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The modern patent system operates under the statutory authority granted to Congress by our Federal Constitution in Article I, Section 8, Clause 8. The theory behind the system is that inventive minds may fail to produce many useful things that they might produce if stimulated by the promise of substantial reward. The framers of the Constitution were aware of the activities of inventors, the efforts to aid them in individual state legislatures and were aware of the struggles in English law relating to the granting of monopolies. The result in our Constitution is a grant to Congress of the power to permit patents to be issued, qualified by the stated purpose of promoting the progress of science and the useful arts. The means developed to permit this "monopoly" rest in the limited grant of an exclusive right to an invention. For this privilege, the inventor agrees to fully disclose the invention and the advantages the public would derive when, at the expiration of the grant the invention becomes part of the public domain for anyone to manufacture, use or sell. One of the most common patents issued are called "Utility Patents" and have a duration of twenty years from the date of filing the patent application so long as maintenance fees are paid to keep the patent in force. Another common patent issued are called "Design Patents" which protect inventions which have novel ornamental designs or shapes. Design have a duration of fourteen years from the date of issuance and no maintenance fees are required to keep them enforceable.
In order to obtain a patent, a patent application for the invention must be filed with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. Individuals, called Examiners, in this federal agency review the application and determine whether the invention described in the application meets the statutory requirements for a patent. If it does, a Certificate of Patent will be issued for the invention.
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