• A paper patent may receive less protection under the law than a patent granted for a device that is actually used in industry. As a prior-art reference, a paper patent may carry less weight with examiners than one for an invention that has been commercially exploited because it may suggest that the invention did not work as claimed. [Cases: Patents 172. C.J.S. Patents §§ 283, 306.]
paper patent
A patent granted for a discovery or invention that has never been used commercially.