One of the most common ways to protect certain types of inventions (like medical devices or new chemical compositions) is through patenting. This guide quickly explains the parts of a United States patent application which is filled through the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Generally, patents are divided into seven sections. The sections are as follows:
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Title
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Background: A description of the problem the invention hopes to solve, along with information on any previous inventions of a similar function (prior art).
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Summary: A concise description of the claims.
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Description of Drawings: A list of drawings that appear within the application.
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Description of Invention: A specific and often detailed description explaining how another could make and/or use the invention.
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Claim Set: The limits of patent protection; essentially, what aspects of the invention are going to be protected under the patent.
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Abstract: A general description of the invention under 150 words.
To understand these sections, the following additional terms may be helpful:
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Application Number (or Serial Number): A unique number assigned by the USPTO to identify the patent application. This number has a specific format of eight digits; the first two digits are the series and the remaining six digits which are assigned sequentially (e.g., 11/679,589). This number is different from the patent or publication numbers.
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Assignee: An owner of the patent who is not the inventor.
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Drawings: Drawings, which can consist of visuals such as charts, illustrations, and diagrams, are used to further clarify the description of the invention.
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Examiner: The USPTO employee responsible for examining the patent application.
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Filing Date: The date the patent application is filed.
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Inventor: A person who contributes to a minimum of 1 claim within the patent.
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Issue Date of Patent: When the patent is issued and becomes enforceable.
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Patent Number: A unique number used to identify a granted patent assigned by the USPTO (e.g., 7,713,708).
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PCT Application: AKA The Patent Cooperation Treaty; an application for international patents covering over 148 countries.
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Prior Publication Data: If the patent is published before the application is approved, the date of the previous publishing is listed.
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Publication Number: Once a patent application is published it is assigned a unique number by the USPTO. This number has a specific format of four digits for the year, then seven digits assigned sequentially, followed by a two-digit kind code (e.g., US-2007-0141725-A1). These numbers are seen both with and without the US prefix. This number is different from the application or patent numbers.
Although this blog is just a short introduction to the parts of a patent application, there is much more to learn. If you’re interested in learning more about what our patent attorneys do, check out our IP section here, or if you’d like to get some hands-on experience as an intern, learn more about our intern program and patent track here.