PART III. How patents obtained. Petition for patent. Petition for patent to be accompanied by specification. Requisites of specification. The Patent Act.-1877. PART III. HOW PATENTS OBTAINED. 14. Every petition for a patent shall be addressed to the Commissioner, and shall be accompanied by a declaration by the inventor if he be alive, whether he shall be the applicant or not, stating that he verily believes he is the true and first inventor of the inven tion for which the patent is sought, and by a declaration by the applicant that the several allegations in the petition contained are true; and if the inventor be dead that the applicant verily believes that the person whose assignee, legatee, executor, or administrator he is was the true and first inventor of the invention for which he seeks the patent. 15. The petition shall contain the name or title of the invention, and shall state an address within the City of Adelaide, to which notices in respect of such petition may be sent, and shall be accompanied by a specification in duplicate of the invention for which the patent is sought. The petition and specification shall be filed in the Patent Office, and the day of such filing shall be recorded at the said office, and endorsed on the petition, and a certificate thereof, under the seal of the Patent Office, given to the applicant, or his agent, and thereupon, except in case of application for a patent by any person to whom the Commissioner shall have already refused to grant a patent for an invention substantially the same as that for which such application for a patent is made, and subject to the provisions hereinafter contained, the invention shall be protected under this Act for the term of six months next after such filing, and the applicant shall during such term have the like powers, rights, and privileges as would have been conferred upon him by a patent for such invention issued under this Act, and duly sealed, as of the day of such filing: Provided that in case the specification be too large or insufficient, the Commissioner may, during the said term of six months, and before the grant of the patent, allow or require the specification to be amended, or another and sufficient specification to be filed in lieu thereof, and every such amended or new specification shall have the same force and effect as if it had been filed in its amended or new form on the day of the filing of the original specification. 16. Every such specification shall correctly and fully describe and ascertain the nature and principle of the invention, and in what manner it is to be made, used, worked, or performed, and shall be signed by the inventor if he be alive, and if not by the applicant, which signature shall be attested by two witnesses, who shall specify when and where the same was signed; and in any case where the invention admits of a model or drawing, illustration or explanation by means of drawings, the specification shall contain or be accompanied by a model or by drawings in duplicate, showing clearly all parts of the invention, which drawings, if not comprised in the specification, shall be signed and attested in the same manner as the specification: Provided The Patent Act.-1877. Provided that in any case the Commissioner may in his discretion dispense with any such drawings. PART III. Gazette. 17. The Commissioner shall cause to be published in the Govern- Commissioner to ment Gazette a notice that the applicant has applied for a patent in publish notice in respect of the specified invention, giving the name or title thereof, and stating that the specification thereof may be inspected at the Patent Office; and that any person may within one month, or within such longer period not exceeding three months to be specified in such notice as the Commissioner may determine, object to the grant of the patent by lodging at the Patent Office notice in writing, stating his name and address, and the nature and grounds of his objection, and also an address within the City of Adelaide, to which notices in respect of such objection or of the application for the patent may be sent. 18. The applicant shall within one week after the filing of his Applicant to publish petition, cause notice to be given by advertisement to be inserted notice. three times in at least two of the daily newspapers published in Adelaide, stating that he has applied for a patent for the invention, giving its title or name, and stating that the specification may be inspected at the Patent Office. 19. If there shall be no objection lodged within the period limited for that purpose by the notice in the Government Gazette, the Commissioner shall on the expiration of such period, determine upon the application for the patent, and no person shall be entitled to object to such application. If no objections lodged Commissioner to grant patent. 20. If during the period limited as aforesaid any objection to the If objections lodged grant of the patent shall have been duly lodged in the Patent Office Commissioner to give under the provisions of this Act, the Commissioner shall immediately on the expiration of such period, send through the General Post Office or otherwise, to the applicant and to every objector at the respective addresses given as herein before prescribed for that purpose, a notice in writing that he will, at a time and place to be specified in the notice, such time to be not less than ten nor more than thirty days from the time of posting or otherwise sending such notice, attend to hear and determine upon the application and the objections. summon witnesses. 21. The Commissioner shall, at the request of the applicant or Commissioner may of any objector, issue summonses under the seal of the Patent Office, for the attendance of witnesses, and every witness so summoned shall be bound to attend at the time and place mentioned in such summons on being paid his expenses according to the scale for the time being allowed to witnesses on trials in Local Courts, and to continue in attendance until the matter shall be disposed of, and to produce any documents which he shall by any such summons be required to produce, if they are in his possession, power, custody, or control. 22. Any PART III. Penalty for non.. The Patent Act.-1877. 22. Any witness neglecting to attend, or to continue to attend, or to produce any documents in accordance with such summons, attendance of witrees. shall be liable to a penalty of Twenty Pounds, in addition to the costs of service of the summons upon him, and the amount paid him for expenses, which penalty, costs, and amount may be recovered by the person on whose behalf such summons shall be issued by information before any two Justices of the Peace, in a summary way, together with the costs of, and incidental to, and resulting from, such information. Commissioner to 23. At the time and place appointed the Commissioner shall atdetermine application. tend and hear the applicant and the objectors either personally or by their respective solicitors or agents; and any evidence adduced either by declaration or vivú voce in support of the application and objections respectively, and may adjourn or postpone any such hearing, and shall at such hearing or some adjournment or postponement thereof either grant, or in his discretion refuse, the application for the patent. Cost of application or objection. Commissioner may refer to examiners. Determination of When patent to issue. 24. The Commissioner may by writing under his hand order the applicant or any objector to pay to any objector or to the applicant such costs of and attending the application or objection as the Commissioner shall think fit, and every such order may be made a Rule of the Supreme Court. 25. The Commissioner may, at any time, if he shall think fit, refer any petition for a patent, whether opposed or not to one or more competent person or persons, to be appointed by him to examine and consider the matters stated in such petition, and to report thereon to the Commissioner for his information; and the applicant for such patent shall, prior to such reference, pay to the Commissioner such sum not exceeding Ten Pounds, as the Commissioner shall in each case direct, such sum to be paid by the Commissioner to the person or persons so appointed as aforesaid, as a recompense for his or their trouble. ap 26. The determination of the Commissioner upon any such plication shall be final, but any applicant whose application has been refused, may, on giving not less than four weeks' previous notice in the Government Gazette of his intention so to do, make one or more fresh applications for a patent in respect of the same invention. 27. When the Commissioner has determined to grant a patent, he shall, upon payment of the proper fee, cause the same to be sealed and issued accordingly; but except as hereinafter mentioned no patent shall be sealed after the expiration of the six months' term of protection conferred under this Act by reason of the filing of the petition and specification, nor unless the applicant shall pay the fee for the sealing of the patent within ten days after the Commissioner has sent to the applicant notice of his intention to grant the same: Provided that where the sealing of any patent shall have been The Patent Act.-1877. been delayed by reason of opposition to the grant thereof, such patent may be sealed at such time as the Commissioner shall direct. 28 When the sealing of the patent has been delayed from accident and not from the neglect or wilful default of the applicant, then the patent may be scaled at such time not being more than one month after the expiration of the six months' term of protection herein before referred to as the Governor shall direct-and where the applicant for the patent dies during the continuance of such protection, the patent may be granted to his executors or administrators during the continuance of such protection or at any time within three months after the death of the applicant, notwithstanding the expiration of the term of such protection, and the patent so granted shall be of the like force and effect as if it had been granted to the applicant during the continuance of such protection. PART III. Patent may issue in certain cases. after prescribed time 29. Every patent to be issued in pursuance of this Act shall be Patent to relate back signed and sealed and bear date as of the day of the filing of the to filing of petition. petition and specification as aforesaid, and shall be of the same force and validity as if it had been signed and scaled on the day of which it is expressed to be signed and scaled and bear date; and after any patent shall have been signed and sealed, it shall not be necessary or material to inquire or ascertain whether any advertisement or notice directed by this Act shall have been published, given, or sent as herein directed. EFFECT, CONDITIONS, AND EXTENSION OF PATENTS. 30. Every patent granted under this Act shall be in duplicate, Rights conferred by and shall contain the title or name of the invention, with a refer- patent. ence to the specification, and shall be in the form in the Schedule A hereto or as near thereto as the circumstances will permit, and shall, subject to the provisions of this Act and to all such restrictions, conditions, and provisoes as the Commissioner shall deem necessary or expedient and shall insert in such patent, confer upon the patentee, his executors, administrators, and assigns for the term of fourteen years and for such further term not exceeding seven years, as the Governor may grant under section 37 of this Act, the sole right of making, using, exercising, and vending such invention: Provided that no patent shall be construed to prohibit the subsequent use or sale of any article once lawfully obtained. 31. One duplicate part of every patent issued under this Act, Duplicate patent to shall be delivered to the patentee or his agent, and the other dupli- be filed. cate part shall be filed in the Patent Office. 32. Nothing herein contained shall extend to abridge or affect Prerogative of Crown the prerogative of the Crown in relation to granting or with- preserved. holding the grant of any patent or letters patent; and it shall be lawful PART IV. Conditions of patent. Patent to cease on nonpayment of fees. Patented invention vessel. The Patent Act.-1877. lawful for the Governor to direct the Commissioner to grant or withhold the grant of any patent or letters patent as aforesaid, or to direct the insertion in any patent issued under this Act of any restrictions, conditions, or provisoes which the Governor may think fit, in addition to, or in substitution for, any restrictions, conditions, or provisoes which would otherwise be inserted therein under this Act; and it shall also be lawful for the Governor to direct any specification filed under this Act, and in respect of the invention described in which no patent shall at the time of such direction have been granted to be cancelled, and thereupon the protection obtained by the filing of such specification shall cease. 33. All patents granted under this Act shall be made subject to the condition that the same shall be void if at any time during the term thereby granted it shall appear that the grant of the patent was contrary to law or prejudicial or inconvenient to the general public, or that the said invention was not a new and useful art, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or a new and useful improvement on any art, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or that the said invention had been publicly used or offered for sale within the said Province prior to the date of such patent, or that the patentee was not the true and first inventor of the patented invention; or if the patent shall have been granted to him as assignee, legatee, executor, or administrator, then that he was not the assignee, legatee, executor, or administrator as the case may be of the true and first inventor of the patented invention, or if the specification does not correctly and fully describe and ascertain the nature and principle of the invention, and in what manner it is to be made, used, worked, or performed. 34. All patents under this Act shall also be made subject to the condition that the same shall be void, and that the rights and privileges thereby granted shall cease and determine at the expiration of three years from the date thereof, unless the patentee, his executors, administrators, or assigns shall pay, at the Patent Office, the sum of Five Pounds before the expiration of such three years from the date thereof, and at the expiration of seven years from the date thereof, unless the patentee, his executors, administrators, or assigns shall pay, at the Patent Office, the sum of Five Pounds before the expiration of such seven years. 35. No patent for any invention granted after the passing of this may be used in foreign Act shall extend to prevent the use of such invention in any foreign ship or vessel, or for the navigation of any foreign ship or vessel, which may be in any port of South Australia or its dependencies, or in any of the waters within the jurisdiction of any of the Courts of the said Province where such invention is not so used for the manufacture of any goods or commodities to be vended within or exported from the said Province or its dependencies: Provided that this enactment shall not extend to the ships or vessels |