Generally, ideas are not eligible for patent protection. An idea is a starting point and should be refined into a complete system, method, substance or product for which patent protection can be sought. The system, method, substance or product then can be described in a patent application with sufficient detail to enable a person who has an average level of skill in the relevant field to make and use the described system, method, substance or product without too much experimentation.
To be patentable, an invention must be novel and cannot comprise an obvious combination of two or more conventional elements. There must be something new about the selection of the elements or how the elements are combined. The invention also must be useful. In other words, the invention cannot comprise an abstract idea, such as a mathematical formula, or a natural discovery, such as a new type of plant that occurs in nature.
Determining whether an invention is abstract unfortunately is not easy in some cases, especially with regard to software-related subject matter. Judicial decisions regarding the patentability of software-related inventions in the United States are not completely clear, and, although patent filings on such inventions often face additional scrutiny, patent offices in the United States and internationally continue to grant patents directed toward software-related subject matter.