European Patent

European Patent is a mechanism for the protection of intellectual property rights in multiple signatory states on the basis of a single application to the European Patent Office (EPO). European Patent has the same legal effect as a national patent in each of the designated states, so protection is not uniform.

A European patent application may not contain more than one independent claim in the same category (eg product and/or process) unless one of the exceptions listed. You must keep the amount of claims reasonable in consideration of the nature of the invention you wish to protect. You should therefore avoid undue repetition resulting from the use of independent claims in the same category or a proliferation of dependent claims. You must number your claims consecutively in Arabic numerals. It is essential to formulate your claims clearly, as they define the matter that you want to protect.

The wording you use in European Patent claims must leave no doubt as to their meaning and scope, and you must avoid any inconsistencies between the description and the claims. The area defined by the claims must be as precise as the invention allows. As a general rule, claims which attempt to define the invention in terms of the result to be achieved are not allowed. Where the invention relates to a chemical product, it may be defined by its chemical formula or as a product of a process, or exceptionally in terms of its parameters. Furthermore, references to the description or drawings, particularly in the form of "as described in part ... of the description" or "as illustrated in figure ... of the drawings", are not allowed unless they are absolutely indispensable.

However, in a European patent application containing drawings, reference signs linking the claims to the drawings should be placed in brackets after the technical features mentioned in the claims if this makes the claims easier to understand. They must not be construed as limiting the European Patent claims. The European Patent Office (EPO) is the one that shoulders the responsibility for the granting of European patents for the contracting states to the European Patent Convention (EPC). European Patent Office serves as the executive arm of the European Patent Organization, an intergovernmental body set up under the EPC, whose members are the EPC contracting states.

The mission of the European Patent Office is to support innovation, competitiveness and economic growth for the benefit of the citizens of Europe. European Patent intends to continue its efforts to optimize the European patent system by making it more efficient and cost-effective, and better adapted to the applicant's needs. Its task is to grant European patents for inventions, on the basis of a centralized procedure. By filing a single application in one of the three official languages (English, French and German) it is possible to obtain patent protection in some or all of the EPC contracting states.