If you do not do this, can the company claim the invention or innovation as their own? (law.stackexchange.com)
Ooty is an old British hill station at over 2,000 metres (once known as «snooty Ooty» and which claims the invention of snooker), the terminus of the Nilgiri railway. (vjv.com)
It doesn't commit you to a formal patent application, and doesn't result in a patent, but it does allow you to claim your invention so that you can do a full patent application later. (inc.com)