When you create or discover something, you may wonder whether you can legally protect it with a patent. But what can you patent? What you can patent depends on both what you created and whether it satisfies the legal requirements for patentability. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issues patents only when the thing you created or discovered has patentable subject matter, is useful, novel, and non-obvious. In practical terms, something has patentable subject matter if it is an invention or discovery that falls into one of the categories the USPTO allows you to patent: utility, design, and plant patents.
A patent attorney from Jones IP Law can help you apply the principles this article illuminates to your creation. Jones IP Law helps inventors, entrepreneurs, startups, and established businesses determine whether their inventions qualify for patent protection. Led by experienced intellectual property attorney Michael Jones, our team has extensive experience assisting clients developing software, artificial intelligence, mechanical devices, cloud technologies, consumer products, and other innovations.
What Is Patentable?
Whether something you created or discovered is patentable depends on whether it is:
- Useful—has a practical purpose;
- Novel—no single prior art reference already discloses the same invention;
- Non-obvious—the invention would not have been obvious to someone who has ordinary skill in its field; and
- Patentable subject matter—it is the type of thing you can patent.
If your invention or discovery meets every one of those requirements, it may be patentable.
What Does It Mean for an Invention to Have Patentable Subject Matter?
When the thing you created or discovered is the type of thing the USPTO may protect with a patent, it has patentable subject matter. What can you patent, then?
Patent law protects practical creations and discoveries that fall within specific categories. You can patent:
- Functional inventions with utility patents,
- Ornamental designs with design patents, and
- Certain new plant varieties with plant patents.
So, can you patent an idea? Generally, you cannot patent:
- Ideas,
- Mathematical formulas,
- Laws of nature, and
- Naturally occurring phenomena generally are not patentable subject matter by themselves.
Most patents are utility patents, which cover most things referred to as “inventions.”
What Can You Patent with a Utility Patent?
Most inventors apply for utility patents because they cover the types of things that solve practical problems or perform useful functions. Utility patents cover many different types of inventions, tangible and intangible, including:
- Processes,
- Machines,
- Article of manufacture, and
- Compositions of matter.
Utility patents can also cover new and useful improvements to existing inventions.
When Can You Patent a Process?
If your invention consists of a series of steps for achieving a result, you may have invented a patentable process. Processes often include:
- Manufacturing methods,
- Industrial techniques,
- Medical treatment methods, and
- Computer-implemented methods.
For example, you might invent a manufacturing process that reduces waste, a medical treatment method that improves patient outcomes, or a software process that allows computers to process information more efficiently. Each begins with a sequence of steps that performs a practical function.
When Can You Patent a Machine?
If you invent a physical device whose parts work together to perform a function, you may have invented a patentable machine. Machines range from simple mechanical tools to complex robotics systems and industrial equipment. For example, you may invent a new engine component, an automated warehouse robot, or a medical imaging device.
When Can You Patent an Article of Manufacture?
An article of manufacture is a physical thing you make through a manufacturing process. In patent law, that process may be as simple as building, assembling, or shaping a physical object.
Consumer products, industrial equipment, tools, and countless other human-made objects may qualify as articles of manufacture. For example, you might invent a redesigned kitchen appliance, a safer power tool, or a more durable smartphone accessory.
When Can You Patent a Composition of Matter?
A composition of matter is a human-made chemical substance or material, including:
- Chemical compounds,
- Mixtures,
- Formulations, and
- Manufactured materials that do not naturally occur in the same form.
Pharmaceutical formulations, industrial chemicals, plastics, batteries, and many advanced materials fall within this category. For example, you might invent a new battery chemistry, a pharmaceutical formulation with improved stability, or an environmentally friendly cleaning solution.
When Can You Patent an Improvement to an Existing Invention?
You can patent an improvement to an existing invention when your improvement changes how the invention works or what it does in a new and useful way. An improvement may add a new feature, improve performance, increase efficiency, enhance safety, solve a technical problem, or otherwise make the invention work better. If your improvement itself changes the invention in a new and useful way, it may qualify as its own invention with patentable subject matter.
Software and artificial intelligence often improve existing technology rather than replace it entirely. For example, you might develop software that allows existing equipment to operate more efficiently or an AI-enabled system that improves how a manufacturing process, medical device, or computer network functions. When those improvements change how the underlying invention works or what it can do, they may constitute subject matter eligible for utility patent protection.
What Can You Patent with a Design Patent?
You can patent a new, original, and ornamental design for a physical object with a design patent. Often, a design patent protects the invention’s appearance, such as a product’s shape, surface ornamentation, or overall visual effect.
What Can You Patent with a Plant Patent?
You can patent new and distinct plant varieties with a plant patent. Plant patents protect the plant itself, which generally must be new, distinct from existing varieties, and reproduced asexually so that future plants retain the same characteristics.
How Can Jones IP Law Help?
To be patentable, the thing you created or discovered must satisfy every patent eligibility requirement, including having patentable subject matter. An experienced patent attorney from Jones IP Law can help you determine whether you have created or discovered something patentable and, if so, whether your creation meets the remaining patentability requirements. Reach out to learn more.
Legal References Used to Inform This Page
To ensure the accuracy and clarity of this page, we referenced official legal and other resources during the content development process:
