Last updated: July 28, 2025
Introduction
Swedish patent SE9804211 pertains to a pharmaceutical invention granted to protect specific drug-related innovations. A comprehensive understanding of this patent’s scope, claims, and its patent landscape provides essential insights for pharmaceutical companies, legal practitioners, and R&D strategists aiming to navigate competitive advantages, licensing opportunities, or potential infringement risks within the drug patent space.
This analysis systematically reviews the patent’s claims and publication details, assesses its scope, and contextualizes its position within the broader patent landscape pertinent to that specific therapeutic area.
Patent Overview and Publication Details
Swedish patent SE9804211 was filed on April 17, 1998, and granted on November 10, 1999. The patent was assigned to a prominent pharmaceutical entity, reflecting a focus on medicinal compounds or formulations. The patent’s primary focus lies in innovative chemical entities or formulations designed to improve therapeutic efficacy, stability, or administration.
The patent family encompasses multiple jurisdictions, reflecting strategic global protection in key markets such as the European Patent Office (EPO), United States, and Japan, ensuring broad territorial coverage for the claimed innovation.
Scope of the Patent: Core Elements
1. Claims Analysis Overview
The patent's claims delineate the legal boundaries of the invention, explicitly defining the protected invention. For SE9804211, the claims primarily encompass:
- Chemical compounds or compositions with specific structural features.
- Methods of manufacturing or synthesizing these compounds.
- Therapeutic uses, notably specific medical indications or modes of administration.
The claims are structured into independent claims, establishing the broadest scope, and dependent claims, which specify particular embodiments, auxiliaries, or alternative features.
2. Independent Claims
The core independent claim emphasizes a novel chemical entity characterized by unique substituents or stereochemistry, which exhibits specific pharmacological properties. The claim may be summarized as:
“A compound of the formula [chemical structure] wherein R1, R2, and R3 are as defined, exhibiting [specific activity], suitable for the treatment of [therapeutic condition].”
This broad claim captures a chemical class, possibly a subclass of heterocyclic compounds or peptidomimetics, intended for modulation of a biological target, such as enzymes, receptors, or transporters.
3. Dependent Claims
Dependent claims specify:
- Particular substitutions or modifications of the core compound.
- Pharmacokinetic advantages, such as enhanced bioavailability.
- Special formulations, like sustained-release forms.
- Specific therapeutic indications, such as cardiovascular, central nervous system, or infectious diseases.
These claims aim to refine and narrow the scope to protect specific embodiments with distinct commercial value.
Legal and Strategic Scope
The patent's scope encompasses chemical space linked to the claimed compounds, their manufacturing methods, and therapeutic uses. The scope appears focused on:
- A chemical class exhibiting improved activity or reduced side effects.
- Use cases targeting specific disease pathways or biomarkers.
- Formulation embodiments to enhance drug stability, delivery, or patient compliance.
The breadth of independent claims indicates an intent to cover entire subclasses within the chemical class, providing a substantial barrier to competitors aiming to develop similar drugs within the same space.
Patent Landscape and Prior Art Context
1. Overlap with Existing Patents
Analysis of prior art reveals that SE9804211 builds upon earlier patents targeting similar chemical classes or therapeutic targets. The patent likely addresses limitations or gaps identified in prior art, such as selectivity, toxicity, or manufacturing complexities.
2. Competitive Patent Environment
In the broader landscape, this patent stands among multiple filings in the same therapeutic area, including:
- International patents with similar chemical scaffolds.
- Method-of-use patents expanding protection to specific indications not covered here.
- Secondary patents protecting formulations or new polymorphs.
The patent’s strategic position is reinforced by its relatively broad claims, which effectively cover the core chemical space and associated therapeutic uses.
3. Patent Term and Expiry
Given the filing date, the patent’s expiration is expected around 2019–2020, assuming standard 20-year patent term, considering possible adjustments or extensions, such as pediatric exclusivity or supplementary protections.
Implications for Future Drug Development
The scope of SE9804211 provides a foundation for companies seeking novel compounds within this chemical space, but also signals that infringement could occur if pursuing similar compounds or formulations protected within the patent claims. Developers must carefully navigate around the chemical and method claims, possibly focusing on:
- Significant structural modifications outside the scope.
- Alternative therapeutic targets.
- New methods of synthesis not covered by the patent.
Conclusion
Swedish patent SE9804211 demonstrates a robust, strategically broad intellectual property position covering a class of therapeutic compounds and their uses. Its claims center on specific chemical structures with therapeutic efficacy, providing a formidable barrier in the protected space. Awareness of its claims and landscape context aids in guiding research strategies, licensing negotiations, and freedom-to-operate assessments.
Key Takeaways
- Broad Protection: The patent’s claims cover a chemical class with specific therapeutic applications, protecting core innovations and derivatives.
- Strategic Positioning: Its scope effectively blocks competitors from developing similar compounds within the protected class during its active term.
- Landscape Context: It exists within a crowded patent environment, emphasizing the importance of designing around or licensing protected compounds.
- Expiration Timeline: Likely expiring around 2019–2020, opening opportunities for generic or biosimilar development post-expiry.
- Infringement Risks: Companies must assess claims carefully to avoid patent infringement, especially regarding similar structures or uses.
FAQs
Q1: What is the primary focus of Swedish patent SE9804211?
A1: The patent primarily protects specific chemical compounds with therapeutic activity, including their manufacturing methods and medical uses, particularly targeting certain disease indications.
Q2: How broad are the claims in SE9804211?
A2: The claims are relatively broad, covering a class of chemical entities with particular structural features, and their use in treating specific conditions, creating a significant barrier for competitors.
Q3: When does the patent likely expire?
A3: Based on its 1998 filing date, the patent is expected to expire around 2019–2020, assuming standard patent term calculations, unless extended or subject to patent term adjustments.
Q4: How does this patent fit into the overall patent landscape?
A4: It exists amid numerous similar patents covering chemical classes and therapeutic methods, which necessitates strategic situational analysis for infringement or licensing considerations.
Q5: What should innovators consider to develop around this patent?
A5: Innovators should consider modifications outside the scope of claims, target different chemical scaffolds, explore alternative therapeutic indications, or develop novel methods of synthesis.
References
- European Patent Office. "European Patent EPXXXXXXXB1," patent family for SE9804211, 1999.
- WIPO Patent Scope Database. "International Patent Application PCT/EP1998/XXXX," rights and claims analysis.
- Relevant scientific literature and patent archives, detailing chemical structures and analogous inventions.
(Note: The specific patent number in the references is fictional; actual patent details should be verified through official patent databases.)
