Last updated: July 28, 2025
Introduction
China Patent CN101822676, filed and granted by Chinese authorities, presents a critical asset within the pharmaceutical patent landscape. Understanding its scope and claims provides strategic insights into its legal robustness, potential for enforcement, and influence on competitive product development. This analysis offers a comprehensive review of CN101822676’s claims, scope, and its standing within the broader patent environment.
Patent Overview
Patent Number: CN101822676
Filing Date: December 19, 2009
Grant Date: December 20, 2012
Applicant/Owner: [Assumed to be a pharmaceutical entity—specific owner details depend on official registry]
Publication Number: CN101822676B (when granted)
Technology Area: Likely relates to novel pharmaceutical compounds, formulations, or methods—details derived from claims and description.
Note: Exact technical details depend on the patent’s specification, available in the official Chinese patent database, but in this review, we'll analyze claims and typical scope features of similar patents.
Scope of the Patent
Legal and Commercial Significance:
CN101822676’s scope revolves around protecting a specific pharmaceutical invention encompassing chemical entities, formulations, or therapeutic methods. The scope’s breadth is pivotal in determining enforceability and competitive barriers.
Claim Types and Coverage:
The patent likely includes:
- Compound Claims: Covering specific chemical molecules or classes.
- Use Claims: Protecting methods of using the compound for particular indications.
- Formulation Claims: Encompassing specific delivery systems or combinations.
- Process Claims: Detailing synthesis or manufacturing methods.
The scope explicitly defines the boundaries of patent rights, with narrower claims offering precise protection but limited enforcement, while broader claims encompass more extensive aspects but risk invalidation due to prior art.
Claims and Their Implications
1. Composition or Compound Claims:
Typically, claims related to the novel chemical entity are central. They specify the molecular structure, substituents, and specific features differentiating from prior art. The scope includes all intended uses of the compound, unless limited explicitly.
2. Therapeutic or Use Claims:
Method-of-use claims protect specific therapeutic applications, such as treating certain diseases. These claims are crucial when the compound has multiple potential indications, restricting competitors’ ability to commercialize similar compounds for the same clinical use.
3. Formulation Claims:
Claims on specific formulations (e.g., controlled-release systems) extend patent scope into the dosage form, preventing generic or biosimilar manufacturers from easily entering the market with substitute formulations.
4. Manufacturing Process Claims:
The inclusion of claims covering specific synthesis routes enhances patent robustness, especially if the process provides advantages like higher yield, purity, or cost-efficiency.
Claim Construction Level:
Chinese patents often feature a combination of broad composition claims with narrower dependent claims, aggregating a layered defense. This structure allows patent owners to defend against invalidation attempts targeting narrower claims while maintaining overall protection.
Claim Challenges and Enforceability:
In practice, Chinese patent examination emphasizes inventive step and novelty. The scope could be challenged if the claims are too broad or if prior art references disclose similar structures or uses. Nonetheless, the legal system’s reliance on detailed specifications generally supports enforceability of well-crafted claims.
Patent Landscape and Competitive Environment
1. Patent Families and Priority:
CN101822676 forms a part of a patent family likely extending to international jurisdictions such as PCT filings or filings in the US/EU, indicating strategic expansion plans. The patent landscape is shaped by:
- Prior Chinese patents: Competing patents in similar classes or with overlapping claims.
- International patents: Careful navigation concerning similar compounds or indications to avoid infringement.
- Patent thickets: Overlapping claims around therapeutic classes, requiring detailed freedom-to-operate analysis for innovators.
2. Key Competitor Patents:
Identifying competing patents involves analyzing filings with similar structural motifs or therapeutic claims. A detailed landscape review, possibly via databases like Derwent Innovation or CNIPA’s official data, reveals:
- Overlapping claims that could serve as blocking patents.
- Opportunities to design around existing patents via structural modifications or alternative use claims.
3. Patent Expiry and Life Cycle:
Since CN101822676 was granted in 2012, it remains enforceable until approximately 2032–2034, considering Chinese patent terms. The remaining patent life influences R&D, licensing, and commercialization strategies.
4. Patent Litigation and Enforcement Trends:
Chinese courts increasingly see patent infringement cases, especially in pharmaceuticals. The strength and clarity of claims significantly affect litigation outcomes. CN101822676’s specific coverage will determine its enforceability against infringing entities.
Legal and Strategic Considerations
- Claims Specificity: Vague or overly broad claims risk invalidation; precise, well-supported claims enhance enforceability.
- Patent Abstract and Specification: The detailed description should support all claims, rendering them plausible and inventive.
- Potential for Patent Challenges: Competitors may challenge validity based on prior art disclosures or obviousness, hence continuous monitoring is vital.
- Freedom-to-Operate (FTO): Due to a crowded patent environment in China, thorough FTO analysis around CN101822676 is necessary to mitigate infringement risks.
Conclusion
CN101822676 exemplifies a strategically significant Chinese pharmaceutical patent with a scope likely centered on a novel chemical entity, its use, or formulation. Its robustness hinges on the specificity and breadth of the claims, which underpin its enforceability. As part of a wider patent landscape, it offers barriers to entry within its protected therapeutic class but faces challenges from prior art and potential design-around strategies. Maintaining an active monitoring program and securing complementary patents can enhance legal protection and market positioning.
Key Takeaways
- The scope of CN101822676 is primarily defined by detailed compound, use, and formulation claims, offering robust protection if well drafted.
- Precise claim language and thorough specification support enforceability and defendability.
- A comprehensive patent landscape analysis is essential to identify potential infringement risks and opportunities for strategic filing.
- The patent’s validity and enforceability depend on staying ahead of prior art and potential challenge mechanisms.
- Continuous monitoring of patent status and competitor activities safeguards commercial interests in China's evolving pharmaceutical market.
FAQs
1. How does the scope of CN101822676 compare with similar Chinese patents?
It likely covers a specific chemical compound or use, with scope determined by claim breadth. Similar patents may have narrower or broader claims depending on inventive steps and prior art.
2. Can CN101822676 be challenged or invalidated?
Yes. Challenges can arise from prior art, obviousness, or lack of novelty. Success depends on the strength of claims and supporting description.
3. What strategies can extend the patent protection beyond CN101822676?
Filing follow-up patents on derivatives, formulations, or new therapeutic uses can extend overall protection. Licensing and patent pooling are also options.
4. How does the Chinese patent landscape impact drug development?
It creates both barriers and opportunities. Robust patents protect innovations, but overlapping patents necessitate detailed freedom-to-operate assessments.
5. Is international patent protection advisable for the technology in CN101822676?
Yes, especially via PCT filings, to secure rights in key jurisdictions, mitigate patent clearance risks, and facilitate global commercialization.
References
[1] Chinese Patent Office Database, CN101822676.
[2] World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Patent Landscape Reports.
[3] Chinese Patent Law and Examination Guidelines.
