Patent is a legal right granted by the state to the inventor to protect the product idea from copying or misusing without the consent of the inventor. Patent is granted by the state government for the duration of twenty years from the date of filing. Today, with the need of copyright, inventors have raised the need of obtaining a patent for their inventions. A number of inventors have filed patent of different types to ensure that the invention is free from any unauthorized use. Well, the big question is how long it takes to get a patent.
There’s not an exact answer on the duration of obtaining a patent. This depends on application and registration procedures as well as other factors. The time varies from country to country. The procedure is fast where there is no examination procedure of the patent. But in countries where substantial examination of patent application is done, it takes more than a year or two to obtain a patent. However, there are certain factors that determine the time duration of obtaining the patent.
The first factor is the country in which the inventor has filed the patent. There is no single patent filed at one time. A number of patent file applications is filed at one time in the patent office. The patent examiner takes time to verify and review the patent application. It also depends on the ratio of patent filed. Different countries have different patent ratio. In addition to this, the patent office might have bundles of applications to be cleared before taking the current filings. This is a factor that extends the time of obtaining a patent as explained in https://www.licensingexpo.com/vibe article.
The technology or the product in which the patent application is filed also relates with the time taken in obtaining the patent. If the patent filed is for technology, then a longer duration is taken to obtain one. The patent office receives a number of patent applications for different high end technologies. It receives less patent applications for non-technical products.
The patent application for technologies are handed to the patent experts specialized in the particular area. Therefore, time taken for obtaining patent varies on the number of applications. If a number of patent examiners work at one time, the process to obtain the patent takes less time.
The procedures for expediting the patent process is also one of the factors that determines time to obtain a patent. The patent office gives a time duration for the patenting process. The inventor needs to pay certain fee slot to avail the provisions. It, therefore, depends on your availability status of patent processing to get the result of the patent filing.
However, in general, most of the patent offices require a maximum duration of one and half years or two years to grant the patent. It is also possible to make the patent processing fast. But this happens in special cases only. You can apply for the special case if the invention is of great value and importance. Health condition and age are also considered as factors for filing special patent processing.
In the current scenario, the average time to obtain a patent is two years. The year can go to double if the patent filing is for technology invention like computers. If the patent filing is for a simple work of art, it takes only a year to grant it. Inventors with patent filing of consumer goods have the chances of getting the patent in two years. More about this on https://www.dailypress.com/blogs/dp-ugc-article-inventhelp-provides-the-necessary-help-to-nav-1-2019-01-03-story.html.
It is difficult to give exact time required for obtaining a patent. A number of factors and processes are involved in obtaining it. In addition to this, the type of invention is also considered in granting the patent. To obtain a one within the defined time and year, it is required to respond the patent queries at the right time. If you fail to avail the responses or the processes, chances are high to extent the duration of getting the patent.
The answer on “how long does it take to obtain a patent” has no one single answer. One can get a patent in eighteen months if it is a regular patent application. The bottom line is that the time of examination and the type of patent application are the key factors that determine the time to obtain the patent.