A patent is a document that has the right to prevent the inventor from producing, using and selling the invention by third parties. The first condition for an invention to be patentable is that it solves a technical problem. In other words, the invention must be relative and measurable. For example, the argument for a very good battery production cannot be patented. Because the concept of good is relative and varies from person to person, but the production of a long-lasting battery from the market meets the condition of solving a technical problem and can be patented as a result of research.
The second condition of patentability is that the invention is a worldwide innovation. To put it in a more understandable language, the solution put forward is that it has not been disclosed to the public before the patent application date, either in writing or through use. If a solution thought to be an invention has been patented in the same way in any country at an earlier date, the invention unfortunately does not meet the innovation criterion. Even if a patent is only wanted in Turkey, a patent document obtained in another country prevents patents from being obtained, since innovation is sought worldwide according to patent law.
Another criterion is that the previously known part of the invention or innovation is exceeded. Patent search is one of the most effective methods of identifying innovation. If there is no exactly similar solution for the invention as a result of the researches, the first part to be overcome is the previously known part of the technique. For a person who is an expert in his field, the solution that emerges should not be an easily understood and obvious solution. This form of assessment is very open to interpretation and there are many books on how to evaluate it and can change dynamically from person to person.
Comprehensive patent research is important in terms of learning that the innovation to be revealed will be unique before. Thanks to comprehensive patent research, it is possible to understand what has been found before an invention is revealed and which parts of the invention can be changed according to the research.
The last criterion of patentability is the industrial applicability criterion. If the solution is explained with sufficient technical details in the patent document, there will be no problem against the criteria of applicability to the industry. If an invention is described in detail in the patent document, there may be problems with this criterion. For example, a patent certificate cannot be obtained with a patent statement that the structure of the manhole cover will be changed and the defect of the sewer outlets on the roads will be corrected. How this will happen should be explained in detail. In order to obtain a patent, the technique does not need to be produced yet, it can be found in prototype form, but the expert in that field must provide enough technical information to apply the invention, even with hand drawing.
Detailed analyzes of all these criteria are carried out by patent experts in official patent offices during the patent search processes that take place after the patent applications. Inventions that meet all these criteria gain the right to obtain a patent certificate with a 20-year examination. As an exception, the above-mentioned non-obviousness condition is not sought for utility models. In other words, if an application is obvious, it cannot be protected with a patent document, but if such an application has not been made in any field before, this solution can be taken under a legal protection that will last for 10 years under the name of utility model.