Prior Art Search
The standard method for researching the novelty of an invention is to perform a prior art search. A prior art search is generally performed with a view to proving that the invention is "not new" or old. No search can possibly cover every single publication or use on earth, and therefore cannot prove that an invention is "new". A prior art search may for instance be performed using a keyword search of large patent databases, scientific papers and publications, and on Google. However, it is impossible to guarantee the novelty of an invention, even once a patent has been granted, since some obscure little known publication may have disclosed the invention as claimed.
Read more about this topic: Novelty (patent)
Famous quotes containing the words prior, art and/or search:
“Odds life! must one swear to the truth of a song?”
—Matthew Prior (1664–1721)
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“You have riches and freedom here but I feel no sense of faith or direction. You have so many computers, why don’t you use them in the search for love?”
—Lech Walesa (b. 1943)