Why perform a patent search?
By performing a patent search your aim is to discover if any patents or published patent applications are in existence, which may affect or limit the scope of your patent application. Based on the patent search results you can determine whether or not your invention is patentable.
You need to know if your invention is already patented (issued as a patent) or is in the process of being considered to be eligible to be patented (published patent application). Based on the patent search results you can determine whether your invention is patentable and to what degree it is patentable. Currently, there are some seven million issued patents issued by the US Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO), which means that there are more patents in existence than actual products commercially available. If you do not see your invention for sale in a store, on the Internet, or in the public domain (public disclosure), that does not mean that someone has not pursued protection for the same or similar invention under a patent or disclosed the same invention in a published article. Your goal with a patent search is to have a full understanding of the patents and patent applications filed prior to your invention, which may have a bearing on the scope of patent protection available for your invention.
