what is a patent

A patent is a type of intellectual property that grants its owner the exclusive right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention. In other words, a patent is an exclusive right granted for an invention, which is a product or a process that generally provides a new way of doing something, or offers a new technical solution to a problem. To obtain a patent, technical information about the invention must be disclosed to the public in a patent application. The patent owner has the exclusive right to prevent or stop others from commercially exploiting the patented invention, meaning that the invention cannot be commercially made, used, distributed, imported, or sold by others without the patent owners consent. Patents are territorial rights, meaning that the exclusive rights are only applicable in the country or region in which a patent has been filed and granted, in accordance with the law of that country or region. The protection is granted for a limited period, generally 20 years from the filing date of the application. Patents provide incentives to and protection for individuals by offering them recognition for their creativity and the possibility of material reward for their inventions.