Glossary

Agreement
When two or more individuals or companies sign contracts, usually to do with Confidentiality or Licensing

CIPA
Chartered Institute of Patent Agents.

Client
The person or company who wishes to protect their idea is the client of the Patent Agent.

Confidentiality
Knowledge that is only available to a very small number of people, sometimes only one.

CPA
Chartered Patent Agent.

Creativity
The mental process that leads to the generation of new ideas.

Design Right
A form of IP which covers the external appearance of objects. It does not require any application process or registration, but exists automatically, in a similar way to Copyright

Disclosure
Allowing members of the public to see, or telling them about an invention before filing the Patent application is called Disclosure. It means that a Patent cannot be granted if Disclosure is proven. This is why it is important to have Confidentiality Agreements, or to keep ideas secret.

Entrepreneur
A business person who develops new ideas rather than running established
enterprises.

EPA / I / O
European Patent Agency / Institute / Office.

Fee
The price charged by a company to the client.

Flowchart
A diagram showing a schematic sequence of events or choices.

Intellectual Property (IP) and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR)
The ownership of ideas, which may be bought and sold, like any other product.

Innovation
The development of new methods and technologies.

Know-how
The knowledge of how to do, or make something that most others cannot.

Licensing
The owner of an idea or design may licence another company to use or make the product, and in return will receive a fee or royalty, or a combination of both.

Logo
A motif or recognisable symbol that represents a company or a product.

Marquesa
A CD-ROM available at some specialist sources which keeps an up to date record of existing Trademarks.

Modesta
A publication that is a handbook to IP, aimed at industry.

Monopoly
The exclusive right to do, use or make something.

Patent
A document which grants the owner the exclusive right to the design described by the patent.

Patent Agent
A company or individual who specialises in the business of helping clients to protect their IP

Patent Office
The location of the records and the staff who perform the work required to grant Patents, Registered Designs and Trademarks

Patent Pending
This can be marked on products that are built in the period between filing a Patent and the granting of a Patent. It warns other companies that they would risk court action if they copied the design.

Priority
When a patent is filed, it gains Priority over any similar ideas that may be filed after that date. When several companies are working on the same research there
can be a race to establish priority.

Prosecution
This is the stage when the patent is in the process of being granted, and the Patent Office conducts searches to check that the idea is new.

RAPID
An on-line database of existing Patents. (Remote Access Patent Information Database)>

Registered Design
A form of IP which protects the appearance of a product, but not the way it
works. There is an application process, which if successful enables the product to be Registered for up to 25 years.

Royalties
The fees paid to the owner of the IPR by a user, usually per copy.

Slogan
A short sentence often used for advertising purposes.

Theros
A publication about IP which is aimed at Further and Higher education.

Trademark
A form of IP protection used by companies to protect their products’ names and identities.

Venture Capital
When an Entrepreneur wants to start a new company or develop a new product, funding to finance this can often be sought from sources of Venture Capital

Design Right A form of IP which covers the external appearance of objects. It does not require any application process or registration, but exists automatically, in a similar way to Copyright

Entrepreneur A business person who develops new ideas rather than running established enterprises.

Fee The price charged by a company to the client.

Know-how The knowledge of how to do, or make something that most others cannot.

Licensing The owner of an idea or design may licence another company to use or make the product, and in return will receive a fee or royalty, or a combination of both.

Marquesa A CD-ROM available at some specialist sources which keeps an up to date record of existing Trademarks.

Patent A document which grants the owner the exclusive right to the design described by the patent.

RAPID An on-line database of existing Patents. (Remote Access Patent Information Database)>

Slogan A short sentence often used for advertising purposes.

Theros A publication about IP which is aimed at Further and Higher education.

Venture Capital When an Entrepreneur wants to start a new company or develop a new product, funding to finance this can often be sought from sources of Venture Capital

WIPO World Institute of Patent Offices. The worldwide governing body on IP law, situated in Geneva.