Computer Implemented Inventions
Even though a large amount of inventions have only electromechanical component, many other inventions relate to the field of computing, and that is mainly due to the great technological advancements of the last decades. In this field, some inventions are purely computational, that is, no component of the invention is a physical object or is part of a process that takes place outside of a computer.
It is true that, in this case, the term invention may make no sense since one of the recurring sentences in industrial property is that computer programs cannot be patented, or at least they cannot be patented in Europe. Should this generalization be true, the inventions in the field of computing that we refer to could not be patented. However, many of these inventions have indeed been patented; moreover, one or even several patents of invention have been granted to companies exclusively dedicated to programming software solutions. Why? Because these inventions solve a technical problem. Or, in other words, the inventions have a technical effect associated therewith which render them patentable.
Accordingly, a key aspect of the computer-implemented inventions is finding out what is the technical problem they solve since this determines whether it is patentable or not. In many cases, finding out this problem is not simple, and that is why it is convenient to seek advice as perhaps it may be possible to protect your software with a patent of invention instead of a software license.
In BALDER we have several experts in the field of IT and telecommunications who have been in charge of the preparation and prosecution of many computer-implemented inventions. If you think that one of your software solutions or solutions with a large computational component could be patentable, contact us so that we may assist you and check whether it would be possible to apply for a patent of invention or, alternatively, which would be the best approach to protect your solutions.