PCT patent applications are administered by WIPO. The prosecution of a PCT patent application is a six-step process. The first step occurs when the applicant files a patent application in its home country. Once the applicant files the patent application in its home country, there is one year to file an international application.
The filing of an international application is the second step in the PCT patent prosecution process.
The basic structure of a U.S. patent application is similar to the structure of a PCT patent application. The structure of a U.S. patent application specification includes twelve basic parts:
1. Title
2. Cross-references to related applications
3. A statement or statements regarding federally sponsored research or development
4. The names of the parties to a joint research agreement
5. References to a "Sequence Listing," a table or a computer program listing appendix
6. The background of the invention
7. A brief summary of the invention
8. A brief description of the several views of the drawing
9. A detailed description of the invention
10. At least one claim
11. An abstract of the disclosure
12. A sequence listing
Next time, we will conclude our discussion of PCT patent applications.
PCT Patent Applications (Part 1)
Thomas Joseph is a patent attorney in Pittsburgh, Pa. He maintains a solo practice in all areas of intellectual-property law. He has been practicing since 2001. Before starting his solo practice, Joseph was the General Counsel of Grant Street Group, a financial software firm. At Grant Street Group, he managed the company’s patent litigation against its primary competitors in the online-auction markets for tax certificates, foreclosures, tax deeds and municipal bonds. Joseph received a Bachelor of Science in Metallurgical Engineering and Materials Science from Carnegie Mellon University, a Master of Science in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Florida and a Juris Doctorate from George Washington University.
You can contact him at www.joseph-iplaw.com.
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