What does 'suppression' mean in the context of 102(g)?

In the context of 102(g) of the U.S. patent law, 'suppression' refers to withholding public disclosure of the invention. This provision addresses situations where one party may have reduced the likelihood of others knowing about the invention, usually by not disclosing it even after the invention has been made. Suppression means that the inventor does not make the invention available to the public, which can have implications for the inventor's rights and the ability of others to subsequently claim the same invention.

It's important to understand that 102(g) relates to prior invention and priority among inventors when determining who has the right to patent an invention. When an inventor has suppressed the invention, they cannot assert their rights against another party who may have invented the same or similar concept, because the suppression denies the public the needed knowledge of the invention, thus impacting the ability of others to access or build upon that invention in a timely manner.

Through this lens, it becomes clear that the other options, which include delaying the filing of a patent application, filing multiple applications for the same invention, or reducing the scope of the claims, do not accurately capture the meaning of suppression as it relates to the context of 102(g) and its focus on public disclosure