Impact of Errors in Patent Translation

Patent protection in a globalized marketplace have become an indispensable part of company/ individual growth, especially when you are trying to get patent protection in more than one jurisdiction. Here, Patent translation becomes important, especially in countries like China, Korea, Japan, German & other jurisdiction where languages differ. 

Safeguarding your intellectual property (IP) rights in other countries is gaining importance in today’s connected world. Registering your patents in the target jurisdictions is an effective approach to protect your invention. Even as an individual inventor also, you might want to protect your invention overseas. For that you have to translate your patent in the language of that specific jurisdiction (if required).

Patents in Multiple Languages: A Global Success

As per WIPO, “Patents are jurisdiction-specific. The exclusive rights are only valid under the laws of the nation or territory where a patent application was made and approved.” This means the rights granted by a Patent & Trademark Office have no effect in foreign countries.

If you are aiming for a worldwide market and do not properly translate all of your patent material, including patent claims, drawings, etc. then your patent rights may be unfairly used by your competitors. Therefore, patent translation is crucial for both companies and individual inventors. In whichever jurisdiction you go, translated patent documents will guard against the unauthorized use, promotion, or sale of your idea.

There is no better way to do protect your idea or invention than registering your technology patents and trademarks in the target foreign jurisdictions. This is why you need patent translation to help translate your inventions and legal documents in Chinese, German, Spanish, and over 100 other languages with quality as well as speed.

In which situations, patent translation is important? 

Patent Translation plays an important role in 2 Situations:

• For Filing Patent Application: When you have to submit the patent application in jurisdiction where you have to file in a specific language like Japanese, Spanish, German etc.
• For information: When you need to present evidence in a patent litigation case, Patent Translation can help find both legal plus technical information as well as supporting documentation.

What is the impact of errors in patent translation?

“Small errors can bring big impact”

Errors in translation of patent application or other legal documents required for patent litigation can be proved disastrous, the impact of errors in patent translation are:

• Legal Repercussions
• Becoming Incompetent in getting Patent Protection
• Financial Burden and Loss of Funds
• Major Project Delays
• Incomplete Patent Data
• Increased Competitiveness
• Theft of Original Ideas

Importance of Patent Translation

Your international patents’ value may be impacted positively or negatively by the Quality of the translation. Incorrect patent translation can have serious repercussions in the form of significant content problems because a competent patent translation must combine complex technical information with knowledge of both the science and language issues at hand.

These repercussions consist of manufacturing delays, increased costs associated with correcting inaccurate translations and the inability of international patent enforcement. That’s why a quality patent translation is required, it might be costly but the results of poor patent translation are detrimental for patent application & litigation. Here are the reasons why Quality patent translation is important:

• An inadequate patent translation can potentially cause the invention to be denied. The translation must therefore be done with the utmost level of precision.
• The patent translation is a lengthy process, and the applicant must satisfy all requirement submission deadlines in several jurisdictions. This can affect the patent & may even lead to rejection of your patent application. 
• Even in court, a patent’s translation becomes essential for settling disputes over the nature and scope of the claims.
• Whether a translation is complex or simple will surely depend on the technology used. A higher level of translating proficiency is required for complex technologies.
• Accurate patent translation can help you find novelty of the invention effectively and efficiently from the file wrapper analysis.
• The translation extends to many patent searches, including the prior art search, FTO search etc. It is not just limited to the creation of patents. The translation must be highly accurate and precise because the analysis of the prior art will form the basis for the patent grant.

Conclusion

The requirements for accurate patent translations go much beyond linguistic proficiency. It is necessary to have a thorough understanding of the subject matter, in addition to local patent rules and the legal procedure for submitting international patent applications. 

To offer the best patent translation services, Wissen Research has a connection with various legal experts and patent attorneys in the targeted nations who have the necessary technical expertise. We translate patents into all major languages, including Korean, German, Japanese, and Simplified Chinese.

Authored by – Robin Sharma