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Patents are one of the oldest forms of intellectual property protection and, as with all forms of protection for intellectual property; the aim of a patent system is to encourage economic and technological development by rewarding intellectual creativity.

To be patentable, an invention must also meet certain criteria relating to novelty and other features. The Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement) provides three criteria and conditions for an invention to be patentable.

There are several characteristics that a patent office will look at to determine whether the invention is patentable. At the outset, there has to be a patent application on file. In most cases that patent application is examined by a technical expert to ensure that it meets the substantive criteria for patentability.