Obama endorses patent overhaul

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - President Obama signed into law Friday a major overhaul of the nation's patent system designed to ease the way for inventors to bring their products to market.

"We can't afford to drag our feet any longer," the president said.

Passed in a rare display of congressional bipartisanship, the America Invents Act is the first significant change in patent law since 1952. It has been hailed as a milestone that could spur innovation and create jobs.

The bill is meant to ensure that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, now facing a backlog of 1.2 million pending patents, has the money to expedite the application process. It now takes an average of three years to get a patent approved. More than 700,000 current pending applications have yet to be reviewed.

"Somewhere in that stack of applications could be the next technological breakthrough, the next miracle drug," Obama said. "We should be making it easier and faster to turn new ideas into jobs."

The bill passed the House in June and won final approval in the Senate on Sept. 9, by an 89-9 vote.

The patent office, funded entirely by user fees, now will be able to set its own rates, and any money it raises above its annual budget needs will go into a fund that only it can use. The office plans to hire as many as 2,000 more examiners in the coming fiscal year, revamp an outdated information-technology system, and open satellite offices across the country to tap into local workforces.

Obama signed the bill after touring Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, where he examined students' work, including a wheelchair that responds to brain waves.

At one point the president had to step aside as he admired the technological displays. "I don't want a robot to run over me," he said.

The law aims to streamline the patent process and reduce costly legal battles. It was backed by companies including Google Inc. and Apple Inc., as well as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Small-scale inventors are divided on the legislation, with some arguing that it gives an advantage to big corporations.