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長審查期間的一個重要優點是,它延遲了與專利核准相關的費用。It also gives patent applicants time to
determine whether the patent will be commercially viable before requesting
the grant in the first place.這也在第一國請求核准之前,給專利申請人時間來確定專利是否將會在商業上可行。Another major benefit of delayed
examination is that it allows applicants to adjust the patent application-in
particular the list of claims-during the examination process.延遲審查的另一個主要好處是,它允許申請人在審查過程期間調整專利申請案─特別是請求項的清單。If granted too early, the patent
claims might not perfectly match the final version of the invention, thus
facilitating circumvention.如果太早核准,專利請求項可能不會完美與該發明的最終版本匹配,因而有利於規避。
Since patent applications must be disclosed when the patent is
granted, an early grant occurring before the end of the 18-month period after
which patent applications are normally published could increase the risk of
competitors being able to quickly design competing technology.由於專利被核准時,專利申請必須被揭露,發生在18個月期間(在此之後專利申請通常被公開)結束之前的早期核准可能增加競爭對手能夠快速地設計競爭技術的風險。然而,Our interviews with patent
attorneys revealed, however, that this is unlikely to be an issue in
practice.我們與專利代理人的訪談顯示,這不可能成為現實中的問題。 大多數對於Most requests for accelerated examination occur before this
18-month period-a further indication that applications do not view early
publication as a serious issue.加速審查的請求發生在這18個月期間之前─進一步表明申請人並不將早期公開視為一個嚴重的問題。
D.Types of TechnologyD.技術類型
Technologies relating to climate change, particularly to
renewable energy, comprise the vast majority of fast-tracked patents, with
some variations across countries.關於氣候變化,特別是可再生能源的技術,包括絕大多數的快速道路專利,但各國之間有一些差異。In the United States the
majority of fast-track requests involve wind power technology, while carbon
capture and storage are popular in Australia and Canada.在美國,大多數快速道路請求涉及風力技術,而碳捕獲和儲存在澳洲和加拿大較普遍。Other environmental
technologies-such as recycling or pollution-control technologies-represent
around 20 percent of patent applications except in Israel, where 30 percent
of applications cover water-saving technologies.其他環境技術,如回收或污染控制技術,代表了專利申請量的20%左右 (除了在以色列,30%的申請案涵蓋節水技術)。
與同時申請但未請求加速審查的其他綠能科技相關專利申請相比,Fast-tracked patent applications seem to involve
technologies of significantly higher value than other green
technology-related patent applications field at the same time but for which
accelerated examination was not requested.快速道路專利申請似乎涉及明顯更高價值的技術。Patent applications processed
under the fast-track procedures are filed in more countries on average and
are also more likely to be filed in all major patent offices (the European
Patent Office (EPO), the JPO, and the USPTO).在快速道路程序下處理的專利申請平均來說在更多國家提出申請,而且也更可能在所有主要專利局(歐洲專利局(EPO)、JPO和USPTO)提出申請。This suggests that applicants tend to request accelerated
examination for patent applications involving high-value inventions that may
be attracting early commercial interest from potential business partners.這表明,申請人往往為了涉及高價值發明而可能吸引來自潛在商業夥伴的早期商業利益的專利申請要求加速審查。
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