When Patents Appear in Malaysian Engineering and Technology Research
Malaysian postgraduate researchers in engineering, computer science, biotechnology, pharmaceutical science, and materials science sometimes need to cite patents — either as prior art that their own innovation builds on or responds to, or as technical documentation for specific processes, compounds, or technologies. Patents are legitimate primary sources in technical research and require APA citation just as published journal articles do. Knowing how to cite patents in APA correctly ensures these technical sources are attributed accurately.
The APA 7th Format for Patents
In APA 7th, patents are cited using the inventor’s name as author, the patent number as a key identifier, and the issuing patent office as the publisher. The format is: Inventor Last Name, First Initial. (Year of issue). Title of invention (Patent Number XXXXXXXX). Name of Patent Office. URL if available.
Example: Ismail, N. H., & Wong, K. L. (2022). Biodegradable composite material for bone implant applications (Patent MY-166789-A). Intellectual Property Corporation of Malaysia. https://www.myipo.gov.my/patents/MY166789
For US patents, the patent office is the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). For international PCT patents, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is the issuing body. Always use the patent number in the format used by the issuing office — including any country code prefix such as MY for Malaysian patents or US for American patents.
In-Text Citations for Patents
In-text citations for patents follow the standard APA author-date format: (Ismail & Wong, 2022). If multiple patents by the same inventor in the same year are cited, use the same a/b/c labelling convention as for other sources: (Ismail, 2022a) and (Ismail, 2022b). In your thesis text, briefly identify the patent type when first cited so the reader understands the source nature: “In a Malaysian patent for biodegradable implant materials, Ismail and Wong (2022) describe a process that…”
Citing Patent Applications Versus Granted Patents
A patent application that has been filed but not yet granted is a different type of document from a granted patent, and this distinction matters for citation accuracy and for the technical credibility of your claims. A patent application has not yet cleared the examination process that granted patents have undergone. In your reference list, the descriptor in the title would be accompanied by the application number rather than the patent number, and the status should be noted. In the text, acknowledge that the patent is pending rather than granted: “In a patent application currently under examination, Ahmad (2023) proposes…” Citing patents in APA correctly, with this level of specificity about their status and source, ensures your technical prior art documentation meets the same scholarly standards as your theoretical and empirical citations.
