3.Enterprise patent layout method
Patent layout network is a systematic patent behavior with planning and strategy. Through the construction of patent protection network, the blindness and fragmentation of patent application can be overcome effectively. It can be transformed from passive "patent application for the sake of patent" to "targeted and well-planned patent application for the development needs of enterprises".Therefore, the utilization efficiency of enterprise patent application resources and the overall value of its patent cluster are improved, which provides practical and effective patent support for enterprise development.
And before building a patent protection network, companies need to be clear about what the overall goal is, whether it is to protect their own technology or fight against their competitors. So the construction objectives of patent protection network can be divided into protective layout and adversarial layout.
1)Protective layout
Protective layout generally revolves around the enterprise's own technological innovation, and its patents are usually closely related to the enterprise's own technology or products.The main goal of these patents is to provide sufficient patent protection for the technological innovation achievements of enterprises, ensure the technological monopoly and competitive advantage of enterprises on the innovation achievements, and improve the difficulty of competitors to evade design and R&D costs.Therefore, the patent protection network can be constructed from the following aspects.
Enhanced protection of technology:
The most valuable and competitive part of an enterprise is the technology protected by their core patent, so it is necessary to strengthen the protection of the core technology patent, so that their competitors have no chance to compete against them. To do this, firstly, the content of the core technology should be deeply explored, and then from the perspective of improvement, the improved patents of the core technology patent should be explored, and the improved patents should be abstracted or summarized, so as to form a protection circle.
Extended protection of technology:
After the completion of the enhanced protection of the technology, in order to obtain closer protection, it is necessary to take the various possible patent layout points in their own hands. To do this,it is necessary to extend the protection of the technology process. There are many aspects of extended protection, such as application, replacement of technical means, technical problems, avoidance design, etc.
Continued protection of technology:
The patent protection has a certain period of time, and for some fields, it can take a long time from the technology to the industrialization and the product to the market. So in order to realize the intention and goal of protective layout, it is necessary that with the industrialization and marketization progress of technological innovation, subsequent patent applications should be put forward continuously to realize the continuous protection of technology.
Confusion protection of technical process:
In order to prevent competitors from quickly following and imitating the company's technology through the contents disclosed in the patent application,when carrying out the protective patent layout, it can intentionally hide the real R&D direction or the best implementation way of the enterprise through the confusing layout, so as to confuse competitors and increase the difficulty of competitors to imitate and copy.
For example, while patent layout is carried out for new technologies, relevant patent layout is also carried out for unused technologies, degraded technologies and sub-optimal technologies, so that competitors can not distinguish the priorities. When drafting the patent application document, the enterprise could deliberately choose the raw material formula with poor effect as the best choice, and hide some key technical points.
2.Adversarial layout
Protective layout is carried out to provide full protection for the enterprise’s technology innovation, but often, when an enterprise makes its own technological innovation, its competitors also make technological innovation at the same time or earlier and apply for patents. These patents may affect the direction of the enterprise's own research and development, and even make the enterprise face the risk of infringement. To this end, the competitors' patents need to be adversarial layout.
Surrounding layout
Apply for peripheral patents based on the core patents of competitors, and wrap them from the perspectives of performance improvement, technology optimization, technical means replacement, and other application fields, so as to prevent competitors from applying for subsequent improvement, and then contain competitors, and thus, the enterprise and its competitors each have their own chip.
Combination layout
Combine adversarial layout for R&D direction of competitors. For example, the layout for product patents, upstream raw materials, processes, production equipment, testing equipment, and downstream applications of products should be arranged to prevent competitors from completely vertical layout.
