Got a Patent Published? That’s Great – But It’s Not the Same as a Journal Publication
I frequently come across academic researchers who feel proud of their published patents and sometimes consider them equivalent to a journal article.
Both patents and journal publications are valuable ways to present new ideas, however their purposes and processes are fundamentally different.
Let’s clear up the misconception…
Patent Publications:
Legal, Not Scientific, Review: Patents are assessed by patent offices to ensure they are novel, useful, and non-obvious. The focus is on the idea’s potential for commercial applications.
Protects Intellectual Property: A patent’s goal is to secure the inventor’s rights to their invention, potentially leading to licensing or commercialization.
Publication vs. Granting: All patent applications are published, but that DOES NOT mean the patent was granted. It might be pending or could have been rejected.
Journal Publications:
Rigorous Peer Review: Publications in respected journals undergo peer review, where experts in the field scrutinize the research for validity, novelty, methodology, and significance.
Focus on Scientific Advancement: The primary goal is to contribute new knowledge and insights to the scientific community.
Acceptance is Competitive: Journals, especially high-impact ones, have strict acceptance criteria. Getting published is often seen as a mark of the research’s quality.
The Misconception
Patent publications and journal publications are the same ❌
The Reality
Peers do not review patent publications. The patent examination process focuses on novelty, inventiveness, and utility.
Journal publications are peer-reviewed and focus on research quality and originality.
In a Nutshell
A journal publication signals scientific excellence and has been vetted by the research community. A patent publication indicates inventive potential with an eye toward commercialization. It has undergone a legal review, not a scientific one.
Both patents and research papers serve different functions in innovation, but both demonstrate creativity and accomplishment. Let’s celebrate their unique contributions.
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