April 26 marks the 22nd World Property Rights Day. To promote the understanding of intellectual property rights among the GTers, guide everyone to develop the consciousness of respecting knowledge, advocating science and protecting intellectual property, Mr. Li Changqing, patent examiner from China (Shantou) Intellectual Property Protection Center was invited to give a lecture to all GTers.

Prof. Wayne D. Kaplan, Pro-Vice Chancellor of GTIIT, gave an opening remark online. Combining the theme of this year's World Intellectual Property Day – "Intellectual Property and Youth: Willing to Innovation, Building the Future" – he encouraged teachers and students to give full play to their originality, curiosity and creativity and contribute their wisdom to a better future.

Mr. Raanan Adin, Senior Consultant to Vice-President for Innovation and Industry Relations of GTIIT, said that GTIIT attached great importance to innovation and entrepreneurship education, and established Guangdong Technion Technology Entrepreneurship Center (GTEC) in 2021, to register and protect intellectual property rights; participate in industry research and development; accelerate and incubate innovation entrepreneurship; and take advantages of Israeli successful innovation ecosystem. "Intellectual property is of positive significance for protecting the enthusiasm of scientific and technological research, as well as literary and artistic creation, promoting economic development and foreign trade. Therefore, it is very important to fully understand intellectual property rights.”

In the lecture, Mr. Li vividly explained the definition of intellectual property rights, patent types, unpatentable subject matters and other related concepts through case the analysis, introduced the process of patent application, and discussed the role of intellectual property rights in encouraging innovation and creation with teachers and students.

"What are intellectual property rights?" Mr. Li started from the basic concepts, and explained the concepts in the field of intellectual property in simple terms with familiar examples. "For instance, the mascots of the 2022 Winter Olympics 'Bing Dwen Dwen' and 'Shuey Rhon Rhon' enjoy intellectual property rights such as design patents, trademarks and copyrights. In addition, there are geographical indication rights, such as champagne from Champagne in France. The most important thing to understand among the great number of intellectual copyrights is the patent rights."

A patent is an exclusive right granted by the China National Intellectual Property Administration to the applicant within a certain period of time according to the premise of the application of the invention and creator, disclosing the contents of the invention and creation and the interests of the society in accordance with the legal provisions. Mr. Li said that patents not only protect the personal rights and interests of applicants, but also greatly promote innovation and entrepreneurship. The classification and refinement of patent rights, as well as the improvement of relevant legal provisions, are inseparable from the continuous efforts and optimization of professionals.

Q: How should we protect the article if we want to be published?

A: It is recommended to apply first and publish later, because the protection of the application content starts from the time of submitting the application.

Q: What do I need to do if I have an immature idea right now and want to apply for intellectual property protection?

A: It depends. If the application is a chemical formula, we require clear experimental data to prove its feasibility; if the application is the assembly of some mechanical equipment, just describe the characteristics of the assembly.

Q: What if I invented an article and registered a patent in China, but someone else applied for its patent in another country?

A: This method is not feasible. Every patent's information will be sent to the International Patent Application Center, the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), for filing. As for cross-country patent applications, we can apply through PCT. This application is valid in more than 150 Contracting States, and we can also submit single-country applications.

Text: Lu Feiyu, GTIIT News & Public Affairs

Photos: Ou Yongzhen, GTIIT News & Public Affairs