Before delving into the relevance of an Information Disclosure Statement, it’s important to first grasp its literal meaning and the context in which it’s used. As the name implies, an IDS is a statement that contains all of the facts or specifics about prior art. According to USPTO guidelines, the applicant submits a patent application. During the patent prosecution procedure, he/she sends all important background information on the invention to the USPTO.
It is possible that an applicant will not provide all of the required material or will overlook a piece of essential previous art. In this instance, the patent may face issues with its validity, or the application may become invalid. It is not just the applicant’s responsibility, but also the responsibility of patent attorneys or agents who assist them in giving all relevant facts. The applicant must ensure that the IDS has the necessary information.
Also Read: US Patent Proofreading – with USPTO Best Practices
The Impotance of Information Disclosure Statement:
- Understand the meaning and relevance of preceding art before moving on to the significance of IDS. Prior art, to put it another way, is evidence that your idea is well-known. It doesn’t have to be in physical form; it might be anything that has been previously discussed by someone and uses technology similar to your innovation. In a patent invention, the IDS describes all of the claimed prior art and technology.
- Providing thorough IDS demonstrates the applicant’s honesty and good faith. Include as much information as possible that could affect your invention’s patentability. It is the applicant’s responsibility to provide IDS. This is due to his or her greater understanding of the prior art in the field of invention.
- If you do not follow the rules for filing IDS, the patent grant for your invention will be revoked. This will occur because it appears that the inventor did not reveal prior art that he or she was aware of.
In a nutshell, an Information Disclosure Statement is a document that details the previous art of which the applicant has knowledge. He or she does not need to conduct a prior-art search in order to file an IDS.
Also Read: Things To Do Before Patenting Something
Why Information Disclosure Statement?
According to the United States Code title 35 and related sections of 37 CFR and the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP) it is the duty of the patent applicants to submit relevant art and background that the applicant is aware of.
If the prior art of your invention meets any of the following criteria, then you must file IDS-
- if the prior art is used sold or known in the U.S.;
- Got patent grant in another country;
- Got featured in a publication in the U.S., or anywhere in the world;
- Described in USPTO or other patent application; and
- Already described in patented invention under USPTO.
Whats Inside?
The following things are must disclose in IDS in specified format:
- Documents for consideration by the patent office- All Patents, Publications, applications or other information.
- A legible copy of:
- (i)Each foreign patent;(ii)Each publication or that portion of the publication, other than U.S. patents and U.S. patent application publications unless required by the Office;(iii)For each cited pending unpublished U.S. application.(iv)All other information or that portion that helped in the listing of the invention.
- For each cited pending unpublished U.S. application.(iv)All other information or that portion that helped in the listing of the invention.
- A concise explanation of the relevance, as understood by the individual most knowledgeable about the content of the information. The content includes each patent, publication, or other information that is not in the English language. The concise explanation is either separate from the applicant’s specification or incorporated therein.
- A copy of the written English-language of a non-English-language document, or portion thereof which is readily available to any individual. Significance of Information Disclosure Statement
For further details refer USPTO 37 CFR 1.98.
How we serve the purpose?
We prepare ready-to-file IDS forms in the USPTO-required format with SmartIDS services. We are obligated to compile the data, maintain it, and update it by submitting prior art references in a timely and correct manner. With our IDS invention, our team assures 100 percent quality assurance, which has been highly praised by our corporate clients from more than 45 countries. Our services enable our customers to meet their IDS filing requirements in a variety of countries. To know more about our services, do visit SmartIDS Solution.