PD 4.5 Patent Information European Patent Office The European Patent Office Serving industry and the public 20040527Warshaw PD 4.5 Patent Information European Patent Office Filing the European Application Dipl.-Ing. Heidrun Krestel Liaison Office Member States Co-operation Programmes and INPADOC 20040527Warshaw The European Patent Office The European Patent Office The European Patent Office – the patent granting authority for Europe The European Patent The European Patent Office Organisation The European Patent Office European Patent Organisation European Administrative Patent Office Council The executive body The legislative body TheOffice'staskisto Important functions: grant European patents. • to adopt the budget • to approve the President´s actions in implementing the budget • to amend the Implementing Regulations and Rules relating to Fees The Administrative Council consists of delegates from the member states. Member states The European Patent Office Organisational structure The European Patent Office of the European Patent Office President's Office President Council Secretariat Alain Controlling Office Pompidou (FR) Communication Vice-President Vice-President Vice-President Vice-President Vice-President T. Hammer P. Kyriakides P. Messerli C. Edfjäll M. Desantes (DE) (CY) (CH) (SE) (ES) Directorate- Directorate- Directorate- Directorate- Directorate- General 1 General 2 General 3 General 4 General 5 Locations The European Patent Office Headquarters Munich Branch at The Hague PschorrHöfe Headquarters Munich Isar building Brussels Bureau Vienna sub-office Berlin sub-office The EPO’s Mission The European Patent Office To examine patent applications To grant patents To publish and disseminate patent information Applications filed The European Patent Office 140000 120000 100000 80000 60000 40000 20000 0 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 EP direct EURO-PCT regional phase Granted patents The European Patent Office 60000 40000 20000 0 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 Patents granted What is a patent? The European Patent Office A patent is a legal title granting its holder the exclusive right to make use of an invention for a limited area and time by stopping others from, among other things, making, using or selling it without authorisation. The European National procedures Patent Office Invention Application EE-Patent AT-Patent Application SE- Patent Application International procedure (PCT) The European Patent Office Invention 182 Application member states search and optional preliminary examination, no patent grant as such, entering the regional or national phase with 30 months delay after first filing European procedure (EP) The European Patent Office Invention Application up to 31 member states EPO Grant European phase National Phase Steps in the European patent The European Patent Office procedure Filing Search and examination Granting Opposition Appeal Filing the application The European Patent Office Who can Any natural or legal person, joint file? applicants Where to at EPO premises in Munich, The file? Hague and Berlin at the central industrial property office or other competent authorities in that Contracting State (depending on the national law) The European Filing the application Patent Office For which In countries where the EPC countries? has entered into force = the contracting (designating) states In which In one of the official language? languages (English, French, German) Filing the application The European Patent Office Items to Request for grant of a European file patent Description of the invention Claim(s) Drawing(s) referred to the description or the claims Abstract Claim to priority The European Filing the application Patent Office Claim to Priority may be claimed for a priority European patent application by a person who in 12 month prior to the filing of the European application has filed an application of a patent or registration of a utility model in respect of the same invention in a state which is party of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property Filing the application The European Patent Office Requirements concerning the presentation of the invention Disclosure of the invention Unity of invention Description: indication of technical field of the invention background state of the art definition of the technical problem and its solution description of the figures description of the way to carry out the invention indication of industrial application Filing the application The European Patent Office Requirements concerning the presentation of the invention Claims: define the matter of protection usually comprises two parts, the prior art portion and the characterising portion Drawings: must correspond to description and claims Abstract: summary of the invention for technical information purposes Online filing The European Patent Office Online filing of EP and PCT applications online filing functionality via epoline® Fee reduction for online filed applications as of 1 April 2004 (€125 to €90) PD 4.5 Patent Information Further detailed information via the EPO website www.epo.org 20040527Warshaw The European Patent Office Steps in the European patent The European Patent Office procedure Filing Search and examination Granting Opposition Appeal Search and examination The European Patent Office 1st step: Examination on filing / Formalities examination 2nd step: Search => Search report 3rd step: Substantive examination The European Patent Office The European Search and examination Patent Office Code letters in the search report indicating: X particularly relevant document which, taken by itself destroys the novelty or inventive step of the subject-matter claimed Y particularly relevant document which, taken together with one or more other „Y“ documents, indicates that the subject-matter claimed does not involve an inventive step A document gives information about the state of the art Granting The European Patent Office For an invention to be patentable it must be: Novel (no prior disclosure or use) EPC Art. 54 Inventive (not obvious to one skilled in the art) EPC Art. 56 Industrially applicable EPC Art. 57 The European Opposition Patent Office Any person (public) Opposition period: nine months after mention of publication of grant Reasoned statement (grounds) In written (opposition form) with facts and evidence Payment of opposition fees Substantive examination of the opposition by the opposition division Oral proceedings Decision of the opposition division Appeal The European Patent Office Anyone adversely affected by a decision of the EPO may file an appeal to the Board of Appeal time limit two months after the date of notification of the respective decision written statement (grounds) last instance case law Fees The European Patent Office Application fee online filing € 90 Application fee Paper filing € 125 Search fee € 690 Designation fee € 75 per country, maximum 7 times Examination fee € 1430 Fee for grant € 715 Annual fee 3+4 year € 785 Total up to grant € 4270 Opposition fee € 610 Fee for appeal € 1020 The European Patent Office 13% Overview of the patent procedure at the EPO The European Patent Office Application 12 months Further or Formalities after former applications 18 months (Priority) Publication, Search Search Report Info Request for max. 6 Months Examination after search report Examination Reject Info Applicant Grant Patent EPO within 9 months national Phase Third Parties Translations Opposition Max. life time: 20 years PD 4.5 Patent Information European Patent Office Thank you for your attention www.european-patent-office.org 20040527Warshaw.