European Patent Office (EPO) Enrique Molina Galan Institution’s Logo European Patent Office (EPO) EPO’s role in supporting innovation and academic IP commercialization

Mission As the patent office for Europe, we support innovation, competitiveness and economic growth across Europe through a commitment to high quality and efficient services delivered under the European Patent Convention.

European patent system extends beyond Europe European Patent Organisation Founded in 1973 Some 700 million inhabitants Rep. of Moldova European member states (38) European extension states (2) Bosnia Herzegovina Montenegro Validation states (2) Republic of Moldova Morocco Laos Morocco Future validation states (3) Tunisia Cambodia Laos Cambodia Tunisia 2016 has been a very good year for the European patent system significant progress achieved in a number of key areas, ranging from the Unitary Patent to enhancing our performance, to strengthening the international role of the EPO; Demand for European patents was sustained at a very high level, despite uncertain international developments in 2016; Europe continues to be a leading target market for innovators from around the globe. The number of countries recognising European patents continues to grow: 38 member states, including all EU Member States, covering some 650 million inhabitants; Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro as Extension States; Morocco and the Republic of Moldova have agreed to recognise European patents; Tunisia has already signed such an agreement and could implement it any time; Cambodia became a validation state agreeing to recognise European patents on its territory, most probably as of July 2017; A similar agreement is under discussion with Laos, and could still become a reality in 2017; In 2016, the European patent system expanded beyond the immediate European neighbourhood – a clear proof of its growing attractiveness owing to its global orientation.

2nd largest intergovernmental institution in Europe The EPO at a glance 2nd largest intergovernmental institution in Europe Global player and voice of Europe in patents Will be in charge of delivering and administering the Unitary Patent ISO 9001 certification: High-quality European patents are drivers of innovation, securing the competitiveness of the European economy 7 000 employees, Self-financing: budget of EUR 2.2bn without any public funding of which around 4 300 highly qualified examiners

Origin of European patent applications in 2016 Others 5% S. Korea 4% Germany 16% P.R. China 5% France 7% Japan 13% Switzerland 5% EPO member states 48% Netherlands 4% United Kingdom 3% Italy 3% United States 25% Sweden 2% Other EPO member states 8% Analysis based on European patent applications filed with the EPO (Direct European applications and international (PCT) applications entering the European phase). Statistics are based on the first-named applicant. EPO: the 38 member states of the European Patent Organisation, including EU28

Technical fields with the most applications in 2016 TOP10 2016 Change 1 Medical technology 12 263 - 2.1% 2 Digital communication 10 915 - 1.2% 3 Computer technology 10 657 2.9% 4 Electrical machinery, apparatus, energy 10 293 5.1% 5 Transport 8 402 3.6% 6 Measurement 7 442 - 3.8% 7 Engines, pumps, turbines 6 301 - 0.5% 8 Organic fine chemistry 6 189 - 4.0% 9 Pharmaceuticals 5 754 - 5.0% 10 Biotechnology 5 744 0.3% Analysis based on European patent applications filed with the EPO (Direct European applications and international (PCT) applications entering the European phase).

The basic principle of the patent system Benefits the public by making the detailed description of the invention available to everyone 18 months after filing Benefits the owner by preventing third parties from exploiting the invention for commercial purposes without authorisation For up to 20 years Patents

A fair system driving knowledge transfer and innovation Find existing technology Learn from it Build on it Technological innovation Patent application Disclosure to the public

Patents - an incentive for economic growth Makes the latest technological knowledge available to the public Inspires further innovation Prevents duplication of R&D Helps identify new partners and allows licensing Gives patent holders time to recoup their development costs

Patentability Patents are granted for inventions in all fields of technology To be patentable, inventions must be new involve an inventive step be industrially applicable They must relate to a product, process, apparatus or use.

Novelty - Article 54(1)(2) EPC (1) An invention shall be considered to be new if it does not form part of the state of the art. (2) The state of the art shall be held to comprise everything made available to the public by means of a written or oral description, by use, or in any other way, before the date of filing of the European patent application.

Inventive Step - Article 56 EPC An invention shall be considered as involving an inventive step if, having regard to the state of the art, it is not obvious to a person skilled in the art.

Sources of state-of-the-art documents Libraries, Documents' collections Oral Disclosures - Abstracts of Congresses and Conferences University Dissertations, PhD Thesis Internet - date of availability !!! - online publications vs paper Company's Web sites Databases

Can I get patent protection AND publish? Any invention which is made public (by oral or written disclosure) before an application is filed would be considered as known and not novel! Any details published could also be used to object under inventive step. It is important to file a patent application before publicly disclosing the details of the invention.

Three possible routes to file a patent application National European International Via National offices European Patent Office or national offices International Bureau Valid in One country Up to 38 countries + 2 extension states + 2 validation states Up to 148 countries In brief Applications are filed with the relevant national office and are valid for that state only One single application in DE/EN/FR for all EPC contracting states Same legal effects as national patents An international patent procedure, not an international patent After the international phase, applicants can choose to enter the national/regional phase in various states

Three ways to start the European procedure European route European route Applicant files a direct European application = 1st filing European search and examination procedure National route National route Applicant files a national application Applicant files a European application = 2nd filing International route International route Applicant files a PCT application Application enters European phase ) By claiming priority of an earlier application filed with a national office within 12 months.

Publication Patent applications are published on Espacenet, 18 months after the date of filing (or earliest priority date). The search report is also published. Third parties can submit observations at any time prior to grant. Over 90 million patent documents accessible to the public on www.epo.org/espacenet

All patent documents are accessible free of charge on www.epo.org Espacenet over 90 million patent documents, easily searchable Patent Translate Automatic translation between English and 31 other languages, including Turkish, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Russian.

Key facts about Espacenet Most visited area of our website, with around 20 million visits every year A worldwide collection of patent data For beginners and experts Automatic translation of documents between English and 31 other languages, including Turkish, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Russian.

The public can use patent documents to find out what technology already exists and build on it keep track of what other inventors and companies are doing avoid infringing other people's patent rights check out where an invention is patented, and where it is not

Training organised by the European Patent Academy Training on IP and our services and tools for applicants and attorneys judges patent office staff universities and research centres businesses and SMEs An extensive collection of free e-learning materials on www.epo.org/learning

Raising awareness − European Inventor Award Honours outstanding inventors Five categories and an international jury of experts Popular prize awarded for the first time in 2013 In a different location in Europe every year 11th edition in Lisbon on 9 June 2016 A major media campaign with worldwide impact

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