Types of Patents

The United States patent system recognizes three different types of patents: utility patents, design patents, and plant patents. Utility patents secure functional inventions, from machines and chemical compositions to manufacturing processes. Design patents focus on the item's aesthetic aspects. Plant patents address agricultural inventions by protecting unique varieties of plants developed through asexual reproduction methods.

Utility patent protection lasts for 20 years. It grants the inventors the exclusive rights to make their creations available for sale, use, or duplication. Design patents, on the other hand, do not need maintenance payments to stay valid. Meanwhile, plant patents share the same duration as utility patents. It lasts for 20 years and requires periodic maintenance fees to remain valid.

Overview of Three Different Types of Patents

There are three types of patents: utility patents, design patents, and plant patents. Each type has its own eligibility requirements and protects a specific type of invention, useful process, or discovery. However, one invention or discovery can have more than one type of patent available.

For example, if a person invents an object and wishes to patent both its functional features and its design, they need to apply for two separate patents—a utility patent and a design patent.

Patents protect inventions and discoveries that are new and non-obvious. This article will provide an overview of the three different types of patents and provide a brief explanation of how to get patent protection.

Utility Patents

A utility patent is the most common type of patent that people seek. This type of patent covers:

• Processes

• Compositions of matter

• Machines

• Manufacturers that are new and useful

A utility patent can also be obtained for new and useful improvements to existing processes, compositions of matter, machines, and manufacturers.

• "Processes" refers to any acts or methods of doing something, usually involving industrial or technical processes.

• "Compositions of matter" is the term for chemical compositions that can include a mixture of ingredients or new chemical compounds.

• "Machines" includes anything that is generally defined as a machine, such as a computer.

• "Manufacturers" are defined as goods that are manufactured or made.

Utility patents have a maximum patent term of 20 years from the filing date of the utility patent application. Additionally, maintenance fees are required to keep utility patents in force and maintain legal protection.

Design Patents

A design is defined as the "surface ornamentation" of an object, which can include the shape or configuration of an object. The design must be inseparable from the object to get this type of patent protection. While the object and its design must be inseparable, a design patent will only protect the object's appearance. An example of a design patent is the original glass bottle shape of Coca-Cola.

Design patents protect a product's ornamental design rather than its functional features. To protect an object's functional or structural features of an object, a person must also file for a utility patent. The patent term for design patents in the United States is 15 years from the date of the grant.

Plant Patents

A plant patent can be obtained to protect a distinctive new variety of plants. A few requirements to get this type of patent:

• The plant is not tuber-propagated (meaning it won't cover an Irish potato, for example)

• The plant is not found in an uncultivated state

• The plant can be asexually reproduced

Asexual reproduction means that instead of being reproduced with seeds, the plant is reproduced by grafting or cutting the plant. Plant patents require asexual reproduction. Asexual reproduction is proof that the patent applicant can reproduce the plant.

The patent term for plant patents is usually 20 years. Also, there are maintenance fees that the patent owner must pay to keep the patent in force. These fees are due at the end of the third, seventh, and 11th years of having the patent.

How to Get Patent Protection

Regardless of the type of patent you are seeking, patent protection can only be obtained by filing an application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Before filling out a patent application, you should complete a patent search on the USPTO website. There are both provisional and non-provisional patent applications available to patent-seekers.

A provisional patent application can be filed to give the applicant more time to figure out the specifics of the invention while protecting it from being patented by someone else. A person who files a provisional patent application has one year from the date of filing to file a corresponding non-provisional application.

The non-provisional patent application begins the official examination process for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to determine whether an invention or discovery is eligible for patent protection.

Although the information that must be included in the patent application will depend on the type of patent that is being sought, non-provisional patent applications will include:

• A description and claim of the invention or discovery

• Drawings

• An oath or declaration

• Fees

As per the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), a person can also file an international patent application.

Note that in addition to patent protections, it is helpful to know about different types of intellectual property protections. The four types of intellectual property protection are:

• Trademarks

• Trade secrets

• Copyrights

• Patents

Getting Legal Advice

Patent law is a very technical area of law. It can be difficult for small businesses to understand the patent process without experience or training in patent law. If you are a business owner who wants to find out more about your patent rights, you should contact a local patent attorney.

For more information and resources related to this topic and other types of intellectual property protections, you can visit FindLaw's Intellectual Property section.