Patents can be a rich source of information for the Family Historian and they are relatively easy to consult. The main problem is that the records are centralised in a very few locations in the U.K.. The Patents Collection, Science & Technology Department, The Mitchell Library, North Street, Glasgow, G3 7DN, is the only Library in Scotland to hold comprehensive patent records. Some local libraries such as the Central Library, George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, have a microfiche index to the earlier patents, and it would be worth consulting them before making the trip to Glasgow or some other centre.

CONSULTING PATENTS

1. Looking for the patent of a named person.

For patents registered between 1617 and 1852 there is an alphabetical index of names on microfiche. This gives the surname, christian name of the patentee, the date of registration, subject matter and patent number. Similar information is obtainable from microfiche covering the period 1852 - 1980.

The two most important pieces of information are the patent number and the year of registration. The correct date enables the appropriate volume of printed patent specifications to be ordered. Once this arrives the patent number enables you to quickly find the desired patent.

Patent Numbers

• 1617 - September 1852:- covered by the numbers 1 - 14359.
• October 1852 - 1915:- numbered from 1, annually.
• 1916 - 1976:- continuously numbered from 100 001.
• 1977 onwards:- numbered from 2 000 001.

The information in the volume can vary considerably in length, but will give the title of the inventor and a description of the invention.

After the invention of lithography drawings are often included with the specification. For diagrams of inventions made before the advent of lithography it is worth checking professional or trades journals that sometimes carry engravings. [For ships and marine engines The Engineer is a good source.]

Patent Abridgements may also be available and contain a brief description and diagram.

Quite often a patent may not be located or the word Abandoned is the only thing found. This would indicate that the application was not original, protection could not be obtained and it was not worth pursuing.

2. Looking for a particular invention.

For more recent patents it is necessary to have a classification code and sub group code before you can start your search. These are to be found in the Official Catchword Index, published by WIPO – [World Intellectual Property Organisation.]

Armed with this information a search can be made of the relevant volumes. Many specialist indexes are compiled and it would be worth checking to see if there is a suitable index available.

SCOTLAND

The 1852 Patent Law Amendment Act (15 & 16 Vict. c.83) abolished separate patent systems for Scotland & England, establishing a single body.

Details of Scottish inventors and inventions prior to 1852 are kept at the Scottish Archives, HM General Register House, Edinburgh, EH1 3YY; reference numbers: C3, C7, C19, C20.

• C3 - Registrum Magni Sigilli (Paper Register) record of temporary or redeemable rights, including patents. Specifications also entered 1750-1813.
• C7 - Great Seal Warrants for all types of grants arranged by date of sealing. There are no warrants existing for 1794-1807.
• C19 - Great Seal warrants (Paper Register) from 1807, warrants are arranged and numbered to correspond with the Register entries.
• C20 - Original Specifications or duplicates for those previously lodged in England, with drawings, from 1764.

There is a calendar of Scottish Patents & Specifications, 1712 - 1812.

History

Originally patents were granted to encourage new industries and wealth and gave the patentee the right to protection of his idea so that he could develop his idea and derive some profit from it. Very few patents were granted in the seventeenth and eighteenth century. It was not until the nineteenth century that there was an upsurge in the number of patents registered. This, in part, was occasioned by the 1852 Patent Law Amendment Act that reduced the cost of registering a patent considerably. The 1883 Act almost halved the fees payable.

KEY DATES IN PATENT LAW

• 1852 A single patent office established:- fees reduced.
• 1883 Fees almost halved.
• 1902 Examination for the novelty of inventions was introduced.
• 1905 Trade mark law separated from Patent Law.
• 1919 Normal maximum cover increased from 14 to 16 years.
• 1932 Patents Appeal Tribunal set up with power to revoke patents.
• 1949 Anomalies over patent dates removed.
• 1949 Law of Registered Designs separated from Patent Law.
• 1977 Examination of patent applications for obviousness of inventions: extended cover from 16 to 20 years.

SPECIFICATION

Early patents required very little in the way of a specification, but in 1734 a description of the invention had to be included for it to be valid. In the early 19th century the description had to be included with the application and in 1850 this became obligatory.

With the 1852 Act came the option of filing a Provisional Specification that described the nature of the invention, and this had to be followed within 6 months, by a Complete Specification, which contained a full description of the invention and the claims made for it. This was further changed by the 1882 Act that required a Complete Specification from the start.

All patents are examined by a Law Officer to check that contained in the applications are correct and genuine.

PROTECTION

The 1852 Act only provided protection once a full patent specification had been made available to the public. Because of this requirement all new specifications had to be printed. Between 1852 & 1857, fired with enthusiasm, The Patent Office published virtually all patents registered from 1617 onwards. These patents were all allocated a number to facilitate their location.

FEES

Before 1852 the minimum cost of patenting an invention was £310. This dropped to £25 in 1852, with additional fees chargeable if the period of protection was to be extended. In 1882 it cost £4 to register a complete specification and this rose to £85 in 1977. The additional fees chargeable are shown below.

1883 to extend protection to 14 years cost an additional £153
1920 to extend protection to 16 years cost an additional £126
1964 to extend protection to 16 years cost an additional £216
1978 to extend protection to 20 years cost an additional £1362.

In real terms the cost of protecting an invention has dropped due mainly to the establishing of a single office, The Patent Office, in1852.

INFRINGEMENT OF RIGHTS

Five courses of action are possible:

1. Seek an injunction to prevent infringement.
2. Damages: - restores proprietor to where he would have been if no infringement had occurred.
3. Obtain an account of the profits made by the infringer so that an assessment of what is due to the proprietor can be made.
4. Certificate of Contested Liability. If the patent is successfully defended once, the Certificate entitles the proprietor to more realistic costs if any further action is successfully contested.
5. Delivering up, or destruction of, infringing articles.

POST-1977 PATENTS

These are numbered from 2 000 001. Brief details are published in the Official Journal (Patents) about 5 weeks after the application is handed in. The Patent is checked for correctness and that appropriate fees have been paid. If it is a genuinely new application then it will be published within 18 months: this is the ‘A’ specification which is not legally protected. Within 6 months a substantive examination has to be applied for. [Many withdrawals are made at this stage].

If the application gets this far it is published again, possibly with modifications, as the ‘B’ or granted specification. The whole process should be completed within 4½ years from the priority date [the date of lodging application]. The patentee then has protection for 20 years from the date of filing, subject to renewal fees. The grant must be worked within 3 years or compulsory licensing be forced on the applicant.

About 14000 applications are lodged annually.

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