Source: http://www.ipwatchdog.com/2012/06/02/patentability-overview-when-can-an-invention-be-patented/id=23863/
Timestamp: 2015-08-29 14:39:30
Document Index: 781784748

Matched Legal Cases: ['§101', '§101', '§101', '§101', '§102', '§102', '§102', '§102', '§103', '§102']

Patentability Overview: When can an Invention be Patented? By Gene Quinn
on June 2, 2012	twitter
The first and certainly the most basic question with respect to patentability is whether or not the claimed invention exhibits patent eligible subject matter. In other words, is the claimed invention something that the patent laws are designed to protect? This question is a threshold one and historically in the United States virtually everything has been viewed as being patent eligible subject matter. This includes living matter, genes, software and even business methods that are tethered to some kind of tangible apparatus.
The Legislative History of the 1952 Patent Act inform us that Congress intended the patentable subject matter referred to in §101 to “include anything under the sun that is made by man.” Why would this be the case? If an entire category of innovation is deemed patent ineligible then no patent could issue even if the innovation is useful, new, non-obvious and described so as to inform the public. Determining something is patent ineligible subject matter cuts innovation off at the knees. This is why the United States is home to the world’s biotechnology industry, as well as home to the world’s computer and Internet industries. Industries do not blossom where patent rights are prohibited.
Given that Congress intended everything made through human intervention to be patentable it is typically more helpful when discussing patentable subject matter to search for that which cannot be patented. In this regard the United States Supreme Court has repeatedly and consistently stated that there are only three categories of subject matter for which one may not obtain patent protection: (1) laws of nature; (2) natural phenomena; and (3) abstract ideas.
More recently the Supreme Court has also said that methods that claim a law of nature and only add conventional steps to differentiate from the law of nature are also patent ineligible. See Killing Industry: The Supreme Court Blows Mayo v. Prometheus. Those familiar with Mayo v. Prometheus know that the Supreme Court deviated from precedent and ignored the 1952 Legislative History and the Patent laws enacted by Congress. For most the “Prometheus anomaly” can be saved for another day, sticking to the way things have always been, and the way they will be moving forward unless you write a claim identical to the poorly drafted claim in Prometheus, which you really ought not do.
To satisfy the requirements of §101 it is not only necessary to demonstrate that the subject matter of the invention is patentable, but the patentee is also required to demonstrate that the claimed invention is “useful” for some purpose. This statement of utility, while necessary, can be made either explicitly or implicitly. The utility requirement finds its foundation in the belief that an invention that is inoperative is not a “useful” invention within the meaning of §101 and, therefore, does not deserve patent protection. For a claimed invention to violate the utility requirement it must be “totally incapable of achieving a useful result.” Therefore, an invention that is at least partially useful will passes muster under §101 and the PTO will not issue a utility rejection.
It is important to remember, however, that the PTO has the initial burden of challenging the applicants assertion of utility. This is true because the applicant’s assertion of utility in the disclosure will be initially presumed to be correct. Only if the PTO provides evidence showing that one of ordinary skill in the art would reasonably doubt the asserted utility does the burden shift to the applicant to provide rebuttal evidence sufficient to convince the PTO of the invention’s asserted utility.
Despite the impression given by the low hurdle presented by the first two patentability requirements, not every invention is patentable. One of the most common problems for applications is §102, which sets forth the doctrine of anticipation by requiring novelty of invention. Essentially, §102 requires the applicant for the patent to demonstrate that the invention is new. In essence, in order for an invention to violate this “newness” requirement it must be exactly identical to the prior art.
In order to understand the requirements of §102 it will be helpful to explore the concept of anticipation in a little detail. A claim is said to be “anticipated” if comparison of the claimed invention with a prior art reference reveals that each and every element in the claim under attack is shown or described, organized, and functioning in substantially the same manner as in the prior art reference. Anticipation is perhaps most easily understood as the converse of infringement: “That which will infringe, if later, will anticipate, if earlier.” So one way to look at whether your invention is new, as is required under the meaning of §102, is to ask whether your invention would infringe another patent already issued. In the case where the reference is not a patent but is a printed publication ask whether your invention would infringe if the printed publication were an issued patent instead of just a printed publication.
The standard for anticipation (and hence for newness) is a rigorous one; requiring that every element of the claimed invention, as arranged in the claim, be disclosed either specifically or inherently by a single prior art reference. To be sure, every element of the challenged claim need not be expressly delineated in a single prior art reference, but may be inherently disclosed by prior art if “the prior art necessarily functions in accordance with the limitations” of the challenged claim. However, if the court must go beyond a single prior art reference, the proper challenge is under §103 for obviousness, not §102 for novelty. A reference will, however, anticipate a claim if it discloses the claimed invention such that a skilled artisan could take its teachings in combination with his own knowledge of the particular art and be in possession of the invention.
U.S. law on novelty is, however, rather peculiar at first glance. Not all references, knowledge or events that can demonstrate that an invention is “old” or already known can be used by patent examiners to reject a patent claim. Before we go to far down this path lets set some definitive rules:
To complicate matters even further, this is the law relative to novelty that will be in place up to and including March 15, 2013. On March 16, 2013, we enter a brave new world thanks to the America Invents Act (AIA). Effective March 16, 2013, the United States becomes a first to file country, and the law of novelty will substantially change.
CLICK HERE to Continue Reading an overview discussion of Obviousness (35 USC 103) and what makes up an adequate description (35 USC 112).
You can contact Gene via e-mail.	Tags:anticipation, novel, novelty, patent eligibility, patent eligible, Patentability, patentability requirements, patentable subject matter, utility requirement	Posted In:Educational Information for Inventors, Gene Quinn, Invention Basics, Inventors Information, IP News, IPWatchdog.com Articles, Patents
Stan E. Delo June 2, 2012 4:45 pm
Excellent educational discourse Gene. You clarified things quite a lot for me. Maybe I should try to send a link to all of our Supreme Justices, on the off chance that they might actually read and consider what you have to say from an objective perspective. Stan~
Greg Harris December 4, 2013 6:58 am
Your article was very helpful as I continue to work on and evaluate the development of a couple new products for the golf industry. Thank you!