知产慧学堂丨日本实用新型专利申请

规范日本专利申请的法律依据主要见诸于《特许法》、《实用新案法》和《意匠法》。《特许法》、《实用新案法》和《意匠法》的最新修改时间均为 2014 年 6 月 13 日。

日本特许厅（即JPO）负责专利与实用新型的注册和管理，官方语言：日语。

• 发明人和申请人的名称、地址、国籍
• 申请文件（说明书、权利要求书、说明书摘要、说明书附图、摘要附图）（日语翻译）
• 优先权信息（优先权日期、优先权号）（如有）
• 委托书

注：日本允许发明专利用外文申请，实用新型只能以日文提交。

制图：中国保护知识产权网

1.准备专利申请文件并提交申请:日本实用新型专利申请人提交申请时必须提交附图，同时在申请时必须支付前3年注册费；

2.形式审查：日本特许厅对实用新型不需要进行实质性审查，审查员只需要检查申请是否符合申请的形式要求或者基本要求，如有则需要申请人进行修正，如果没有进行修正，则该申请被撤销；

3.注册：所有通过形式审查并满足基本要求的申请，无需通过实质审查，则被授予实用新型权；

4.公告：实用新型权注册后，JPO在官方公报上公布该实用新型的细节；

5.要求评价报告：在对现有技术文件进行检索的基础上，审查员出具的评价报告允许就注册实用新型权利的有效性作出客观判断。申请提交后，任何人、在任何时间均可提出请求。

由于实用新型申请不经过实质审查，对于申请人来说至关重要的是在对现有技术彻底进行检索的基础上，决定是否提出申请。

注：a.日本实用新型一度采用实质审查制度，直到1987年末才修改为目前的“登记+评价报告”审查制度。日本实用新型权的有效期最长可自实用新型登记申请日起十年。

b.日本实用新型专利从申请到授权的时间大概为6-8个月。

日本实用新型专利费用如下：

制图：德同智汇

注：1.递交日本申请的语言必需是日语，所以不是以日语提交的日本发明专利申请还需支付翻译的费用。申请人可以根据自身实际需求选择由日本代理所翻译，或者自行安排翻译。

2.现在日元与人民币的汇率为1:0.0555，如日本发明专利申请阶段递交费用为14000日元，则人民币约为777元。

3.申请人必须在申请时一次性缴付第一年至第三年的注册费。

根据日本专利法第46条的规定，实用新型申请人可以自申请日起3年内，将其实用新型申请转化为发明专利申请，但这种转化制度规定了许多限制，包括：

1.提出转换为发明专利申请后，原实用新型就被视为放弃；

2.转换申请必须在实用新型登记后，且从实用新型申请日起3年内提出；

3.在提出转换申请后，实用新型专利权人不得再提出实用新型技术评价申请；

4.变更申请时必须是在实用新型未提出技术评价书的前提下，如果第三人提出技术评价申请时，日本特许厅会通知原申请人，而受到该通知书30日以后不能提出变更为发明专利申请。若实用新型权利人在该期限内，提出转换请求，实用新型检索报告将不再制作；

5.转换为发明申请内容必须限于实用新型原申请所记载的范围；

6.转换为发明专利申请后，允许提出分案，但该发明申请及其分案申请不得再转换为实用新型；

7.如果该实用新型被提出无效请求，超过了无效审判答辩期限，就不能将该实用新型转换为实用新型申请。或者在收到最初的拒绝决定之日起30天内，可以将其申请转化为实用新型申请。

日本的加快审查制度，有“早期審査”、“スーパー早期審査（即超级早期审查）”以及多种类型的PPH等。

以下对早期审查以及超级早期审查加以比较：

制图：德同智汇

注：1.亚洲商业地点法律相关的应用是指与亚洲商业区位法认可的研发活动成果而发明的技术相关的申请。

2.申请加快审查必须以日语进行。任何在日本既没有地址也没有住所的加速审查申请人都必须通过在日本有地址或住所的代表（例如日本专利代理人）遵循程序。第三方不能要求对他人的申请进行加速审查。

3.加速审查程序和超级加速审查程序不收取官方费用。

Japanese Utility Model

The legal basis for standardizing patent application in Japan is mainly found in "Concession Law", "Practical New Law" and "Artisan Law". The latest amendments to the Charter Act, The Practical New Act and the Craftsman Act were made on June 13, 2014.

The Japan Licensing Office (JPO) is responsible for the registration and administration of Patents and utility models.Official language: Japanese.

• Name, address and nationality of the inventor and the applicant
• Application documents (specification, claim, summary of specification, drawings attached to specification, drawings attached to abstract)(Japanese translation)
• Priority Information (priority date, priority number)(if any)
• power of attorney

Note: Japan only allows invention patents to be applied in foreign languages, utility models can only be submitted in Japanese.

Made：JPO

1. Prepare the patent application documents and submit the application: The Japanese utility model patent applicant must submit the attached drawings when submitting the application, and at the same time must pay the registration fee for the first 3 years;

2. Formal Review: The Japanese Licensing Office does not need to conduct a substantive review of the utility model, the reviewers only need to check whether the application meets the formal or basic requirements of the application and, if so, require the applicant to make amendments, if no amendment is made, the application is withdrawn；

3. Registration: All applications that pass the formal review and meet the basic requirements are granted utility model rights without going through the substantive review；

4. Announcement: After the registration of the utility model right, JPO shall publish the details of the utility model in the official gazette；

5. Request For Ealuation Reports: Based on the retrieval of existing technical documents, evaluation reports issued by the examiners allow an objective assessment of the validity of the right to register a utility model. After the application has been submitted, any person may make a request at any time.

As applications for utility models are not subject to substantive review, it is essential for the applicant to decide whether to submit an application on the basis of a thorough search of the available technology.

Note: a. The Japanese utility model once adopted the substantive examination system, until the end of 1987, it was modified to the present “Registration + evaluation report”examination system. The duration of the right of Japanese utility model may be up to 10 years from the date of application for registration of the utility model.

b. The time from the application to the authorization of Japanese Utility Model Patent is about 6-8 months.

The patent fees for Japanese utility models are as follows:

Made：DETONG UNIMORAL

Note: 1. The language in which the Japanese application is submitted must be Japanese, so a translation fee will be charged for a Japanese patent application that is not submitted in Japanese. The applicant may choose to be translated by a Japanese agent according to his or her actual needs, or may arrange his or her own translation.

2. The exchange rate between the yen and the Renminbi is now 1:0.0555, or about 777 yuan if the filing fee for a Japanese invention patent is 14,000 yen.

3. The registration fee for the first to third year must be paid in one lump sum at the time of application.

According to Article 46 of the Japanese Patent Law, an applicant for a utility model may, within three years from the date of application, convert his or her application for a utility model into an application for a patent for invention, but this conversion system imposes a number of restrictions, including:

1. The original utility model is deemed to be abandoned after the application is converted into an invention patent.

2. Application for conversion must be made within 3 years from the date of registration of utility model.

3. After the application for conversion, the patentee of the utility model shall no longer apply for the technical evaluation of the utility model;

4. The application for change must be made on the premise that no technical evaluation letter has been submitted for the utility model, and if a third person applies for technical evaluation, the Japan Licensing Office will notify the original applicant, however, after the 30th day of receiving the notice, no application for alteration of the patent for invention can be filed.

If the owner of the utility model makes a request for conversion within the time limit, the retrieval report of the utility model will no longer be made.

5. The content of the application for invention shall be limited to the scope recorded in the original application for utility model.

6.After being converted into an application for a patent for invention, it is permitted to file a sub-case, provided that the application for the invention and its sub-case shall not be further converted into a utility model.

7.The utility model can not be converted into a utility model application if the utility model is made an invalid request and the time limit for the defense of the invalid trial is exceeded. Or the application may be converted into a utility model application within 30 days from the date of receipt of the initial rejection decision.

In Japan, there are “Early check”, “Early check-by-early check”, and various types of PPH.

The following comparisons are made between the early review and the super-early review:

Made：DETONG UNIMORAL

Note: 1. Applications relating to technologies invented as a result of R & D activities recognized under the Asian Business Location Act.

2.Application for expedited review must be conducted in Japanese. Any accelerated screening applicant who has neither an address nor a residence in Japan must follow the procedure through a representative (such as a Japanese Patent Attorney) who has an address or residence in Japan. Third Parties can not request expedited review of applications from others.

3.The accelerated review process and the super-accelerated review process do not charge an official fee.