Why you should get a patent search done?

 A patent is a type of intellectual property that protects your invention from being stolen by the market. But patents are no cheap business as they cost you both money and time. So if you have an idea, say of a product and you are thinking what should I do next, should I get a prototype built or should I get a patent done. Well the answer would be none. 

The correct answer is  you should get a patent search done. This is the first step before any other step can be taken in the journey. A patent search will give you a proof of concept which will validate  that your idea  does not exist already as a patent or in the  prior art.

A patent search report lists all existing patents related to your idea. This becomes especially important before applying for a patent, as it helps assess the patentability of your invention. The stronger the patentability, the higher the chances of the patent being granted. Conversely, if your idea lacks novelty or is considered obvious in view of the prior art, a patent search can save you significant time and money that would otherwise be spent on filing a patent application.

But that’s not all. A patent search report also provides a clear picture of the current technology landscape and helps identify existing white spaces that you can leverage. This insight allows you to analyze competitors who currently hold patents in your field and understand the gaps in the market. By using this knowledge, you can refine and modify your idea to innovate in areas where solutions do not yet exist. Such strategic insights can open doors to licensing and partnership opportunities, giving you a significant competitive advantage.

Along with this, conducting a patent search helps you to avoid potential infringement of other companies’ patents. By identifying patents that could pose legal challenges, you can mitigate the risk of costly litigation and ensure that your product or process can be commercialized without legal complications.

A patent search can be conducted with different objectives in mind. Before initiating a patent search, it is important to clearly define one or more specific goals you want the search to address. For example:

Novelty Search : This is to check if an invention is new and not already patented or disclosed.

Freedom to Operate (FTO) Search: This helps determine if commercializing an invention would infringe on existing patents.

Validity or Invalidity Search: This is used to challenge the validity of an existing patent by finding prior art that may have been overlooked.

Patentability Search: Similar to a novelty search, but more comprehensive, often done before filing a patent application.

State-of-the-Art Search: This is more about understanding the current technology landscape and what’s out there in a particular field.

Ready to get your patent search done