AdamsonJones, a firm of patent and trade mark attorneys, has helped more Nottinghamshire companies protect their inventions overseas through the World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO) than any other rival firm of patent attorneys in the county.
Statistics from WIPO show that since 2015 AdamsonJones, which has offices in Nottingham, Leicester and London, has had 24 Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) patent applications – a system that helps applicants seeking patent protection internationally – published on behalf of Nottinghamshire companies. This is more than double that of other local patent attorneys, according to the WIPO statistics.
A PCT application can be filed 12 months after filing an initial UK patent application and provides applicants the opportunity to defer filing patent applications directly in overseas countries – and incurring substantial official fee and translation costs – for 18 months. There are 152 members of the PCT, covering most of the world. One PCT application ensures that the applicant has provisional protection across all 152 member states.
A PCT application therefore gives companies two and a half years, from filing the initial UK patent application, to gain necessary investment and decide exactly in which countries they want to progress patent applications to ensure their innovation is protected.
Simon Cooper, managing director and patent attorney at AdamsonJones, said: “PCT applications are a great way to help companies ensure their innovations are provisionally protected at an early stage, whilst avoiding incurring unnecessary expense if their innovation doesn’t turn out as expected, or if they are unable to gain the necessary investment or funding.
“We pride ourselves on our work with local SMEs and I’m delighted that the WIPO statistics confirm this.
“The fact that we have had substantially more PCT applications published on behalf of Nottinghamshire companies than any other firm of patent attorneys, both locally and nationally, highlights our knowledge and experience of working with local SMEs to protect their innovation overseas.”
AdamsonJones worked with local companies including Brightwake Limited and Selentus Science Limited to file PCTs.
Brightwake Limited is a Nottingham-based company, which has developed its expertise in textiles and textile construction to provide inventive solutions for the medical, cosmetic, industrial, retail and aviation industries. Stephen Cotton, managing director of Brightwake Limited said “As well as developing new products, we develop new technologies which may be incorporated in a range of our wound care products, for example. Along with the postponement of costs, the 18 months delay provided by the PCT gave us time to consider which of our products could incorporate a new wound care technology and therefore in which territories to seek patent protection.”
Dr Ben Nicholls, a director at Selentus Science Limited, said “The PCT application process is a convenient route to obtaining patent protection in a number of different territories, whilst allowing us to keep our options open. The PCT process delays the costly decision as to which territories to proceed in until the product is closer to market.”
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