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Has this patent expired?

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DesignerV

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
I am in EU but may sell a product in the US in the near future...

Has this patent expired for sure?
1)
I search the uspto.gov database and I found that the patent of the material I want to use has expired.
The patent was about the recipe and the use in consumer products of this material.

Can I make the material and use it in consumer products legally?

Am I totally covered?


2)
Can I use the trademark of the material?

The trademark is still live.
Can I make a new trademark with the same material?
 
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quincy

Senior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
I am in EU but may sell a product in the US in the near future...


1)
I search the uspto.gov database and I found that the patent of the material I want to use has expired.
The patent was about the recipe and the use in consumer products of this material.

Can I make the material and use it in a consumer products legally?

Am I totally covered?


2)
Can I use the trademark of the material?

The trademark is still live.
Can I make a new trademark with the same material?
You should consult with an IP attorney in your area of the world.

You will want the patent-specifics personally reviewed.

Trademarks (generally) cannot be used without permission from the trademark holder.

The expiring of a patent does not mean (and usually won't mean) that a trademark has been abandoned.
 

FlyingRon

Senior Member
And while trademark registrations may expire, trademark rights persist as long as the mark is used in commerce. They don't become public domain just because they are no longer novel, like patents and the registration can be renewed indefinitely.

One thing to watch on patent expirations is that sometimes the expiry of the international rights are a year or so later than the domestic patent rights.
 

quincy

Senior Member
Also, even when a patent expires and falls into the public domain, there can be new inventions that have been created based on the original patented invention and THESE inventions may have their own patents and may not be in the public domain.

In the US, utility and plant patents expire after 20 years, and design patents expire after 14 years. Other countries have longer and shorter patent durations.
 
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