Free Tool · Inventorship
Who counts as an inventor?
Naming the wrong inventors — adding the boss who funded it, or leaving out a real contributor — can invalidate a patent. The legal test is conception. Answer two questions about one person's role.
Did this person help conceive how the invention works — the idea behind at least one claim?
Conception is forming the definite, permanent idea of the complete and operative invention — not just recognizing the problem or wanting a solution.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Who is considered an inventor on a patent?
An inventorinventorThe person who actually conceived the invention. Listed on the patent regardless of who owns it.Read more → is someone who contributed to the conception of at least one claimclaimA numbered sentence at the end of a patent that legally defines what the inventor owns. The most important section.Read more → — the definite idea of how the invention works. Conception, not building or funding it, is the legal test.
Does paying for or managing an invention make you an inventor?
No. Providing money, equipment, facilities, or general supervision does not make someone an inventorinventorThe person who actually conceived the invention. Listed on the patent regardless of who owns it.Read more →. Neither does merely building or testing an idea that someone else fully conceived, or following another person's specific instructions.
Can you correct the inventors named on a patent?
Usually yes. If the named inventors are wrong, the error can often be fixed under 35 U.S.C. §256 as long as it was honest — without deceptive intent. Getting inventorship wrong on purpose can render the patent unenforceable.
Where this fits · The patent process
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