1. SHOULD I FILE MY PATENT APPLICATION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE
Yes!
There are so many reasons for this.
A big one – someone else might file a patent application for the exact same idea as you. Guess what? He or she might get the patent, not you.
Second, the USPTO measures the patentability of an invention based on all prior publications. We call this “prior art.” It includes everything that’s ever been published or patented, made for sale in the entire world.
Guess what? Prior art is always increasing. Today has less prior art than tomorrow. Tomorrow will have less prior art than a month from now.
Prior art can even be your own invention if you’re not careful with whom you told.
2. SHOULD I PUBLISH YOUR IDEA ON THE INTERNET BEFORE FILE A PATENT APPLICATION BEFORE PUBLISHING YOUR
No!
Prior art for patents is not just printed publications. It also includes internet disclosures and statements made for fundraising.
Hey, I get it. You’re proud of your work and want the world to know. But this is a very serious problem.
Your own disclosure can bar you from getting a patent if you wait too long. This actually includes disclosures made for fundraising. This leads me to another lesson:
3. WHAT ABOUT FUNDRAISING?
You must maintain confidentiality of your idea. This includes non-disclosure agreements. If your potential investor won’t sign it, then talk to a patent attorney.
Or better yet, get that patent application filed ahead of time.
4. DO I NEED A PROTOTYPE?
Yes, you probably do. I cannot say that everyone needs a prototype.
But you will likely need one. So talk to a patent attorney.
5. DO I NEED A PRIOR ART SEARCH?
Yes, I will say that in the absolute sense. Everyone needs a prior art search prior to investing a large amount of money in a patent application and fees.
You absolutely need to know what else is there.
Need to get one? Talk to a patent attorney.
6. WILL I NEED TO MODIFY YOUR PROTOTYPE?
Yes, you probably will.
I cannot say that in the absolute sense.
But we want your invention to be as distinct from the prior art as possible.
So talk to a patent attorney.
7. WHAT ABOUT UTILITY OR DESIGN APPLICATIONS?
I cannot answer that without knowing your story. The answer requires a factual analysis that depends on:
- The scope of the prior art for your invention
- Your budget
- Your timeframe
In general, design patent applications are faster and less expensive to obtain. But they are limited in their claimed scope.
8. WHAT IF I WANT TO KEEP MY INVENTION SECRET?
That’s a great question. You absolutely can, but now we’re talking about trade secrets and not patents.
In fact, once you start using your invention to sell products, that could bar you from getting a patent later on.
For help, talk to a patent attorney.
9. WHAT ABOUT PROVISIONAL OR NON-PROVISIONAL PATENT APPLICATIONS?
Short answer – Yes.
What are these?
Consider a provisional application like hiring a person to wait in line for you while you spend your time improving your invention.
A provisional patent application does not mature into a patent, but allows you one year to file a formal non-provisional application.
I almost always advise getting a provisional patent application. The reason being to allow time to sort through the prior art and figure out a way to design-around it if we need to.
10. WHAT ABOUT COSTS?
Short answer – talk to an attorney.
Slightly longer answer – different patent applications require different amount work.
Plus, filing a patent application is not the end. You will likely receive office actions, which typically reject your patent application for various reasons. You must respond to them or your patent application well be abandoned.
The USPTO has lots of fees. Including, patent maintenance fees. Say what? I have to pay money to keep my patent alive. Yes, that’s exactly it.
Everyone has a different invention and a different budget. So please talk to a patent attorney.
11. CAN I LOSE MY PATENT?
Yes!
Just because you have a patent, doesn’t mean it’s bullet proof. A court can invalidate a patent for many reasons. This I discuss in the Litigation Post. (link)
12. STILL GOT QUESTIONS?
Confused by the vocabulary dump? This is a lot to take in.
These are highly generalized questions and answers directed to the novice entrepreneur and inventor.
If you’re serious about getting a patent, then you should have a lot more questions.
So let’s talk.