Patent glossary
Plain-language definitions for common patent search and analysis terms.
Terms
Curated glossary entries with links to related patent search.
- Prior art
Prior art is any evidence that an invention was already known before a patent’s effective filing date. It can include earlier patents, published applications, products, papers, and public disclosures.
- Patent application vs. patent grant
A patent application is a pending request for exclusive rights. A granted patent is the legal document that issued after examination (or registration, depending on jurisdiction) and defines enforceable claims.
- CPC (Cooperative Patent Classification)
CPC is a hierarchical classification system shared by the USPTO and EPO. Each patent is tagged with one or more CPC symbols that describe its technical subject matter.
- Publication number vs. application number
An application number identifies the filing while it is pending. A publication number identifies a specific published document (application publication or grant) that you can cite and retrieve.
- Patent family
A patent family is a set of related filings that share the same priority claim and typically cover the same invention in different countries or stages (priority, PCT, national phase, grants).