It is important that you safeguard the secrecy of your patent application. Your invention cannot be public knowledge, for instance because it has been described in a patent, on a website or in a newspaper article. It cannot have been demonstrated at a trade fair either.
Your creation must be inventive. This means your invention cannot have been obvious to a skilled person in the field. In other words, your idea must be original.
Your invention must effectively function and be usable in a specific type of industry, for instance as a product in the production process. In other words, your invention must be able to operate on a technical level.
It can be tricky trying to decide whether your invention qualifies for a patent. If you are unsure what to do, you can opt for a patentability search. This ensures that within one to four weeks you have all the information you need to determine whether it is worth applying for a patent or not. This will help you avoid disappointment during the patent grant procedure should it transpire that your invention is not original enough.
NLO can help in everything patent-related. Our experts would be happy to answer any questions you may have.