The Patent Act of 1790 (1 Stat. 109) was the first patent statute passed by the federal government of the United States. It was enacted on April 10, 1790, about one year after the constitution was ratified and a new government was organized. The law was concise, defining the subject matter of a U.S. patent as "any useful art, manufacture, engine, machine, or device, or any improvement there on not before known or used."[1] It granted the applicant the "sole and exclusive right and liberty of making, constructing, using and vending to others to be used" of his invention.[2]
Wikisource has original text related to this article:
- ^ The U.S. Patent System Celebrates 212 Years”. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. 9 Apr. 2002
- ^ Patent Act of 1790, Ch. 7, 1 Stat. 109-112 (April 10, 1790) The First United States Patent Statute CHAP. VII. --An Act to promote the progress of useful Arts. Archived July 22, 2011, at the Wayback Machine(a )