Chapter 17

Chapter 171,230 wordsPublic domain

ABOUT CANADIAN PATENTS

The geographical nearness of Canada to the United States, and the intimate commercial relations existing between the two countries, render Canada, in one sense, a part of the industrial market of America; and owing to its liberal patent laws, which are based closely upon our own, inventors generally find it advantageous to protect their interests in this country, which can be done from time to time by a very small outlay, and thus giving the inventor the advantage of disposing of his patent or dropping it if not found remunerative, before expending the total cost of the patent.

The commercial and manufacturing interests of Canada are extensive, increasing yearly, and are closely knit with our own. If the invention is not protected in Canada, it is sometimes manufactured there and sent here without paying royalty to the inventor.

Copies of the "Rules and Forms of the Canadian Patent Office" and "The Patent Act" can be obtained upon application to the Hon. Commissioner of Patents, Ottawa, Canada. Section 8 of the Patent Act, revised May, 1898, provides:

"Any inventor who elects to obtain a patent for his invention in a foreign country before obtaining a patent for the same invention in Canada, may obtain a patent in Canada, if the same be applied for within one year from the date of the issue of the first foreign patent for such invention; and,

"If within three months after the date of the issue of a foreign patent, the inventor give notice to the Commissioner of his intention to apply for a patent in Canada for such invention, then no other person having commenced to manufacture the same device in Canada during such period of one year, shall be entitled to continue the manufacture of the same after the inventor has obtained a patent therefor in Canada, without the consent or allowance of the inventor."

The Patent Act as amended does not now require a Canadian patent to expire at the earliest date at which a foreign patent for the same invention expires.

Under the section just cited the patentee has three months, after the issue of his patent, within which to protect his interests in Canada. If within these three months he has not sufficiently demonstrated the commercial value of his home patent, and the advisability of taking out a Canadian patent, he is advised to give notice to the Commissioner of Patents, Ottawa, of his intention of doing so, which will fully protect his interests for one year, as under the above provision; and if the patentee fail to give this formal notice, he cannot obtain redress from any person who has commenced to manufacture his invention in Canada during the year.

There is also an advantage sometimes in giving this formal notice within three months and delaying the grant of the patent for one year, as the patentee is allowed to import the patented article into Canada during one year only, after the grant of the Canadian patent.

The construction or manufacturing of the invention in Canada must be commenced within two years from the date of the patent, and continuously carried on from that time, though the extension of this time may be secured upon timely application to the Commissioner, giving any good and proper reason. The time for importation is also sometimes extended upon proper application.

Canadian patents are granted originally for a term of eighteen years, the Government fee being $60 for the eighteen years, but at the election of the patentee this fee may be divided into three payments of $20 each, as follows: $20 at the time of the grant, $20 at the expiration of the sixth year, if the owner desires to keep the patent alive, if not he can allow the patent to become forfeited; and at the end of the twelfth year, if it is still desired to maintain the patent, the remaining fee of $20 may be paid. If the patentee in the meantime assigns his patent, the assignee will pay the required government fees at the end of the sixth and twelfth years, if it is desired to maintain its validity.

The Canadian patent covers and affords full protection in the following provinces:

+----------+------------- PROVINCES. | Area | Population |Sq. Miles.| 1911 ------------------------+----------+------------- Alberta | 253,000 | 372,919 British Columbia | 390,000 | 362,768 Manitoba | 72,870 | 454,691 New Brunswick | 28,000 | 351,815 Nova Scotia | 20,600 | 461,847 Ontario | 222,000 | 2,519,902 Prince Edward Island | 2,000 | 93,722 Quebec | 347,000 | 2,000,697 Saskatchewan | 250,000 | 453,508 Northwest Territories |1,922,750 | 10,000 Yukon | 200,000 | ---- |----------+------------ TOTAL |3,708,220 | 7,081,869 ------------------------+----------+------------

[Sidenote: Selling Canadian Patents.]

In selling Canadian patents, the patentee will proceed in much the same way as in the United States, though he cannot expect, nor should he ask, more than about one-third as much for the Canadian patent as he receives, or expects, from the United States patent. Patents are not as readily sold in Canada as here, but if the inventor has a useful invention of merit, which is being manufactured profitably in the United States, he will have no trouble in disposing of his Canadian patent at a satisfactory price.

It is in nearly all cases advisable for the inventor to first put his invention upon the market in the United States before trying to realize from his Canadian interests, as it will be found difficult to interest Canadian capital in a patent that has not been first put into practice here; and if the patentee be able to dispose of his Canadian patent at all, it is usually for a very insignificant sum; whereas, on the other hand, if the patentee fully protects his interests there, and proceeds to put the invention upon the home market, he will not only be able to present his Canadian patent in a more favorable and forcible way by proving its commercial value, but he will undoubtedly get better offers, and realize full value for his Canadian interests, in exact proportion to the success of his invention in the United States.

POPULATION OF CANADIAN CITIES

(_Compiled from the Census of 1911_)