IP & Patent Glossary
Clear, practical definitions of key intellectual property and patent terms used by IP professionals.
What is Patent Analytics?
Patent analytics is the systematic analysis of patent data to extract insights about technology trends, competitive posi...
What is a Patent Landscape?
A patent landscape (also called a patent map) is a comprehensive analysis of patents within a specific technology area, ...
What is Prior Art?
Prior art is any evidence that an invention was already known before a patent application was filed. This includes paten...
What are Patent Claims?
Patent claims are the numbered statements at the end of a patent document that define the legal scope of the patent's pr...
What is Freedom to Operate?
Freedom to operate (FTO) refers to the ability to develop, manufacture, and sell a product or use a process without infr...
What is a Standard-Essential Patent?
A standard-essential patent (SEP) is a patent that claims technology required to implement a technical standard (e.g., 5...
What is Patent Licensing?
Patent licensing is the process of granting permission to another party to use, make, or sell a patented invention in ex...
What is a Patent Portfolio?
A patent portfolio is the collection of patents and patent applications owned by a person, company, or organization. Por...
What is a Patent Citation?
A patent citation is a reference to another patent or publication in a patent document. Citations indicate prior art rel...
What is Patent Prosecution?
Patent prosecution is the process of preparing, filing, and pursuing a patent application through a patent office until ...
What is Patent Infringement?
Patent infringement occurs when someone makes, uses, sells, or imports a product or process that falls within the scope ...
What is a Patent Family?
A patent family is a group of related patents filed in different countries (or as continuations/divisionals) that share ...
What is IP Due Diligence?
IP due diligence is the comprehensive evaluation of intellectual property assets (patents, trademarks, trade secrets, co...
What is a Patent Assertion Entity?
A patent assertion entity (PAE), sometimes called a non-practicing entity (NPE) or colloquially a "patent troll," is a c...