“[A] composition of matter describes what most people imagine to be the goal of the typical laboratory inventor, since it is usually a new chemical invention, although it can be any composition of materials, not limited solely to chemicals.” Arthur R. Miller & Michael H. Davis, Intellectual Property in a Nutshell 21 (2d ed. 1990).
composition of matter
composition of matter. Patents. One of the five types of patentable statutory subject matter, consisting of com-binations of natural elements whether resulting from chemical union or from mechanical mixture, and whether the substances are gases, fluids, powders, or solids. • This classification includes chemical compounds such as drugs and fuels, physical products such as plastics and particleboard, and new life forms made by genetic engineering. Its subject matter is always the substance itself, rather than the form or shape. — Often shortened to composition. [Cases: Patents 14. C.J.S. Patents § 22.]
