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Unavailable Inventor: If the inventor is dead, insane, or
otherwise legally incapacitated, refuses to execute an application, or
cannot be found, an application may be made by someone other than the
inventor. |
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Unfair Competition: A legal action addressing different
forms of competition that illegally interfere with the legitimate
commercial interests of competitors in the marketplace. It covers such
diverse activities as passing off, false advertising, commercial
disparagement, misappropriation, trademark dilution, trademark
infringement and theft of trade secrets. The modern-day legal action for
“unfair competition” has developed from the common-law action for
“unfair competition” that sought relief against a competitor because of
misrepresentation of the source of goods or services. |
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Unity Of Invention: An international and a
national stage application shall relate to one invention only or to a
group of inventions so linked as to form a single general inventive
concept ("requirement of unity of invention"). Where a group of
inventions is claimed in an application, the requirement of unity of
invention shall be fulfilled only when there is a technical relationship
among those inventions involving one or more of the same or
corresponding special technical features. The expression "special
technical features" shall mean those technical features that define a
contribution which each of the claimed inventions, considered as a
whole, makes over the prior art. |
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Useful Invention: A patent application
must comply with the "useful invention" ("utility") requirement of 35 USC 101 and 35 USC 112, first paragraph. A patent on will not issue to a
frivolous invention that has no use. |
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Utility: An invention has a
well-established utility if (i) a person of ordinary skill in the art
would immediately appreciate why the invention is useful based on the
characteristics of the invention (e.g., properties or applications of a
product or process), and (ii) the utility is specific, substantial, and
credible. |
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Utility Patent: May be granted to anyone
who invents or discovers any new, useful, and non-obvious process,
machine, article of manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new
and useful improvement thereof. |
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Utility Patent Application Transmittal Form: A
Utility Patent Application Transmittal Form (Form PTO/SB/05) or a
transmittal letter should be filed with every patent application to
instruct the USPTO as to what actual types of papers are being filed
(e.g., specification, claims drawings, declaration, information
disclosure statement). It identifies the name of the applicant, the type
of application, the title of the invention, the contents of the
application, and any accompanying enclosures. (Form PTO/SB/21 is to be
used for all correspondence after initial filing.) |
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