The Copyright, Design, and Patents Act 1988
Patents allow you to claim and protect your intellectual property rights to something you have invented. It is similar to copyright except it applies to something being invented.
To qualify for a patent, your invention must be:
- something that can be made or used (so it can be plans and technical drawings)
- new (never existed before)
- inventive - not just a simple modification to something that already exists
It can't be :
- literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works (protected by the Copyright part of this law)
- a way of doing business, playing a game or thinking
- a method of medical treatment or diagnosis
- a discovery, scientific theory or mathematical method
- the way information is presented
- some computer programs or mobile apps
- ‘essentially biological’ processes like crossing-breeding plants, and plant or animal varieties
A patent gives you the right to take legal action against anyone who makes, uses, sells or imports it without your permission, however they are expensive and can be very difficult to get. A UK patent lasts 20 years
Things that have been patented (might not be current) include the material Goretex, Post it Notes, "collaborative voice controlled devices" - patented by Google, and a subsea installation method ( basically a way of putting something together under water).