Provisional Patent Application

A provisional patent specification is a preliminary application before filing a usual patent. It explains the invention in a broad manner but not completely. It is the document which may be filed before a Complete Specification in the Office of the Controller of Patents pertaining to a prospective patent. It gets the word “provisional” in its name from being incomplete and a predecessor of a complete specification which comes later. Also, although it is not mandatory, it is highly recommended as it has a lot of benefits for the inventor.

Why should an inventor file a Provisional Patent Specification?

Earlier Patent Filing Date

On filing of the Provisional Patent Specification the inventor is entitled to an earlier filing date. This is key as it secures the priority date for the applicant. The benefits of this are numerous.
• The fact that similar inventions which are filed after the filing date of the provisional cannot become prior art for the applicants invention.
• If any dispute regarding the ownership of the invention arises, the Patent Office will accept the provisional patent’s earlier filing date as the date of filing.

Cost Effective

• The upfront cost of a Provisional Patent Specification is much lower than that of a complete patent application which saves thousands of rupees for the inventor in terms of professional fees.
• Also, as it is technically more lucid (does not contain claims, prior art search and exhaustive and detailed drawings) as compared to the Complete Specification it costs less money and resources to prepare. Provisional Patent Specification can also be prepared by the in inventor himself.

Merits of a provisional patent application:

Priority Date: A provisional application reserves a date for the patent. Essentially, when the complete specification is filed within 12 months of filing the provisional specification, the date of application of the patent will be the date on which the provisional application was filed. This secures the priority date for the invention against any other invention being developed in the same field.

12 months: The applicant has 12 months to completely develop and define his invention. During this time, the applicant can meticulously draft the complete specification with the claims. This period of 12 months can also be used to determine the economic feasibility of the patent.

Cost: A provisional patent costs less as compared to a complete specification (in the initial stage). If the patent is commercially viable then the higher cost can be spent in obtaining the patent.

Patent Pending: After filing a provisional patent application the applicant can use the term Patent Pending insofar as the invention for which the patent is applied is concerned. This could act as a bulwark against potential infringers.

The following procedures should be followed while applying for Provisional Patent

Day 1 - 8

1. Collection of provisional application (If any), and discussion of basic information.
2. Provide documents about complete patent specification including its claims.
3. Finalize type of agreement
4. Finalize terms and condition

Day 9 - 20

1. Drafting of Patent Priority Documents
2. Drafting of permanent Patent application

Day 24

Filing Online form

Day 25

You will receive a receipt from patent office acknowledging you the date of filling, application number and invention title.

Documents required for provisional patent filing

Title: Title of the invention
Applicants Information: Name, address and nationality of each applicant for the patent.
Description of the Invention: Detailed description of the invention and details about what the patentee wants to claim out of the invention
Technical aspects of the invention: Technical details about the invention and drawings

Components of Provisional Patent Specification

The information contained in a provisional patent

• The invention/ design/ process name/ Title
• Provisional requirement
• Definition of innovation
• Field and intent of innovation

Benefits of Patent filing Specification
Filing a patent has many factors associated, such as cost of filing, date of filing, the protection period, etc. Getting a provisional patent renders the following advantages:

Cost-effective

The cost of a provisional patent specification is comparatively lower than that of a complete patent specification which saves a fair amount of the applicant concerning professional fees.

Duration

Research of the industry is essential to develop claims. The inventor is unaware of what basis to claim protection for it. The twelve-month gap between the provisional patent specification and complete patent specification can be used for research and analysis effectively.

Pending patent tag

Once the provisional patent specification has been filed, the inventor can officially and legally use the "Patent pending" or "Patent applied" tag for their invention. This tag will help receive funds as the invention's authenticity rises while the primary business model is advanced.

Scope of abandonment

An applicant can easily abandon an invention if he thinks that the product created is not commercially viable.

Secrecy

As there is no publication of the patent application, the prioritized data can be maintained by secrecy