What are patents?

Answer 1

A patent is a right, conferred by a government, to the exclusive right to the use of an invention. It lasts for a limited period of time, during which anyone who wants to use the or invention must obtain from the patent holder the right to do so. This usually involves a payment of money.

The purpose of a patent is to encourage to make inventions or improve existing processes because they can make money from licensing the right to the patent, or from using the patent to make something that no one else can make.

Another purpose is to improve the collection of available information to the public, in the form of patents, so that everyone can see what everyone else has already patented and learn how to do the patented invention. This enables them to invent improvements and new combinations of existing inventions, which may be, in turn, patentable.
Patents are issued by the Federal Government. They give the person who invented something the right to be the exclusive (only) person allowed to make it. There are many conditions surrounding what can be patented.

Answer 2

A patent gives an inventor a temporary monopoly on the invention, as an opportunity to recoup the investment made in its development. About a quarter of a million US patents are awarded by the United States Patent and Trademark Office each year.

Answer 3

Patents are grants allowed by the government for the specific use of an invention. The creator of the invention is given the permission to be the only one to use the invention for a particular time period. A patent does not mean that the creator necessarily can sell or use the invention, but it is meant to prohibit others from using it.