QUESTION
An individual uses my issued patent drawings for his own new patent application, is this legal?
Asked on Dec 21st, 2012 on Patents - Illinois
More details to this question:
Individual uses my issued patent drawings, adds one page of his own as an improvement. Person also uses my claims, further adding claims of his own. Is this legal to do? Can I stop this in any way? Thank you for your time.
1 ANSWER
As for the drawings and portions of your application text, yes he can do so. As for the claims copied from your application, he probably believes that he invented the claimed subject matter first and the issue of who is entitled to the subject matter as the first inventor (assuming that it is found to be patentable) would have to be decided by the Patent Office in a proceeding call an "interference".
Answered on Dec 27th, 2012 at 9:30 AM