Patent: Difference between revisions
John James (talk | contribs) Created page with "A '''patent''' is an exclusive right or set of rights granted by a state (government) to an inventor to manufacture, use, or sell an invention for ..." |
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A '''patent''' is | A '''patent''' is a [[government]] grant to an [[inventor]] of the right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an [[invention]], usually for a limited period. Patents are granted for new and useful machines, manufactured products, and industrial processes and for significant improvements of existing ones. Patents also are granted for new chemical compounds, foods, and medicinal products, as well as for the processes used to produce them. In some countries patents can be granted even for new forms of plant or animal life developed through genetic engineering.<ref name="Britannica_patent">Encyclopædia Britannica. [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/446287/patent "patent. (2011)."], referenced 2011-09-08.</ref> | ||
==History== | |||
The first recorded patent for an industrial invention was granted in 1421 in [[Florence]] to the architect and engineer Filippo Brunelleschi. The patent gave him a three-year monopoly on the manufacture of a barge with hoisting gear used to transport marble. It appears that such privileged grants to inventors spread from Italy to other European countries during the next two centuries. In many cases governments issued grants for the importation and establishment of new industries, as in England at the time of [[Queen Elizabeth I]] (reigned 1558–1603). However, the sentiment slowly grew that the English crown was abusing its authority to grant such rights, and the Privy Council and then the common-law courts began to scrutinize patents more carefully. Finally, in 1623 Parliament enacted the [[Statute of Monopolies]]. Although the statute prohibited most royal monopolies, it specifically preserved the right to grant "letters patent" for inventions of new manufactures for up to 14 years. | |||
In the United States the Constitution authorizes Congress to create a national patent system to "promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts" by "securing for limited Times to ... Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective ... Discoveries" (Article I, Section 8). Congress passed the first Patent Statute in 1790. France enacted its patent system the following year. By the end of the 19th century, many countries had patent laws, and today there are more than 100 separate jurisdictions regarding patents.<ref name="Britannica_patent" /> | |||
==References== | |||
{{Reflist}} | |||
==Links== | ==Links== | ||
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patent Patent] at [[Wikipedia]] | [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patent Patent] at [[Wikipedia]] | ||
[[Category:Intellectual property | [[Category:Intellectual property]] | ||
Revision as of 14:30, 8 September 2011
A patent is a government grant to an inventor of the right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention, usually for a limited period. Patents are granted for new and useful machines, manufactured products, and industrial processes and for significant improvements of existing ones. Patents also are granted for new chemical compounds, foods, and medicinal products, as well as for the processes used to produce them. In some countries patents can be granted even for new forms of plant or animal life developed through genetic engineering.[1]
History
The first recorded patent for an industrial invention was granted in 1421 in Florence to the architect and engineer Filippo Brunelleschi. The patent gave him a three-year monopoly on the manufacture of a barge with hoisting gear used to transport marble. It appears that such privileged grants to inventors spread from Italy to other European countries during the next two centuries. In many cases governments issued grants for the importation and establishment of new industries, as in England at the time of Queen Elizabeth I (reigned 1558–1603). However, the sentiment slowly grew that the English crown was abusing its authority to grant such rights, and the Privy Council and then the common-law courts began to scrutinize patents more carefully. Finally, in 1623 Parliament enacted the Statute of Monopolies. Although the statute prohibited most royal monopolies, it specifically preserved the right to grant "letters patent" for inventions of new manufactures for up to 14 years.
In the United States the Constitution authorizes Congress to create a national patent system to "promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts" by "securing for limited Times to ... Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective ... Discoveries" (Article I, Section 8). Congress passed the first Patent Statute in 1790. France enacted its patent system the following year. By the end of the 19th century, many countries had patent laws, and today there are more than 100 separate jurisdictions regarding patents.[1]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Encyclopædia Britannica. "patent. (2011).", referenced 2011-09-08.