Whether or Not to Have an Invention Patent Application Published Earlier

An invention patent has a statutory confidentiality period of 18 months from the date of filing, which is a common practice in most countries around the world. PCT international patent applications, Chinese invention patent applications, and US patent applications are all follow this regulation. But for some reasons, the applicant may want to publish his/her application earlier, most countries will also provide such an option of early publication.    Read more