1. What is a patent? What can be patented and not?

A Patent describes an invention for which the inventor claims the exclusive right over their invention for a set
period. It prevents others from making, using, or selling the invention without permission.
An Invention is patentable if it is:
● Novel: It should be ‘new’, ‘unusual’ and ‘original’.
● Useful: It should be useful to the industry.
● Non - Obvious: It should be non-obvious to a person skilled in that art.
The Invention that can be patented:
● Can relate to a Process or Product or Both.
● It should involve an Inventive Step.
● It should be capable of Industrial Application.
● It can be a Machine or a New solution to a technical problem
The things that cannot be patented:
● Anything Known: The things that are already known can not be patented like publication which is
written or oral and sale of products.
● Ideas: The mere ideas without a technical solution. Broad concepts that carry invitation to carry out
research.
● Non-technical subject matter: Any scientific or mathematical discovery, theory or method, literary,
dramatic, musical or artistic work a way of performing a mental act, playing a game or doing business
the presentation of information
● For examples: Discoveries, Scientific theories, Mathematical methods, Business Schemes, Anything
against natural law, Weapons of mass destruction, Nuclear and Atomic technology, Surgery Methods,
Anything which is contrary to public order or morality

2. Define patents and their types and validity.

A Patent describes an invention for which the inventor claims the exclusive right over their invention for a set
period. It prevents others from making, using, or selling the invention without permission.

There are 3 types of Patent types

Utility Patent
● A utility patent is the most common type of patent and is granted for the invention or discovery of
something new and which is useful to the industry.
● It can be a process or machine or manufacture, composition of matter and any new and useful
improvement.
● It provides exclusive rights to the inventor to prevent others from making, using, or selling the
invention for a period of typically 20 years from the date of filing.
● Utility patents are used to protect functional aspects of inventions, such as how they work or are
used, rather than their ornamental design.

Design Patent
● A design patent is a form of intellectual property protection granted to the ornamental design of a
functional item. It is new and non-obvious. It can be an ornamental design for an article of
manufacture.
● Design patents safeguard the visual appearance or aesthetic aspects of a product. This can include
the shape, configuration, or surface ornamentation of an item.
● Design patents typically have a shorter term of protection, usually lasting for 15 years from the date
of grant.
● They provide exclusive rights to the inventor to prevent others from making, using, or selling products
that closely resemble the patented design.

Plant Patent
● A plant patent is a type of patent granted by the government to protect a new variety of asexually
reproduced such as any distinct and new variety of plant including the cultivated spouts, mutants,
hybrids and new found seedlings other than a tuber propagated plant or a plant found in an
uncultivated state.
● The patent grants the inventor exclusive rights to reproduce, sell, and use the patented plant for a
period of 20 years from the date of filing.
● Plant patents are designed to encourage innovation and investment in the development of new and
distinct plant varieties, ensuring that inventors have the opportunity to benefit from their discoveries
in the agricultural and horticultural industries.
After the expiration of the patent term, the invention enters the public domain, meaning it can be freely used
by anyone without infringing on the patent holder's rights.

3. Explain if patents are granted in one country then they are enforceable in other countries
or patents are territorial in nature.
● No, there is nothing like a Global patent or a World patent. Patent rights are essentially territorial in
nature.
 ● Each country has its own patent laws and a patent office responsible for granting patents within its
borders. There is no single global patent office where inventors can obtain a patent valid in all
countries.
● Granting a patent in one country does not force other countries to grant the patent for the same
invention. Inventors must file separate patent applications in each country where they seek
protection.
● The refusal of the patent in one country does not mean that it will be terminated in all the countries.
● Patents are subject to the laws and regulations of each individual country, so a patent may remain
valid in one country even if it is invalidated or not granted in another.

4. Explain the procedure of filing a patent.

Prepare Your Patent Application:
● Write a detailed description of your invention.
● Draft legal claims defining its distinctive features.
Search for Similar Patents:
● Conduct a search to identify existing patents.
● Assess novelty and adjust your application as needed.
File Your Application:
● Submit your application form and fees.
● Include supporting documentation like drawings.
Examination by Patent Office:
● Patent office assesses novelty and industrial applicability.
● Conducts prior art search to evaluate patentability.
Publication of Your Application:
● Your application is published in a publicly accessible database.
● Provides notice to the public and invites review.
Grant or Refusal:
● Patent office issues decision to grant or refuse.
● If granted, you receive a patent certificate for exclusive rights.

5. Explain what are the rights of the patentee.

Patent is an exclusive right granted to the inventor for his invention which is either a process or a product.
Receiving grant for an invention or possessing exclusive rights over an intellectual property offers several
advantages to the patentee which includes financial benefits.
The following rights are conferred to a Patentee:
Right To Exploit The Patent:
● If the invention is a product, the patent confers the exclusive right to make, use, sell or import the
invention in India.
● If the patent is for a method or process of manufacturing an article or substance, it confers the
exclusive right to use or exercise the method or process in India
 ● The patentee has the right to prevent third parties from exploiting the patented invention in any such
manner without the consent of the patentee.
● It is necessary to renew the patent annually on payment of fee for it to remain valid throughout its
term of 20 years.
● Failure to renew the patent results in loss of all patent rights.

Right to Grant License:

● A license agreement is a partnership between two persons, one patent owner (Patentee) and another
known as licensor who is authorized to use the patent.
● Patent licensing is a process of granting permission to a third party to extract benefits by selling and
using the licensed product.
● The patent owner gives license to a third party to use his patented invention based on the agreement
and royalty.
● The license can be given for a period of time as per the mutual understanding between patent owner
and licensee.
● During this time period, the licensee can use patented inventions and can take financial benefits.

Right To Surrender The Patent:

● The patentee is given the right to surrender the patent at any time by giving notice in the prescribed
manner to the Controller of Patents.
● The Controller, before accepting the offer of surrender, advertises about this surrender as per the
procedure laid down in the Indian Patents Act.
● The parties interested in getting the ownership of the patent can then approach the controller.
● The controller examines the party’s claims and surrenders the ownership respectively.

Right To Sue For Infringement

● When any of the rights of the patent holder is violated, then it is termed as patent infringement.
● This means that if the patented invention is used, manufactured or sold for commercial purposes by
any person, then it will be accused of patent infringement.
● In case of violation of patentee’s rights, the patentee can approach either the district court or a high
court.
● If the person is proven guilty of infringement, the courts will either grant permanent injunction or
damages or both.

6. Explain assignment or transfer of patent.

An assignment means transfer of interest in the patent by the patentee to another person in whole or in part
valid over the entire or a part of India. There are two types of people: Assignee and Assignor. Assignee
means the person to whom the patent rights are assigned and Assignor is the person who assigns the rights.
There are three kinds of assignment:
Legal Assignment
 ● When the Assignor (patent holder) assigns/transfers the patent rights through a duly registered
agreement , the assignment is called a Legal assignment.
● The Assignee’s name will be entered in the Register of Patents maintained by the Patent Office as the
proprietor of the patent.
● The legal Assignee has all the rights as that of the patentee.

Equitable Assignment
● When the patentee agrees to give another person certain defined rights of the patent with immediate
effect, by a document (e.g. a letter), and not by a legal agreement, the assignment is termed as an
equitable assignment.
● However, such an assignment is not registered in the Register of Patents.
● The Assignee has the rights to change Equitable assignment to Legal assignment by getting the
document in writing and getting it duly registered.

Mortgage
● When the Patentee transfers the patent rights either wholly or in part to the mortgagee to secure a
specified sum of money, such assignment is called mortgage.
● The Patentee can get the patent re-transferred on refund of the consideration money.

7. Define trademark, Explain its validity, applicability and symbol (2-3)

Trademark is a symbol, logo, word, sound, color, design, or other device that is used to identify a business or
a product in commerce. Trademark is a branch of Intellectual Property Rights that identifies the brand owner
of a particular product or service. The brand owner can be an individual, firm, business organization or any
legal entity.

Applicability Of A Trademark
● A trademark is a sign Used on, or in connection with the marketing of goods or services.
● “Used on” the goods means that it may appear not only on the goods themselves but on the
container or wrapper in which the goods are when they are sold.
● A visual symbol like a word, signature, name, device, label, numerals or combination of colors used by
the owner of the trademark for goods or services or other articles of commerce to distinguish it from
other similar goods or services originating from different businesses.
● It is used to distinguish the owners’ products or services from those of its competitors

Validity Of A Trademark
● Trademark is valid for 10 years from the date of application which may be renewed for a further
period of 10 years on payment of prescribed fees.
● Service mark Rights are reserved exclusively for owners for 17 years & it can also be renewed.
● The government fee is Rs. 2,500 for each class of goods or services.
 ● The validity of trademarks can potentially last indefinitely as long as they are continuously used in
commerce and properly maintained through renewal processes.

The three symbols commonly associated with trademarks are:

Trademark symbol (™): This symbol is used to indicate that a word, phrase, or logo is being claimed as a
trademark. It can be used with unregistered trademarks to assert ownership rights and put others on notice
of the claim.
Registered trademark symbol (®): This symbol is used to indicate that a word, phrase, or logo has been
officially registered with the appropriate trademark office. It can only be used with trademarks that have
been registered with the relevant authorities.
Service mark symbol (℠): This symbol is used specifically to indicate that a word, phrase, or logo is being
claimed as a service mark, which is a type of trademark that identifies services rather than physical products.
Similar to the ™ symbol, it can be used with unregistered service marks to assert ownership rights.

8. What are the different trademark types / List and explain diff types of trademarks / List
and explain general types of trademark / List and explain specific type of trademark.
Specific Types Of Trademarks
Word Marks
● Word marks may be letters or numerals.
● A word mark gives the proprietor a right only in the word, letter or numerical.
● No right is sought with respect to the representation of the mark.

Device Marks
● Where the trademark lies in the unique representation of a word, letter or numerical.
● Iit is called a device mark.

Service Marks
● A service mark is nothing but a mark that distinguishes the services of one person from that of
another.
● Service marks do not represent goods, but the services offered by one individual / company.
● Businesses providing services like computer hardware & software assembly and maintenance,
restaurant & hotel services, courier & transport, beauty & health care, advertising & publishing,
educational and the like are now in a position to protect their names & marks from being misused by
others.
● For example, McDonald's the company is a service within that service - providing fast food - the
company may have many products that are also trademarked. The Big Mac® is a trademarked
product.

Collective Marks
● Marks being used by a group of companies can be protected by the group collectively.
 ● Collective marks are used to inform the public about a particular feature of the product for which the
collective mark is used.
● The owner of such marks may be an association / public institution / cooperative.
● Collective marks are also used to promote particular products which have certain characteristics
specific to the producer in a given region

Certification Marks
● Certification marks are used to define standards. They assure the consumers that the product meets
certain prescribed standards.
● The presence of a certification mark on the product indicates that the product has successfully gone
through a standard test specified.
● It assures the buyer / consumer that the manufacturers have gone through an audit process to ensure
the quality of the product.

Well - Known Marks

● When a Mark is easily recognized among a large percentage of the population it achieves the status
of a well-known mark.
● Well-known marks enjoy greater protection; a person will not be able to register or use marks, which
are imitations of well-known trademarks.
● In order to be well-known, a trademark needs to be known / recognized by a relevant section of
people.
● These people include actual / potential customers, people involved in the distribution & business
service dealing with the goods / services.

Unconventional Trademarks
Unconventional trademarks are those trademarks which get recognition for their inherently distinctive
feature.
● Colour Trademark: If a particular color has become a distinctive feature indicating the goods of a
particular trade it can be registered as a trademark. E.G: Red Wine
● Sound Mark: A sign which is perceived by hearing and which is distinguishable by their distinctive &
exclusive sound can be registered as sound marks. E.G: Musical Notes
● Shape Mark: When the shape of goods, packaging have some distinctive features it can be
registered. E.G: Ornamental Lamps.
● Smell Mark: when the smell is distinctive & cannot be mistaken for an associated product it can be
registered as a smell mark. E.G: Perfumes

General Types Of Trademarks

Generic Mark
● Generic marks represent the everyday descriptions of a product or its seller. These could be common
words such as "shoes," "watch," or "food."
 ● But since these words belong to the public, a restaurant, for instance, cannot register a trademark for
the term "restaurant."
● Hence, a company must add another modifier exclusive to its products for it to qualify for a generic
mark.
Descriptive Mark
● Descriptive Mark immediately tells something about the goods or services with which it is used, such
as an immediate idea of the ingredients, qualities, characteristics, features or functions of the goods
or services.
● But since these words are considered part of the universal language, they are still non-registerable.
● However, adding a signifier to describe a significant quality of the product could qualify it for
trademark protection.
Suggestive Mark
● Suggestive Marks register words that imply qualities of a product without necessarily relating to it in
a literal sense.
● Imagination from the consumer's end is a primary consideration in classifying a mark as suggestive.
● A good example would be Netflix, as it alludes to its line of service without directly stating that it is
an online streaming platform.
Arbitrary Mark
● An Arbitrary trademark is a word that has a common dictionary meaning but is applied to a product
or service unrelated to the common English meaning.
● A good example of an arbitrary mark is “Apple” for smartphones and computers.
● The word “apple” is well known to mean a particular type of fruit, but it bears no relationship to
smartphones or computers.
● Some other good examples of “arbitrary” marks include “Camel” for cigarettes, “Blackberry” for
mobile telephones, “Dove” for soap, and “Shell” for gas stations.
Fanciful Mark
● A “fanciful” trademark is a made-up or “coined” word. This kind of trademark is indeed the easiest
one to register.
● It only requires a new word that does not presently hold any meaning to the general public.
● Fanciful trademarks are words that are invented and never existed before or had any meaning before
they were adopted.
● Well known examples of fanciful trademarks include Kodak, Exxon, Lexus and Verizon.

9. How to choose a trademark / what are the criteria to select a trademark?

The Trademark Act 1999 states that to be eligible to be registered as a trademark, a mark should fulfill
the following conditions:
● The selected mark should be capable of being represented graphically.
● It should be capable of one undertaking from those distinguishing the goods or services of others.
● If it is a word, it should be easy to speak, spell and remember.
● The best trade marks are invented words or coined words.
 ● Avoid selection of a geographical name, no one can have monopoly right on it.
● Avoid adopting laudatory words or words that describe the quality of goods (i.e. best, perfect, super
etc.)

10.Explain the trademark registration process.

Application for Search
● Before filing a trademark application, it's advisable to conduct a search
to ensure that the proposed trademark is not already in use by someone
else.
● This helps identify potential conflicts that could arise during the
registration process.
Application for Registration
● Once the search is completed and it's confirmed that the proposed
trademark is available, the applicant submits a trademark application to
the relevant trademark office.
● This application typically includes information about the trademark
owner, a representation of the trademark, and the goods or services
associated with the mark.
Examination of Trademark
● After the application is submitted, the trademark office conducts an examination to ensure that the
trademark meets the legal requirements for registration.
● This includes assessing whether the trademark is distinctive, not descriptive or generic, and does not
infringe on existing trademarks.
Advertisement of Trademark
● If the trademark application meets all requirements, it is published or advertised in an official gazette
or publication to notify the public of the pending trademark registration.
● This allows interested parties to review the application and file oppositions if they believe the
trademark should not be registered.
Filing of Opposition
● During the advertisement period, third parties who believe they would be harmed by the registration
of the trademark can file an opposition with the trademark office.
● Oppositions typically involve providing evidence and arguments to support the claim that the
trademark should not be registered.
Certificate Issued
● If no oppositions are filed, or if opposition proceedings are resolved in favor of the applicant, the
trademark office issues a registration certificate to the trademark owner.
● This certificate serves as proof of registration and grants the owner exclusive rights to use the
trademark in connection with the specified goods or services.
Once the trademark is registered, the owner must continue to use the mark in commerce and comply with
renewal and maintenance requirements to keep the registration active and enforceable.