Patent Terms Glossary

Applicant

Definition:
An application for patent filed under 35 U.S.C. 111(a) that includes all types of patent applications (i.e., utility, design, plant, and reissue) except provisional applications.

Doctrine Of Equivalents

Definition:
A judicially created theory for finding patent infringement when the accused process or product falls outside the literal scope of the patent claims.

Claim

Definition:
The definition of the monopoly rights that the applicant is trying to obtain for the invention.

Group Art Unit

Definition:
A working unit responsible for a cluster of related patent art. Staffed by one supervisory patent examiner (SPE) and a number of patent examiners who determine patentability on applications for a patent.

Inventor

Definition:
One who contributes to the conception of an invention. The patent law of the United States of America requires that the applicant in a patent application must be the inventor.

Common Law Rights

Definition:
Property or other legal rights that do not absolutely require formal registration in order to enforce them. Proving such rights for a trademark in court can be very difficult.

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