Patents

A patent is a legal right that protects an invention: a new product or a new process, and the way it works. It gives the inventor control over how the invention is used, so they can benefit from the time and money they spent developing it. A patent protects the way an invention works, not simply how it looks.

Applying for a patent

A patent is not automatic: an inventor has to apply for it. The application describes the invention and how it works. A patent is granted only if the invention is new, so it must not have been made public before. If someone has already published the same idea, the application is refused.

What a patent stops

Once a patent is granted, other people cannot make, use or sell the invention without the inventor's permission. The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 makes these actions illegal, so building or selling the invention without permission breaks the law.

For example, imagine you invent a plant pot with a sloping inner tray that collects water from condensation and feeds it back to the soil. The way the tray and channel work is the invention, so you apply for a patent. If it is granted, a garden company cannot manufacture or sell pots built that way unless you agree. A rival could still sell a plain pot, because the patent protects your working invention, not every plant pot.