Literally speaking, "patent" refers to proprietary interests. The word "patent" comes from the Latin word "Litterae patentes", which means open letters or public documents. It is a certificate used by medieval monarchs to issue certain privileges, and later refers to the exclusive right certificate signed by the British king himself. The word "Patent" in English includes the meanings of "monopoly" and "publicity", which is consistent with the basic characteristics of patents in the modern legal sense. In China, there are two meanings of patent: 1. The use in spoken language only refers to monopoly. For example, "this is not your patent"; 2. The triple meanings in intellectual property rights are easily confused. First, the abbreviation of patent right refers to the patent right enjoyed by the patentee for invention-creation, that is, the state grants the inventor or his successor the exclusive right to use his invention-creation within a certain period of time according to law, and the emphasis here is on rights. Patent right is an exclusive right, which has exclusive exclusivity. If the non-patentee wants to use the patented technology of others, he must obtain the authorization or permission of the patentee according to law. Second, it refers to inventions protected by the patent law, that is, patented technology, which is a proprietary technology recognized by the state and legally protected on the basis of publicity. "Patent" here refers specifically to technical methods-technologies or schemes protected by national laws. (The so-called proprietary technology is a technology with exclusive rights, which is a bigger concept, including patented technology and technical secrets. Some professional technologies that do not belong to patents and technical secrets are meaningful only in some technical service contracts. A patent is an invention protected by legal norms. It refers to an invention that submits a patent application to the national examination and approval authority, and after passing the examination according to law, it is granted to the patent applicant the exclusive right to the invention within the time specified in the country, and it is necessary to pay an annual fee regularly to maintain the state of protection in this country. Third: refers to the patent certificate issued by the Patent Office to confirm the patent right enjoyed by the applicant for his invention or creation, or refers to the patent document that records the content of the invention and creation, and refers to the specific material document. Here, although the first two meanings of patent are different, they are all intangible, and the third meaning refers to tangible matter. The word "patent" can refer to only one of the meanings, or contain more than two meanings, and the specific situation must be viewed in context. As for the concept of "patent", people generally think that it is a document issued by a patent institution according to an invention application, which describes the content of the invention and produces a legal state, that is, the patented invention can only be used (including manufacture, use, sale and import, etc.) with the permission of the patent owner. Because patents involve naked interests, the knowledge, laws and regulations related to patents around the world are quite numerous, detailed and even different. To know all the details, please consult the relevant specific laws, provisions or international treaties, and please refer to the resources. It is worth noting that the two basic characteristics of patent are "monopoly" and "openness", and the exchange of "openness" for "monopoly" is the most basic core of the patent system, which represents two sides of rights and obligations respectively. "Exclusive" refers to the exclusive right granted by law to technology inventors for a period of time; "Openness" means that a technology inventor makes his technology public in return for the exclusive right granted by law, so that the public can obtain relevant patent information through normal channels. According to the relevant statistics of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), 9%-95% of the world's inventions can be found in patent documents every year, and about 7% of them have never been published in other non-patent documents. Frequent access to patent documents in scientific research can not only improve the research starting point and level of scientific research projects, but also save about 6% of research time and 4% of research. The meaning of patent A patent is an invention protected by legal norms. It refers to an invention that applies for a patent to the state examination and approval authority and is granted the exclusive right to the invention within a specified time after passing the examination according to law. Patent right is an exclusive right, which has exclusive exclusivity. If the non-patentee wants to use the patented technology of others, he must obtain the consent or permission of the patentee according to law. The patent right granted by a country in accordance with its patent law is only valid within the jurisdiction of that country's laws and has no binding force on other countries. Foreign countries do not assume the obligation to protect their patent rights. If an invention is patented only in China, then the patentee only enjoys exclusive rights or exclusive rights in China. The legal protection of patent rights is time-sensitive. The term of invention patent right in China is 2 years, and the term of utility model patent right and design patent right is 1 years, counting from the date of application. The word "patent" comes from the Latin word "Litterae patentes", which means open letters or public documents, and is a proof used by medieval monarchs to issue certain privileges. At present, there is no unified definition of the concept of "patent", and one of the more accepted and widely adopted statements in patent textbooks in China is that patent is the abbreviation of patent right. It is a document issued by a patent agency according to an invention application. This kind of document describes the content of the invention and creates a legal state, that is, the patented invention can only be used (including manufacture, use, sale and import, etc.) under normal circumstances, and the protection of the patent is limited by time and region. China's patent law divides patents into three categories, namely, invention, utility model and design. The patent number must be the two most basic characteristics of the patent at the beginning of ZL, namely "exclusivity" and "openness". The exchange of "openness" for "exclusivity" is the most basic core of the patent system, which represents two sides of rights and obligations respectively. "Exclusive" refers to the exclusive right granted by law to technology inventors for a period of time; "Openness" means that a technology inventor makes his technology public in return for the exclusive right granted by law, so that the public can obtain information about patented technology through normal channels. According to the relevant statistics of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), 9%-95% of the world's inventions can be found in patent documents every year, and about 7% of them have never been published in other non-patent documents. Frequent access to patent documents in scientific research can not only improve the research starting point and level of scientific research projects, but also save about 6% of research time and 4% of research. Types of Patents 1. Invention Patents The first paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law of China defines invention as: "Invention refers to a new technical scheme proposed for a product, method or its improvement." The so-called products refer to all kinds of new products that can be manufactured in industry, including solid, liquid and gas with certain shape and structure. The so-called method refers to the method of processing raw materials and making various products. The invention patent does not require that it is a technical achievement that can be directly applied to industrial production after practice, but it can be a solution to technical problems or an idea, which has the possibility of industrial application. However, this technical solution or idea cannot be confused with a simple topic or idea, because a simple topic or idea does not have the possibility of industrial application. 2. Patent for Utility Model Paragraph 2 of Article 2 of China's Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law defines utility model as: "Utility model refers to a new practical technical scheme for the shape, structure or combination of products." Like the invention, the utility model protects a technical scheme. However, the scope of patent protection for utility model is rather limited, which only protects new products with a certain shape or structure, but does not protect methods and substances without a fixed shape. The technical scheme of utility model pays more attention to practicality, and its technical level is lower than that of invention. Most countries' utility model patents protect relatively simple and improved technological inventions, which can be called small inventions. " 3. Patent for Design The third paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law of China defines design as: "Design refers to a new design that is aesthetically pleasing and suitable for industrial application for the shape, pattern or their combination, color and shape and pattern of a product." Appearance design is obviously different from invention and utility model. Appearance design focuses on the artistic and aesthetic creation made by the designer on the appearance of a product, but this artistic creation is not a simple handicraft, it must be practical for industrial application. In essence, design patents protect artistic ideas, while invention patents and utility model patents protect technical ideas; Although appearance design and utility model are related to the shape of the product, their purposes are different. The former aims to make the shape of the product beautiful, while the latter aims to make the product with shape solve a technical problem. For example, if the shape, pattern and color of an umbrella are quite beautiful, you should apply for a patent for appearance design. If the umbrella handle, ribs and head are simple and reasonable in structural design, which can save materials and have durable functions, you should apply for a patent for utility model. The characteristics of patent A patent is an intangible property with different characteristics from other properties. (1) exclusivity. Exclusivity is also called exclusivity or exclusivity. It means that only the patentee can enjoy the right to manufacture, use and sell the same invention in a certain area within a certain period of time. No one else can manufacture, use or sell it without permission, otherwise it is an infringement. (2) the regionality. Regionality means that the patent right is a right with regional restrictions, which is only valid within the legal jurisdiction. Except in some cases, according to international conventions for the protection of intellectual property rights, and individual countries recognize that the patent right approved by another country is valid, the technological invention will be granted the patent right in which country applies for a patent, and it is only valid within the scope of the patent-granting country, but it is not legally binding on other countries, and other countries do not undertake any protection obligations. However, the same invention can be patented in two or more countries at the same time, and after being approved, its invention can be protected by law in all applicant countries. (3) timeliness. Timeliness means that a patent is valid only within the time limit prescribed by law. After the expiration of the effective protection period of the patent right, the patent right enjoyed by the patentee will be automatically lost and generally cannot be renewed. With the end of the protection period, the invention becomes the public wealth of the society, and others can freely use the invention to create products. The duration of patent protection by law shall be stipulated by the patent law of relevant countries or relevant international conventions. At present, the patent laws of all countries in the world have different provisions on the duration of patent protection. Article 33 (Agreement on Intellectual Property Rights) stipulates that "the term of protection shall be no less than the end of the twentieth year from the date of filing the application". (4) implementation. Except for a few countries such as the United States, most countries require the patentee to implement his patent right within a certain period of time, that is, to use patented technology to manufacture products or transfer his patent. The first paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law of China defines invention as: "Invention refers to a new technical scheme proposed for a product, method or its improvement." The so-called products refer to all kinds of new products that can be manufactured in industry, including solid, liquid and gas with certain shape and structure. The so-called method refers to the method of processing raw materials and making various products. The invention patent does not require that it is a technical achievement that can be directly applied to industrial production after practice, but it can be a solution to technical problems or an idea, which has the possibility of industrial application. However, this technical solution or idea cannot be confused with a simple topic or idea, because a simple topic or idea does not have the possibility of industrial application. 2. Patent for Utility Model Paragraph 2 of Article 2 of China's Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law defines utility model as: "Utility model refers to a new practical technical scheme for the shape, structure or combination of products." Like the invention, the utility model protects a technical scheme. However, the scope of patent protection for utility model is rather limited, which only protects new products with a certain shape or structure, but does not protect methods and substances without a fixed shape. The technical scheme of utility model pays more attention to practicality, and its technical level is lower than that of invention. Most national utility model patents protect relatively simple and improved technological inventions, which can be called "small inventions". 3. Patent for Design The third paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law of China defines design as: "Design refers to a new design that is aesthetically pleasing and suitable for industrial application for the shape, pattern or their combination, color and shape and pattern of a product." Appearance design is obviously different from invention and utility model. Appearance design focuses on the artistic and aesthetic creation made by the designer on the appearance of a product, but this artistic creation is not a simple handicraft, it must be practical for industrial application. In essence, design patents protect artistic ideas, while invention patents and utility model patents protect technical ideas; Although appearance design and utility model are related to the shape of the product, their purposes are different. The former aims to make the shape of the product beautiful, while the latter aims to make the product with shape solve a technical problem. For example, if the shape, pattern and color of an umbrella are quite beautiful, you should apply for a patent for appearance design. If the umbrella handle, ribs and head are simple and reasonable in structural design, which can save materials and have durable functions, you should apply for a patent for utility model. Edit the characteristics of the patent in this paragraph. The patent is a part of intellectual property and an intangible property with different characteristics from other properties. (1) exclusivity. It means that the same invention can't be manufactured, used and sold by anyone else without permission in a certain area, otherwise it is an infringement. Patents do not actually have strict exclusivity. (2) regional. Regionality means that the patent right is a right with regional restrictions, which is only valid within the legal jurisdiction. Except in some cases, according to international conventions for the protection of intellectual property rights, and individual countries recognize that the patent right approved by another country is valid, the technological invention will be granted the patent right in which country applies for a patent, and it is only valid within the scope of the patent-granting country, but it is not legally binding on other countries, and other countries do not undertake any protection obligations. However, the same invention can be patented in two or more countries at the same time, and after being approved, its invention can be protected by law in all applicant countries. (3) timeliness. Timeliness means that a patent is valid only within the time limit prescribed by law. After the expiration of the effective protection period of the patent right, the patent right enjoyed by the patentee will be automatically lost and generally cannot be renewed. With the end of the protection period, the invention becomes the public wealth of the society, and others can freely use the invention.