What is a patent?
A patent is a 20-year monopoly that allows the patent owner to prevent others from making, using, or selling the patented invention without permission. In return for the monopoly, the inventor must make known the details of the invention so that others can seek improvements or new uses. The inventor gains by exclusive access to the invention, and society gains by using the detailed description of the invention to further advance technology. It is impossible to give a precise definition of what constitutes a patentable invention, since the answer depends upon many factors and, in the last analysis, is a unique decision made by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. In general, under the Patent Policy, Rockefeller University employees should disclose ideas they may have for any new apparatus, systems, methods or processes, and compositions of matter to the Director of Technology Transfer. It is one of the functions of the Office of Technology Transfer, with the assistance of Patent Counse
