Seven steps in Zenit

In Zenit your idea becomes a dossier in seven steps, always the same and always in the same order. This page goes through them one by one. For each one it tells you what you see on screen, what you do, what you get and how long it takes.

At the top of the dossier you see a strip with the seven steps: it shows where you are. At every stage the work stops and waits for your confirmation, so nothing happens that you have not seen and approved. You can always close the page and come back later: the dossier stays saved.

If you have not done so yet, read Before you start first.

Questions

What you see. First a page, "Tell the idea". There is a box to write in and, if you like, a place to upload documents. When you have written enough, "Ready: you can open the dossier" appears. Then, once the dossier is open, you see "A few questions to start": a list of questions, each with its own answer box, grouped by subject (structure and components, operation, materials and sizes, conditions of use, variants). A counter at the top tells you how many you have answered.

What you do. Write the idea in your own words, then answer the questions. Answer in ordinary sentences, even short ones. If you do not know something, say so: it is a valid answer. Reread before sending, then press "Send the answers". If you prefer, "Export the questions" creates a document with the questions and the answers given so far, to hand to a colleague or fill in by hand.

What you get. A first picture of the invention, built on your words. The more concrete your answers, the better everything else will work.

How long it takes. A little over a minute to prepare the questions. The time to answer is yours.

Comprehension

What you see. A page titled "Here's what I understood". It holds a summary of your invention in plain words. Below it is the "Core of the invention": the list of technical features that define it, each marked "Core", "Context" or "Suggested". A first preliminary opinion on the idea and a section called "Answers to strengthen" may also appear.

What you do. Read the summary. If something is off, you have two ways to fix it: write a free clarification and press "Re-explain", or strengthen the answers flagged and press "Recompute". Then look at the core. The core is the set of features that really define your invention: the search that follows concentrates on them. You can move a feature between core and context. When everything fits, press "Confirm the core: search the prior art".

What you get. A shared summary of the invention and the list of its features, with the core chosen by you.

How long it takes. Two or three minutes of waiting. After that it depends on how much you want to adjust.

Prior art

What you see. A page, "What the search found". Prior art is everything already made public before the filing (or priority) date: patents and publications. Here you see two lists: "What sets you apart", where your idea differs, and "Where it looks already known", where an already published document says something similar. Each point says which document it comes from. "Where to focus" follows, with the point worth aiming at. Further down are "Reconfirm the core" and a small group of "A few technical questions".

What you do. Read calmly and pay attention to the points marked as already known. With "Open the prior art" you open the full sheet, with the exact sentences of the documents and their references. Then reconfirm the core: if you moved a feature, the search is redone on that new core. The technical questions may look very specific: they are there to write precise, defensible claims, so answer with care. When you are ready, press "Confirm: move to strategy". If you want to rethink something, "Back to comprehension".

What you get. A map of what is already known and of what sets you apart, and a hint on where to concentrate the protection.

Take care in how you read the result. It is always "within the limits of the search carried out". A feature "not found" does not mean "new": it means this search found no match. The absence of results is not proof of novelty. It is a starting point for the conversation with your patent attorney (the professional authorised to represent you before patent offices), not a verdict.

How long it takes. A few minutes of waiting.

Strategy

What you see. The page "Claim strategy". The claims are the text that sets what you protect. Here you still see them as a plan: the independent claims (each of type "Device" or "Method"), the dependent ones that narrow them, "What not to claim as core" and the "Fallback positions", that is, the narrower versions you can fall back on if the broader protection does not hold.

What you do. Read the plan and decide whether it convinces you. If you want to change it you have two ways. You can write a note in the "Note to revise the strategy" box and press "Revise with this note". Or you can handle the plan yourself with "Edit by hand": add an independent or dependent claim, delete one, move it up or down. When you are happy, press "Confirm the strategy and prepare the drawings". "Go back" takes you to the previous step.

What you get. A shared protection plan: what you claim, in what order and with which fallbacks.

How long it takes. A couple of minutes of waiting.

Drawings

What you see. The page "Drawings". The text of the claims, that is the part that says what you protect, is now written in full. Next to it you see the drawings, laid out on sheets like those of a real patent. Figures can be flow charts, block diagrams or technical views. Each important part has a reference number, the same one you will find in the text.

What you do. Look at each figure. You can correct it by hand, changing the names of the steps and adding or removing blocks and links, or describe in words the change you want to see. You can add a figure with "Add a figure". If you want to start over, "Redo the drawings": careful, the hand edits made to those drawings would be lost. If a planned figure is missing, a note tells you so and suggests how to fix it. When the drawings are right, press "Confirm the drawings and write the patent". If you want to review the strategy, "Back to the strategy".

What you get. The text of the claims and a first set of drawings, on which the patent is then written.

How long it takes. A few minutes of waiting, plus the time you spend looking at and adjusting the drawings.

Draft

What you see. A waiting page inviting you to grab a coffee: we are on it. When the draft is ready, "Draft, drawings and audit" appears. At the top is the audit status, the final check of the dossier: "Ready", "Requires revision" or "Blocked". Next to it are three links to open the claims, the drawings and the review. Further down, if there are any, are the "Pending points, optional": questions that only serve to refine the text.

What you do. Have a look at the claims, the drawings and the review. If there are pending points, choose: answer and press "Integrate the answers and rewrite", or leave them. When you are satisfied, press "That's fine as it is: close the dossier". The dossier stays as it is, already complete.

What you get. The full text of the patent: description, claims, drawings and abstract, with a final check (the audit) already done.

How long it takes. The page gives no exact time: grab a coffee. You can also close the page and come back later: the dossier picks up where you left it.

Conclusion

What you see. The finished dossier, with its tabs at the top. From here on there are no more waits or confirmations to give: the dossier is a place to read, correct and export. A link, "Back to the journey", takes you back to the steps.

What you do. Reread everything, tab by tab, and correct what does not convince you. Then export the files and take them to your patent attorney.

What you get. A complete, saved dossier that you can reopen whenever you like from the Desk.

How long it takes. As long as you need to reread and refine it.

Inside the finished dossier

The tabs of the dossier show the same information from different points of view. You find them in the order below.

Summary. The starting point: the technical summary of your idea, together with the questions you were asked and your answers. It is the memory of how the patent came about. If something looks wrong further on, the cause is usually here.

Features. The list of the technical elements of the invention, one by one: a component, a sensor, a step of a process. The claims are built by combining these features. Each one shows its status and the sentence that supports it.

Prior art. The prior-art search: the outcome of the comparison, feature by feature, and the documents that touch your idea, with the exact sentences, translated where needed. Remember that the outcome is always "within the limits of the search carried out" and that "not found" does not mean "new".

Claims. The text that defines what you protect: one independent claim and several dependent ones that narrow it. Click the number of a claim to open its card, with context and explanation, and to correct its text.

Drawings. The drawings, laid out on patent sheets. Open a figure to edit it: rename the steps, add or remove blocks and links, change the view, or describe the change in words. The sheets are laid out again on their own.

Editor. The text of the patent, to edit directly in the format in which it will be filed. The review comments appear next to the paragraph or claim they refer to. At every save the dossier is checked again.

Review. The checks on the dossier. There is a critical opinion from a simulated expert, which you start on request and which is advice only: it blocks nothing. And there is a compliance check, the only one that can block the export: every claim must be supported in the text, with consistent references and terms. If the dossier is blocked, at the bottom you find the "Blocking issues" that say what to fix.

Presentation. A presentation report that tells the story of the dossier in plain words, meant for whoever has to show it to a client: what the invention is, what was searched and found, what sets it apart, the strategy in brief, the open points and the next steps. It is prepared only when you ask, with "Prepare the report", and is downloaded as DOCX.

Export. The files to download. At the top you see whether the export is "allowed" or "blocked". Pressing "Generate the files" gives you the patent application, to share with a patent attorney, and the full dossier, for internal use.

What you can edit and what you can export

Editing. You can correct the claims, the text of the patent and the drawings. Every hand edit stays yours: we keep it as you wrote it, without correcting it. If you want a second look, ask for a review. After every save the dossier is checked again, and if the text has changed since the review, the Editor tells you.

Exporting. The main format is DOCX, the Word format. You get two documents: the patent application alone, to take to your attorney, and the full dossier with search and traceability, for internal use. The presentation report is downloaded separately, also as DOCX. The formats are Word, and PDF when available.

After the seven steps

The dossier is a draft to review with a patent attorney before you file. It is not legal advice and does not promise that the patent will be granted or valid. The prior-art search holds "within the limits of the search carried out" and the absence of results is not proof of novelty. To know what not to do before filing, read Before you start.

Sources

1. Art. 54 EPC, Novelty: https://www.epo.org/en/legal/epc/2020/a54.html (read on 2026-10-05)
2. Italian IP Code (D.Lgs. 30/2005), art. 46, paragraph 2 (Novelty), Normattiva: https://www.normattiva.it/uri-res/N2Ls?urn:nir:stato:decreto.legislativo:2005-02-10;30~art46 (read on 2026-10-05)