Mechanical and Machinery Patents Team

 

The team has broad and extensive experience in handling innovations in the field of mechanical and machinery including:

 

• Manufacturing technology;

• Steam turbines;

• Thermodynamics;

• Instrumentation;

• Mechanical Robotics;

• Valve and pumping equipment;

• Fluid mechanics;

• Steam and Combustion engines;

• Wind energy and devices;

• Hydraulics and Pistons;

• Positive and Negative displacement fluid devices;

• Heat Exchange Devices;

• Guns and Ammunition;

• Agricultural and horticultural machinery;

• Agricultural technology;

• Meat and food processing equipment;

• Metal cutting machine tools;

• Mining and ore processing equipment;

• Prime movers and work machines;

• Propulsion technology;

• Railway maintenance equipment;

• Textile machines;

• Transport, automotive and marine engineering

 

Our Mechanical and Machinery team provides top-quality patent drafting and prosecution work and has been appreciated by many clients domestically and internationally for the quality of work and promptness. The team also possesses extensive experience in sophisticated technologies to work both in house as well as outside counsels for several global companies over the years.

 

 

The Indian Patent Scenario

 

A large number of patent filings in India belong to this category. Many companies both Indian as well as international files patent for process/method, machinery/ device/apparatus etc. 

 

Apart from basic criteria of patentability viz. Novelty, Inventive step and Industrial applicability which are governed by Section 2 of the Indian Patent Act, the relevant provision that impact the inventions under this category is section 3(c) and section 3 (f). Section 3(c) states that “the mere discovery of a scientific principle or the formulation of an abstract theory or discovery of any living thing or non-living substances occurring in nature” is not patentable. 

 

For example, a method of increasing the cooling effect in a heat exchanger by increasing the length of the coolant tubes is not patentable but a heat exchanger with coolant tubes arranged in a zigzag manner instead of straight line may be patentable.

 

Section 3(f) states that “the mere arrangement or re-arrangement or duplication of known devices each functioning independently of one another in a known way” is not patentable, i.e. in order to be patentable, an improvement on something known before or a combination of different matters already known, should be something more than a mere workshop improvement. 

 

Current scenario in India

 

With the development in national laws, many mechanical companies have developed their base in India for the local manufacturing and export of the machinery at cheaper costs. The companies have actively enhanced their IP filings in India due to various new reforms in nation. The concept of patentability became more clear to the companies with the case of Lallubhai Chakubhai Vs. Chimanlal and Co. where the Hon’ble Court held that if the result produced by the combination is either a new article or a better or cheaper article than before, the combination may afford patentable subject-matter. 

 

Also, in Rampratap v. Bhabha Atomic Research Center, the Court held that when two or more features of an apparatus or device are known, and they are juxtaposed without any interdependence on their functioning, they should be held to have been already known, for example an umbrella with fan, bucket fitted with torch etc.

 

Mechanical Industry in India

 

• One of the Largest Machinery market 

• 2nd largest farm output

• Largest producer of Tractors 

• 12th largest producer of machine tools

• 7th largest consumer of machine tools

• 2nd largest road network covering more than 4.3 million Kilometers

• 4th largest rail network a track length of 114,500 kilometers and 7,172 stations

• Several Indian and Foreign Manufacturers including:

  • Bombardier Transportation

  • Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML)

  • Alstom

  • Maruti Agro Sale & Service

  • Amazone Casting & Engineering Pvt Ltd

  • JCB

  • Jindal

  • Ovis Equipment Pvt Ltd.

  • Hitachi

  • Toshiba

  • Kawasaki Heavy Industries rolling Stock company

  • Boeing