Here are the basics on patents and copyrights (USPTO) every small business owner should know.
A patent excludes others from making, using, offering for sale, or importing an invention or design, within a limited territorial scope. If a patent is granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), the patent owner has the exclusive right to make, sell, manufacture, and import the claimed invention or design. This essentially gives the owner a limited monopoly to profit off of their invention.