Web Reference Sources
@CQU Library
A patent is defined as "a government licence giving an individual or body the sole right to make, use, or sell an invention for a set period" (OUP, 2004). A trademark is defined as "a symbol, word, or words, legally registered or established by use as representing a company or product" (OUP, 2004).
This collection contains links to online resources from Australia and other
countries about patents and associated inventions, and trademarks.
Ask Your
Librarian if you can't find the answer to your question here.
What are patents?
How are patents evaluated?
Australian patents, trademarks and designs agencies
International patents, trademarks and designs agencies
Electronic databases with patent information
An asterisk (*) indicates that the resource is a product to which CQU Library subscribes and therefore, is available to CQU staff and students only.
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Patents are legal documents that protect intellectual property rights. Inventors and researchers obtain patents on new product and process ideas, effectively preventing other inventors and manufacturers from using the same idea. It also prevents unnecessary research and the 'reinvention of the wheel'. A patent must first be accepted as a novel idea, and it must be of practical use. Facts and natural phenomena cannot be patented. Concepts cannot be patented. A scientist cannot patent a naturally occurring gene. However, the way the scientist identifies or makes use of the information contained within the gene may be patented. For example, genetically modified crops are patented. A patent is often the first publication of an idea. It must contain sufficient detail about the product or process, and as a result can be quite informative. |
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A patent is processed by the patent office. This process may take some time from the initial application for the patent to the final granted stage: The application is submitted. After a period of 18 months, the application is published (Open to Public Inspection). If the application raises no public objections, 3 months after the inventor may apply to have the patent examined. Final acceptance of the patent application may take a further 8 months, depending on whether or not the patent examiner requires revisions be made. As a patent is a legal document, its protection only applies in the country from which it is issued. It gives the inventor exclusive rights to the application of the idea (and hence, any profits made from the idea). Applications may be made for patent rights in additional countries within the first 12 months of being granted a patent. |
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The federal government agency responsible for granting rights in patents, trade marks and designs. The Patents Database is a searchable list of patents, designs and trademarks, and provides public records, and legal and business support. |
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International patent, trademark and design management agencies and projects |
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Japanese government agency managing intellectual property issues. |
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Links to European countries' patent agencies and lists of their patents, designs, and trademarks. Manages the Online European Patent Register. |
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Lists free databases, describes national patent agency resources, commercial patent databases, and other commercial services. Also, describes patent classification and patent search strategy. |
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Responsible for the management of intellectual property in the UK. |
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Protects the progress of science and the useful arts by securing for limited times to U.S. inventors the exclusive right to their respective discoveries. |
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In addition to many other intellectual property management roles, WIPO manages the system for filing and processing international patent applications. A searchable database of patent case studies and statistics is available. |
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* Available to CQU staff and students only. |
For information about U.S., European, and Japanese patents. Select Legal (Sources); Area of law by topic; Patent law; Patents; US Patents or Non-US Patents; then double click on a topic to search by keyword within that topic. |
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* Available to CQU staff and students only. |
For information about U.S. engineering patents. Under Select Database, choose U.S. Patent Office, and enter keywords (search abstracts, not just title) or patent numbers. |
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* Available to CQU staff and students only. |
For information about chemical patents. Search by patent number, or try keyword searching including the term 'patent'. |
References:
Oxford University Press 2004, AskOxford.com, viewed 19 July 2004,
http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/patent?view=uk
Oxford University Press 2004, AskOxford.com, viewed 19 July 2004, http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/trademark?view=uk
CQU CRICOS Provider Codes: QLD - 00219C; NSW - 01315F; VIC - 01624D
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