When you submit a Patent Application to the U.S. Patent Office, you are required state that you believe that you are "the first and true inventor". You may be wrong but you do believe that you are the "first and true inventor". If you were to be granted a U.S. Patent for an invention that you did not invent or that you copied from someone else, the U.S. Patent would be of no value and would not be upheld in court once the true facts were revealed. Many Patents are improvements to inventions that someone else has made, and you would certainly be entitled to a Patent for the improved portion of the invention. I hope that this helps.
Answered on May 20th, 2015 at 5:12 AM