Apply for a patent in Norway
- 1 Why apply for a patent?
- 2 Check the market
- 3 Get help from a professional
- 4 The invention must be new
- 5 Check the rights of others
- 6 Application process
- 7 Possible obstacles on the way to a patent
- 8 Patent in other countries?
- 9 Examples
- 10 What does it cost?
- 11 Templates
- 12 No Norwegian ID number?
- 13 Applications (drafts and/or filed) and receipts
4. The invention must be new
An invention must be new in order for it to be patentable. Even if you are only applying for a patent in Norway, the invention must be new all over the world. When we process your patent application, we examine all open sources (patents, technical and scientific literature, internet, reports, standards, etc.) that may show the same invention as described in your application.
You must keep the invention secret until you file your patent application
The right to a patent applies from the date the patent application was filed to the Norwegian Industrial Property Office (NIPO). If you make your invention public or publish information concerning the invention before you file your patent application, it may no longer be considered new, and this may prevent you from getting a patent. It is therefore important that you keep the invention a secret until you have filed an application to the NIPO - and preferably until you have received the first written statement of patentability from us.
The patent application and correspondence in the case are publically available and visible for everyone 18 months after the application was filed, or before, if you request it. If you withdraw your application before this deadline, the application will remain secret. You may also request that specific business secrets not be published.
If you wish to show your invention to a potential manufacturer or investor, it is important that you emphasize that information concerning the invention is to be kept secret. The party concerned should sign a confidentiality agreement so you do not risk your idea becoming known.
An invention must have inventive step
In addition to being new, a patentable invention must have inventive step. This means that the invention must differ significantly from previous technology - prior art - in that particular field. It cannot be merely the next logical stage in a known technical process, obvious to someone with knowledge and experience in the subject.
Capable of being manufactured
The invention must have a technical character and it must be possible to reproduce. A person skilled in the field should be able to understand and make the invention, or be able to perform the procedure, as described in the patent application. Only technical solutions can be patented - you cannot, for example, patent a business concept.
Have you read all 13 items listed at the top of the page?