It is not easy to identify an invention
At least if you are not trained to identify inventions, it is not an easy task. And it is as easy to overlook hidden treasures buried in the raw data of your R&D projects. Capturing  patentable inventions that might not be apparent on the first sight does not require a genius or a flash of inspiration, but thorough legal and technical knowledge, and a well-structured approach to the analysis of the data. This process usually starts with a thorough search and analysis of the relevant prior art which we can also provide (see PATENT SEARCHING). Once identified and analysed, we will advise you on how to strengthen your data by further experiments to support your invention.

Drafting patent applications
Based on this analysis, we will be able to take the lead in the process of drafting your patent application. This should be as interactive as possible in order to ensure that your invention is captured in all its aspects and potential uses. We will also be able to draft the application with an eye on international prosecution, keeping in mind the varying requirements relating to the disclosure of an invention according to the national patent law of major jurisdictions such as the USA and Japan.
Filing and prosecuting patent applications
After filing, we will offer our support to further evaluate the prospects of your patent application, e.g. by analysis of a search report prepared by the patent office. Once the application is under substantive examination, we will propose amendments and arguments which may be suitable to overcome the objections raised in the examination reports. If follow-on applications are desired, such as an international or foreign national applications, these must be filed within the priority period of 12 months from the first filing, and they can be further strengthened by the incorporation of additional data.

International protection
There are several ways of protecting your inventions internationally. It all starts with an informed decision on where your inventions and your business needs to be protected beyond your home country (see IP STRATEGY). Once the desired geographical scope of protection is defined, we can go ahead and furnish you with a proposal for the most cost-effective foreign filing strategy, either by filing national applications, a European patent application or an international ("PCT") application. In either case, you will take advantage of our international network of IP experts in the economically most relevant countries.