Can you use patent pending?

You can only use the patent pending notice after your patent application is complete. There is a penalty for saying “patent pending,” if the application has not been submitted yet. If you state, “patent pending” before you have applied for a patent, you are committing fraud on the Patent Office.

What is the difference between patent and patent pending?

What Does “Patent Pending” Mean? The most important difference between a patent pending status and holding a patent is that patent pending denotes that a patent application has been filed. “Patent pending” simply means that you have applied for, but have not yet been granted, a patent.

Do Patents protect inventions?

In principle, the patent owner has the exclusive right to prevent or stop others from commercially exploiting the patented invention. In other words, patent protection means that the invention cannot be commercially made, used, distributed, imported or sold by others without the patent owner’s consent.

How long is a patent pending good for?

1 to 3 years
How Long is the “Patent Pending” Status? Patent applications filed in the United States typically have “patent pending” for 1 to 3 years. However, it is not uncommon for some patent applications (e.g. software and electronic applications) to have patent pending status for 3 to 5+ years.

What protection does a patent give?

A patent owner has the right to decide who may – or may not – use the patented invention for the period in which the invention is protected. In other words, patent protection means that the invention cannot be commercially made, used, distributed, imported, or sold by others without the patent owner’s consent.

What protection does a patent provide?

What is a patent? In the U.S., a patent gives the holder the right to exclude others from making, using, selling, offering to sell, and importing the patented invention. Patent claims are the legal definition of an inventor’s protectable invention.