Novelty requires that an invention be different from the knowledge that has already been made public. Any invention or technology that has not already been employed in India or anywhere else in the world, or that has not been foreshadowed by prior publication in any document, will be regarded as a novel subject matter under Indian Law. In other words, the subject matter shouldn't be revealed, shouldn't be in the public domain, and shouldn't be considered state-of-the-art.
In the context of innovation, novelty is a key concept because it is a desired attribute of company concepts, services, products, and features. True unique concepts that have been tested and show promise in practice advance the state of the art; they open doors for intellectual property (patents) and serve as differentiators for goods and businesses.
However, novelty is not binary and depends on one's point of view; hence, it must be stated in terms of the degree or level of novelty. In actuality, a scale that reflects "how new" the solution is to the market or sector is necessary. Real-world solutions frequently combine several concepts, some of which may be well-known and others not. The degree of novelty reflects how many of those fundamental characteristics are new.
The estimate of the "degree of originality" should also take the public's knowledge level about the overlooked solution into account. The solution being assessed for its uniqueness may, in one instance, merely be conceptually understood while, in another instance, it may already be completely built and widely used.
PATENT OFFICE'S ROLE IN NOVELTY FINDING:
In the course that the Controller discovers during the examination of the Patent Application that the applied Invention is identical to any already published or granted patent, article, publication, or in any other form already in the public domain, the Controller may object to the applied Patent Application, which may result in the rejection of the Invention.
Please be aware that unless an invention is patented or otherwise appropriately protected, it should not be revealed to or used by the public. It won't be regarded as a new invention if someone has already made their invention public knowledge through publication or another method.
COMMON MISTAKES IN NOVELTY SEARCH:
It is not mandatory to conduct a novelty/patentability search, but it can be a serious mistake if not done properly. You can also run the search yourself, but it is not recommended as doing it incorrectly can lead to different search results. Enlisting the help of a patent attorney is recommended to ensure a professional eye search for the best results.
This is important in the event of a patent dispute. The other party is challenging the validity of the patent to avoid paying royalties. In this case, if prior art is found that may be the result of an improperly conducted novelty search, you lose not only potential revenue, but also patent rights. A novelty search is therefore a cheap way to protect an invention from the outset.
It is clear that when someone applies for a patent, it must meet the novelty criteria. should be properly formulated. Novelty is one of the generally accepted requirements for examining patentability. Except for exceptions under Sections 29 to 32 in India or anywhere else in the world, an invention is expressly not patentable if it is known through prior publication or public use. The Indian patent system strictly follows absolute novelty. According to the patent law, the range of technical standards is very wide. This is because, in addition to the worldwide pre-disclosure and pre-use in India itself, the pre-use outside India also belongs to the state of the art. Indian traditional knowledge is also cutting edge and further interpretations are made on a case-by-case basis. India has undoubtedly seen a significant increase in patent enforcement activity.
