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The purpose of Patent System is "to
encourage, protect and utilize invention, thereby improving
and developing technology, and to contribute to the development
of industry". Namely, the purpose of the patent system
is to contribute the development of industry by opening
and utilizing invention while it also allows the inventor
with the exclusive right.
In this point of view, patent system is also called
as new technology protection system, invention encouragement
system or private exclusive possession security system.
To achieve above identified purpose, relevant systems
was established as follow:
Originally, Utility model system was established in
Germany as supplements for patent system. In process
of application of patent system, in some cases, improved-invention
or micro-invention was neglected and exclusive right
for them was not allowed. Accordingly, it was required
to protect and encourage micro-invention of small businesses
and individual inventors as industrial policies.
As a result, Utility model system was established in
several nations as well as Germany to supplement patent
system, but the substances and applications thereof
are different in each country. In Korea, the Patent
Decree was announced in 1908, and the Utility Model
Law was established in 1946 based on the Japanese Utility
Model Law.
The Utility Model Law has been amended several times
(1963, 1973, 1980, 1990 etc.) and the number of application
for utility model filed between 1953 and 1988, for 35
years, was always larger than the number of applications
for patent. However, since 1989 the situation reversed
and the number of patent applications exceeded the number
of utility model applications.
In this point of view, the Utility Model System in
Korea has provided the improved-inventions and micro-inventions
obtained through introduction, digestion and assimilation
of fundamental invention of leading industrial countries
with the systemic basis of exclusive right under utility
model registration.
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