Elisha Baity, MGT 386, December 10, 2008
A patent is a property right to the inventor of a product that is issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (www.uspto.gov). The patent grants exclusion of others making, using, offering for sale, or selling an invention in the U.S. or importing the invention into the U.S. (www.uspto.gov). To obtain a patent, an application needs to be filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (www.uspto.gov).
There are twelve major steps in filing a U.S. Patent application. The steps are as follows (Prashker, 2006):
1. Inventor needs to prepare and submit a written disclosure to company managers of the idea or innovation for review and summary evaluation.
2. Company managers need to review the written disclosure for potential commercial worth and value.
3. Patent counsel prepares a summary evaluation of the written disclosure, identifying technical working essentials and to make sure the essentials meet patent merit requirements.
4. Review the summary evaluation and decide patent protection actually needs to be sought
5. Hold a meeting of the inventor/creator(s), patent counsel, and company managers to determine the scope of the idea in commercial and non-commercial terms. Also, at this meeting, there needs to be details of the inventorship, operation limits and optimal use range.
6. Inventor/creator needs to prepare and submit a full written description of the invention, giving sufficient detail, relevant drawings, useful background information, a list of advantages and a list of unexpected benefits.
7. Patent counsel needs to prepare and distribute the first draft of the patent application to the inventor/creator and company managers.
8. The inventor/creator need to review the first draft patent application text and return the revision to the patent counsel
9. Patent counsel needs to comment and make changes on the revised patent application.
10. After the patent counsel has made comments and additional changes and the final draft has been approved, the manuscript is ready to be sent (with formal supporting documentation and requisite fees) to the U.S. Patent Office.
11. The supporting documents are completed by the patent counsel.
12. Final approved application (approved by patent counsel), supporting documents and fees are sent to the U.S. Patent Office. A serial number is issued along with a filing date for patent purposes.
The patent process is somewhat intensive. Therefore, it is important to do a patent search before embarking in the timely and costly process. It is important to make sure no one else has already patented the idea (www.patensearchexpress.com/patent_search.html). Also, a patent search will prevent lawsuits from violating another person’s patent. One can also read similar patents to their product to find ways to improve the design. Also, a patent search helps reduce the risk of another inventor invalidating the product (during the process, the similar patents should be checked to see what they cover). Lastly, a strong patent search will help determine if the idea can be patented and licensed.
www.patensearchexpress.com/patent_search.html. Retrieved December 10, 2008.
Prashker, David (2006). Twelve Steps To Filing A U.S. Patent Application. Ezine Articles. Retrieved December 10, 2008, from www.ezinearticles.com.
www.uspto.gov. Retrieved December 10, 2008.
Showing posts with label patent search. Show all posts
Showing posts with label patent search. Show all posts
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Filing for a patent
Destin Rice, MGT 386, November 23, 2008
If a company depends strictly on the products it sells and/or the services it delivers, the company should consider protecting the physical and intellectual products from potentially falling into the hands of competitors. In order to prevent this occurrence, “The Patent and Trademark Office, which falls under the umbrella of the Department of Commerce, is designed to promote businesses by giving inventors the right to their discoveries” (Holmes, 2003).
Filing for a patent under The Patent and Trademark Office will ensure that competitors don’t use the technology unless they buy the right to use it from [the company]” (Holmes, 2003). The process of filing for a patent includes a process of several steps. First, one must file a Utility Patent Application. “Utility patents may be granted to anyone who invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, article of manufacture, or compositions of matters, or any new useful improvement thereof” (United States, 2008). Other patent classifications include design patents and plant patents, which include applications apart.
A Nonprovisional Utility Patent Application requires that all information be in English on the standard size 8 1/2 x 11inch paper. There must be a left margin of at least 1 inch. “A Nonprovisional Utility Patent application must include a specification, including a claim or claims; drawing, when necessary; an oath or Declaration; and the prescribed filing, search, and examination fees” (United States, 2008).
A transmittal form or transmittal letter that instructs the USPTO as to what actual types of papers are being filed must accompany the completed application. This letter names the applicant, the type of application, the title of the invention, the contents of the application, and any accompanying enclosures” (United States, 2008). A Fee form, application data sheet, and specification sheet should also be included. It is important to note that the title of the invention should appear as the heading on the first page of the specification letter.
Included in the form sheets, data tables, and specification outlines should be cross-references, statements regarding federal sponsorship, a summary of the invention, several different views of the invention, drawings, graphic forms, alternative positions, and legends and symbols.
In order to ensure that you are not infringing upon someone else’s patent, one may consider exploring information on actual patents online. Information on actual patents as well as applications that have recently been filed may be found online. This search is recommended in order to make sure no other company has beaten you to the process and to ensure that your company is a step ahead of the competitor. Each Tuesday, new patents are published by USPTO and may be seen on a variety of web sites. An average of 3500 patents are published every week, all of which have “gone through a strict regime of patent prosecution, and are found to satisfy all patenting conditions” (Free Patents, 2008).
Although it may be intimidating and prove to be a long and tedious process, obtaining a patent is beneficial to companies. The inquiry of the patent may inevitably help the company surpass its competition and bring in additional revenue for longer periods of time.
Citations
Free Patents Online (2004-2008). Retrieved Nov. 21, 2008 from
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/uspatents.html
Holmes, Tamara E. (2003). U.S. Patent and Trademark Office: Protecting Your
Business/Es Property. Retrieved on November 21, 2008 from
http://www.nfib.com/object/3783321.html
United States Patent and Trademark Office (2008). Retrieved November 21, 2008 from
http://www.uspto.gov/main/patents.htm
If a company depends strictly on the products it sells and/or the services it delivers, the company should consider protecting the physical and intellectual products from potentially falling into the hands of competitors. In order to prevent this occurrence, “The Patent and Trademark Office, which falls under the umbrella of the Department of Commerce, is designed to promote businesses by giving inventors the right to their discoveries” (Holmes, 2003).
Filing for a patent under The Patent and Trademark Office will ensure that competitors don’t use the technology unless they buy the right to use it from [the company]” (Holmes, 2003). The process of filing for a patent includes a process of several steps. First, one must file a Utility Patent Application. “Utility patents may be granted to anyone who invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, article of manufacture, or compositions of matters, or any new useful improvement thereof” (United States, 2008). Other patent classifications include design patents and plant patents, which include applications apart.
A Nonprovisional Utility Patent Application requires that all information be in English on the standard size 8 1/2 x 11inch paper. There must be a left margin of at least 1 inch. “A Nonprovisional Utility Patent application must include a specification, including a claim or claims; drawing, when necessary; an oath or Declaration; and the prescribed filing, search, and examination fees” (United States, 2008).
A transmittal form or transmittal letter that instructs the USPTO as to what actual types of papers are being filed must accompany the completed application. This letter names the applicant, the type of application, the title of the invention, the contents of the application, and any accompanying enclosures” (United States, 2008). A Fee form, application data sheet, and specification sheet should also be included. It is important to note that the title of the invention should appear as the heading on the first page of the specification letter.
Included in the form sheets, data tables, and specification outlines should be cross-references, statements regarding federal sponsorship, a summary of the invention, several different views of the invention, drawings, graphic forms, alternative positions, and legends and symbols.
In order to ensure that you are not infringing upon someone else’s patent, one may consider exploring information on actual patents online. Information on actual patents as well as applications that have recently been filed may be found online. This search is recommended in order to make sure no other company has beaten you to the process and to ensure that your company is a step ahead of the competitor. Each Tuesday, new patents are published by USPTO and may be seen on a variety of web sites. An average of 3500 patents are published every week, all of which have “gone through a strict regime of patent prosecution, and are found to satisfy all patenting conditions” (Free Patents, 2008).
Although it may be intimidating and prove to be a long and tedious process, obtaining a patent is beneficial to companies. The inquiry of the patent may inevitably help the company surpass its competition and bring in additional revenue for longer periods of time.
Citations
Free Patents Online (2004-2008). Retrieved Nov. 21, 2008 from
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/uspatents.html
Holmes, Tamara E. (2003). U.S. Patent and Trademark Office: Protecting Your
Business/Es Property. Retrieved on November 21, 2008 from
http://www.nfib.com/object/3783321.html
United States Patent and Trademark Office (2008). Retrieved November 21, 2008 from
http://www.uspto.gov/main/patents.htm
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