How does a prior public disclosure affect the grace period under AIA?

Under the America Invents Act (AIA), a prior public disclosure by the inventor or joint inventor can affect the grace period, providing protection against certain disclosures being used as prior art. According to MPEP 717.01(b):

“The grace period provision of AIA 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(1)(B) applies if the ‘subject matter disclosed [in the intervening disclosure] had, before such [intervening] disclosure, been publicly disclosed by the inventor or a joint inventor….'”

This means that if an inventor publicly discloses their invention, they have a one-year grace period during which their own disclosure and any subsequent disclosures of the same subject matter by others cannot be used as prior art against their patent application. However, it’s important to note that this grace period only applies to disclosures of the same subject matter and does not protect against independent inventions by others.

To learn more:

• AIA
• grace period
• prior public disclosure
• 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(1)(B)
• patent application

To learn more:

• 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(1)(B)