Writing successful patents and overcoming patent barriers

Abstract

Inventions related to pre-harvest and post-harvest\ntechnologies have revolutionized agriculture. There is a\nsignificant growth of intellectual property rights (IPR) in\nagriculture across the globe. The predominant forms of IP\nrelevant to agriculture sector are patents and designs.\nPatents are given to inventions that qualify patent eligibility,\npatentability criteria and disclosure norms. In the area of\nagriculture, patents provide a great opportunity for\nimproving agricultural processes and products.\nUnderstanding the requirements of an invention under the\nIndian Patents Act, 1970 is necessary to know what can be\npatentable in India. The criteria of novelty, non-obviousness\nand industrial application and disclosure norms are\napplicable to all inventions irrespective of the technology\nareas. Examination guidelines for each technology area\nindicate to the elaborateness of the practice in relation to\npatents. While preparing patent specifications for agriculture\ninventions, it is important to ensure that the subject matter\nclaimed should not be a method of agriculture (under\nSection 3h) or plants or plant parts (under Section 3j of the\nAct). Identification of relevant prior art and its anticipatory\nvalue is very important for the assessment of novelty of\ninventions. Agriculture inventions which can lower the cost,\nbe obtained by reduced number of steps and are\nenvironment friendly can be considered under ‘economic\nsignificance’ by the Indian patent office (under the purview\nof Section 2(1) ja). Adhering to the disclosure norms (as\nmandated under Section 10 of the Act) are also important.\nInventors/applicants need to also consider the deposit\nrequirements. The present work examines the relevance of\nIPR and expansion of the patentability criteria, disclosure\nnorms and additional requirements in relation to\nagriculture. It will highlight the need for patent search as\nan integral requirement for research, the process of\npreparation of invention disclosures to enhance the\ninnovative ability of academic institutions as well as\nresearchers.