What types of inventions are considered non-statutory subject matter?
According to the MPEP, non-limiting examples of claims that are not directed to any of the statutory categories include:
- Products that do not have a physical or tangible form, such as information (often referred to as “data per se”) or a computer program per se (often referred to as “software per se”) when claimed as a product without any structural recitations
- Transitory forms of signal transmission (often referred to as “signals per se”), such as a propagating electrical or electromagnetic signal or carrier wave
- Subject matter that the statute expressly prohibits from being patented, such as humans per se, which are excluded under The Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA)
The MPEP further clarifies: “Even when a product has a physical or tangible form, it may not fall within a statutory category. For instance, a transitory signal, while physical and real, does not possess concrete structure that would qualify as a device or part under the definition of a machine, is not a tangible article or commodity under the definition of a manufacture, and is not composed of matter such that it would qualify as a composition of matter.“
To learn more:
Topics:
MPEP 2100 - Patentability,
MPEP 2106.03 - Eligibility Step 1: The Four Categories Of Statutory Subject Matter,
Patent Law,
Patent Procedure