Pairing Invention Management with Patent Prosecution

Invention management and patent prosecution are two critical aspects of any successful Intellectual Property (IP) strategy. Invention management involves identifying and managing innovations within a company or organization, while patent prosecution involves the legal process of obtaining patent protection for those innovations. While these two areas are often viewed as separate, pairing invention management with patent prosecution can have several benefits for a company or organization.

One of the primary benefits of pairing invention management with patent prosecution is that it allows for a more streamlined and efficient IP strategy. Information is only entered once at the start of the process and used throughout the entire flow ( e.g. inventors, titles, etc). By closely integrating the two processes, companies can identify and prioritize inventions that are most likely to be patentable and strategically pursue patent protection for those inventions.

In addition, pairing invention management with patent prosecution can help provide that patent applications are drafted and prosecuted in a way that maximizes the chances of obtaining a strong and enforceable patent. Informational linkages are maintained from the filed patents back to the original invention data/information that was used to make the filing decision. This could be very helpful when making maintenance fee decisions, especially with market, product and technology data.

Invention management teams can work closely with patent attorneys to provide detailed technical information and context around the innovation, which can help the attorney to craft a strong and comprehensive patent application.

Furthermore, it can help to establish that the resulting patent portfolio aligns with the company’s overall business strategy. A patent committee could manage an awards program that has payments throughout the entire lifecycle. Strategically, the committee could build a patent spending forecasting system that considers everything, including those inventor awards. By closely integrating these two processes, companies can prioritize the inventions that are most strategically important and pursue patent protection for those inventions.

Integrating invention management with patent prosecution can help safeguard the company’s IP strategy as responsive to changes in the competitive landscape. By closely monitoring developments in the industry and tracking competitor activity, invention management teams can identify emerging trends and technologies that may impact the company’s IP strategy.

AppColl® Invention Manager™ and Prosecution Manager™ pair invention management with patent prosecution and fully integrate with one another. This allows customers to view their Intellectual Property from idea through prosecution and into obsolescence.

For more information: https://appcoll.com/products/