You wish to protect your technical invention and more specifically a product or a process.
A. Conditions
In order to protect your invention, you must meet the following conditions:
- the invention must be new and not obviously derived from the state of the art;
- the invention must not have been presented to the public before or at all.
B. Duration
The patent offers 20 years of protection to the inventor. The invention then falls into the public domain.
C. Costs
The cost of filing a patent in Switzerland is approximately CHF 700. The patent holder will then have to pay an annual fee, the amount of which will vary according to the number of years.
2. Protecting a trademark
A trademark is essentially used to distinguish the products of a company from those of another company.
A. Conditions
To be protected, a trademark must be sufficiently distinctive and not misleading. In other words, the mark must refer to your company.
In addition, the trademark must not mislead anyone, violate the law or be contrary to morality, for example.
B. Duration
Provided that your trademark meets all of the above conditions, it will be protected for a maximum of 10 years.
C. Costs
The cost for the protection of a trademark registered in Switzerland is approximately CHF 550. Please note that this amount is valid for three classes of products. In addition, it will cost you CHF 700.00 for an extension of protection.
3. Protecting a design
Any two- or three-dimensional product can be protected as long as it is new and original.
A. Conditions
To be eligible for protection, a design must be new and original.
B. Duration
The duration of protection is 5 years.
C. Costs
The cost for such a registration is approximately CHF 200.