY: Clause 8 Publishing.