Novelty is a patentability test, according to which an invention is not patentable if it was already known before the date of filing, or before the date of priority if a priority is claimed, of the patent application.
The novelty requirement is said to be "absolute" when prior publications anywhere in the world can be taken into account in the examination of this requirement.
Wikipedia article (the free online encyclopedia) reproduced under the terms of the GNU (General Public License) Free Documentation License.
