How does a patent translate to money for the inventor, and how is it normally enforced? Let’s say that you invent the McCormick Reaper. Ok, so you get the basic design down. What happens when someone makes an iterative improvement? What then? Do you simply get a cut of every copy of the mechanised reaper bought and sold that is your version?
Do patents apply only for commercial usage?
In: Technology
There is another important part of a patent: A patent requires the inventor to publicly disclose the details of the invention. In fact, the term originates from the Latin word patere, which means “to lay open”.
Most patents are effective for 20 years. After the patent expires, other businesses are allowed to copy the invention. A good example of a patent is the plus-shaped directional pad (D-pad) on the Nintendo Entertainment System controller. This patent was issued in the 1980s, so it expired some time in the 2000s. As a result, every other game system had a controller with a D-pad that was slightly different from Nintendo’s D-pad.
Alternatively, an inventor can choose to hide the details of the invention and trust that competitors will be unable to reverse-engineer it. This, of course, is known as a “trade secret”. Perhaps the best example of a trade secret is the Coca-Cola formula. When a bottle of Coke lists the ingredients, one of the ingredients is “natural flavors”. No one outside of The Coca-Cola Company knows exactly what these “natural flavors” consist of. Many people have tried to recreate the Coca-Cola formula. Obviously, The Coca-Cola Company will never publicly confirm whether someone successfully cracked the Coca-Cola formula.
The advantage of trade secrets is that they do not expire, so long as the trade secret is not disclosed.
Latest Answers