What is anticipation in patent law?
Anticipation in patent law refers to a situation where a claimed invention is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 because it is not novel over a prior art disclosure. The MPEP states:
A claimed invention may be rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 when the invention is anticipated (or is “not novel”) over a disclosure that is available as prior art.
This means that if every element of a claimed invention can be found in a single prior art reference, the claim is considered anticipated and may be rejected.
To learn more:
Topics:
MPEP 2100 - Patentability,
MPEP 2131 - Anticipation — Application Of 35 U.S.C. 102,
Patent Law,
Patent Procedure