Upon approval by the State Intellectual Property Office and the Ministry of Finance, Landglass has been awarded the special fund for PCT patent by the Henan Province Intellectual Property Bureau, whic…
Upon approval by the State Intellectual Property Office and the Ministry of Finance, Landglass has been awarded the special fund for PCT patent by the Henan Province Intellectual Property Bureau, which is the first national fund awarded to the company in the Henan Province. Xu Fengguo, director of Luoyang Municipal Intellectual Property Bureau, expressed that it is important popularize Landglass“ innovative awareness and behaviour of emphasizing the protection of independent intellectual property rights among private enterprises all over the city. PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty) is an international cooperation treaty concerning patents. In accordance with this treaty, patent applicants are only required to submit one copy of patent application, and the invention concerned can be protected in any member country. By 2007, this treaty covered 137 member countries. This means that the PCT patent applied for by Landglass can be successfully recognized by most countries in the world simultaneously. As a provincial high-tech enterprise, Landglass always pays great attention to the protection of independent intellectual property rights. Landglass started to apply for PCT patents as early as 2004, and, at present, one of its PCT patents has been granted by United States Patent and Trademark Office, and over ten are undergoing international examination. Although PCT is considered as the most advanced and significant international treaty for patent protection, it is relatively difficult for Chinese enterprises to apply for PCT patent because of the complicated procedure, long duration from application to granting and the high cost of PCT patent application. Therefore, the Central Finance initiated the PCT special fund in 2009 so as to help the enterprises in their applications. Landglass is one of the first group of enterprises awarded the fund in Henan. Director Xu Fengguo recently visited Landglass to find out about the patent application. He pointed out that by encouraging enterprises to develop new technology and assisting them in protection of independent intellectual property rights will not only serve the enterprises, but also to serve the major programme of Chinese industrialization. He also expressed that the municipal intellectual property bureau would exert the utmost to provide convenience and support for the enterprises applying for patents, and he hopes to introduce Landglass“ experience in successfully applying for domestic and foreign patents to other private enterprises in Luoyang.