Patent is a legal monopoly granted by the government under intellectual property law. Exclusive rights under patent law are given to an inventor to prevent others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time before the invention falls into the public domain. Once in the public domain an invention can be used without license by anybody.

Patents for inventions, including details of how the inventions work, are public record (exceptions may include patents that are classified under the Invention Secrecy Act of 1951). Because of this required public disclosure exclusive rights are used to encourage inventors to reveal how an invention works on the application for a patent.

Examples for what patents are granted for include, but are not limited to, new and useful machines, chemical compounds, manufactured products, medicinal products and industrial processes. Patents can also be granted for significant improvements of existing inventions already under patent.

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