When assessing the patentability of a patent claim, a determination is normally made by an Examiner on whether the invention is considered a manner of manufacture.
This involves an assessment of the application to determine if the invention is actually something that a patent would be appropriate for and that is covered under patent laws.
When assessing novelty and inventiveness in a patent application, examiner’s look at:
Conversely, the manner of manufacture deems whether the invention itself is of a suitable nature or type to be patented. Not all IP can be patented, some will fall under copyright or trademark or design instead, for example.
Determining the manner of manufacture is only one of the requirements for patentability and does not impact on novelty and inventiveness. It is more a determination as to whether the nature of the invention is in the nature of patentable subject matter.
The determination of whether an invention is inherently patentable subject matter (or “manner of manufacture” in Australia) is determined on a country by country basis according to the legislation of that country . In many countries, if your invention is determined to be a scheme, plan, rules of gameplay, abstract concept, method of doing business, a “pure” scientific discovery or mathematical algorithm, or focused on intellectual or genetic information, it will likely be deemed as unpatentable.
For example, if you have developed a new business scheme or modified an existing one to a degree that is considered novel this does not mean the invention is patentable subject matter. There may not be enough technical substance to this invention to meet the manner of manufacture requirement and it may therefore not be eligible for a patent.
Manner of manufacture determinations can be very challenging to quantify and to understand for those inexperienced with patents.
If you are pursuing a patent and struggling with this aspect, seeking out a registered Patent Attorney is the best course of action.
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IP Guardian helps protect words, symbols, letters, numbers, names, signatures, phrases, sounds, shapes and smells. Yes, I said smells.
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