Patent model
On July 31, 1790 inventor Samuel Hopkins of Pittsford, Vermont became the first person to be issued a patent in the United States. His patented invention was an improvement in the "making of Pot Ash by a new apparatus & process." These earliest patent law required that a working model of each invention be produced in miniature.
Australian patent law
Section 51(xviii) of the Constitution of Australia gave the new federal parliament the right to legislate with regard to "copyrights, patents of invention and designs, and trade marks". The first federal legislation dealing with patents was the "Patents Act 1903", passed by the first Deakin Government. The act transferred the administration of the state patents acts to the federal government with effect from 1 June 1904, and established the Australian Patent Office (APO). The first patent was filed with the office on 13 February 1904. The APO is the direct predecessor of IP Australia, the current Australian government agency responsible for patents. The original 1903 act has been replaced on two occasions – the Menzies Government's "Patents Act 1952" and the Hawke Government's "Patents Act 1990".