Home > Patent Searching
→ Freedom to Operate (FTO): Confirm a new product or process does not infringe active UK or international patents, reducing litigation risks under the Patents Act 1977.
→ Novelty Assessment: Determine if an invention meets UK patentability criteria (novelty, inventive step, and industrial applicability) before filing.
→ Competitor Analysis: Identify competitors’ IP to inform market positioning or licensing opportunities.
→ R&D Guidance: Avoid duplicating existing work, focusing R&D on unpatented or underexplored areas.
→ Due Diligence: Support investment or acquisition decisions by assessing a company’s IP portfolio.
Novelty (Patentability) Search
Conducted pre-filing to assess if an invention is new and non-obvious.
FTO (Clearance) Search
Identifies active patents that could block commercialisation in the UK or export markets.
Validity Search
Evaluates whether an existing patent is enforceable, often for challenging competitors’ IP.
State-of-the-Art Search
Provides a broad overview of a technology field to identify trends or gaps.
Infringement Search
Checks if a specific product or process infringes existing patents.
▶▶ Patents in the UK are governed by the Patents Act 1977, aligned with the European Patent Convention (EPC). A UK patent grants 20 years of protection from the filing date, renewable annually after year four.
▶▶ The UKIPO’s Patent Register covers GB (national) and EP (European) patents effective in the UK, but international searches (e.g., via WIPO’s PCT system) are needed for global coverage.
▶▶ Post-Brexit, the UK is no longer part of the EU’s unitary patent system, but EP patents designating the UK remain valid, requiring searches to include EPO databases.