IP Intelligence
Patent Myths
Widely repeated beliefs about patents, and what the position actually is.
Showing 6 of 51.
“You can get a worldwide patent.”
There is no such thing. Patents are national. A PCT application is a procedure that keeps options open; it is never granted.
“An examination report means my application was rejected.”
It is an opening position. Nearly every Indian application receives objections, and receiving them says almost nothing about the quality of the invention.
“Patent registration and patent filing are the same thing.”
There is no registration process for patents in India. An application is filed, published, examined, argued and then either granted or refused. Registration is how trade marks and designs work, not patents.
“My copyright in the code or drawings protects the invention.”
Copyright protects the expression - the particular code, the particular drawing. It does not protect the technical idea, and a competitor who writes their own implementation does not infringe it.
“A design registration and a patent are the same thing.”
A design protects the appearance of an article - shape, configuration, pattern, ornament. A patent protects how something works. They are different statutes with different tests and different terms.
“Filing it myself is basically the same and much cheaper.”
Filing is easy. Drafting is not. The document you file determines what you can claim, what you can amend to, and what the patent is eventually worth.
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Every explanation here links to the ones next to it. Follow the thread rather than the menu.
Educational guidance, not legal advice. This material is published by Ragulika IP for general education and information. It is not legal advice, it does not create a professional-client relationship, and it is not a substitute for advice on your own facts. Patentability, infringement, prosecution strategy and every other IP outcome turn on the specific facts and on the law and Patent Office practice as they stand at the time you act. Please take professional advice before making a decision, and read the underlying provision or judgment before relying on any point stated here.