有朋友问:“我的理解是在没公布的18个月期间，专利检索不能检索到已经有人申请了，要等到18个月后公布才知道，那么专利检索也不能避免重复申请，以至成为无效申请。是这样吗？”
爱恨专利的答复:
“我的理解是在没公布的18个月期间，专利检索不能检索到已经有人申请了，要等到18个月后公布才知道，那么专利检索也不能避免重复申请”。这四句话是正确的。
“…以至成为无效申请。” 这句话对了一半。简单说来，就是既有可能你的成为无效申请，也有可能别人的成为无效申请。这取决于美国专利局的一个特殊程序，叫作interference. 这个程序是用来确立与维护美国先发明者得专利这一原则的。精确理解请参:
A person (你) shall be entitled to a patent unless … (1) during the course of an interference conducted under section 135 or section 291, another inventor (别人) involved therein establishes, to the extent permitted in section 104, that before such person's (你) invention thereof the invention was made by such other inventor (别人) and not abandoned, suppressed, or concealed, or (2) before such person's (你) invention thereof, the invention was made in this country by another inventor (别人) who had not abandoned, suppressed, or concealed it. In determining priority of invention under this subsection, there shall be considered not only the respective dates of conception and reduction to practice of the invention, but also the reasonable diligence of one (希望是你) who was first to conceive and last to reduce to practice, from a time prior to conception by the other(别人). 有问题但不想公开交流，请使用gu.rhonda@yahoo.com