Читать книгу Intellectual Property Law for Engineers, Scientists, and Entrepreneurs - Howard B. Rockman - Страница 68

As part of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, the U.S. Congress enacted a separate law covering inventions that have utility solely relating to nuclear material or atomic weapons. This statue appears at 42 U.S.C. §2181, and is entitled “Inventions Relating to Atomic Weapons.” Section 2181(a) states: “No patent shall hereafter be granted for any invention or discovery which is useful solely in the utilization of special nuclear material or atomic energy in an atomic weapon. Any patent granted for any such invention or discovery is revoked, and just compensation shall be made therefore.” Section (b) of the statute states that: “No patent hereafter granted shall confer any rights with respect to any invention or discovery to the extent that such invention or discovery is used in the utilization of special nuclear material or atomic energy in atomic weapons. Any rights conferred by any patent heretofore granted for any invention or discovery are revoked to the extent that such invention or discovery is so used, and just compensation shall be made therefore.”

The statute also provides a definition of an “atomic weapon.” Note that if an invention can be used in an atomic weapon, but it also has non‐weapon utility, a patent may issue. However, the patent may be held up in the secrecy division of the USPTO, preventing the inventor from commercializing the invention.