Re: I have a patent!

On Apr 30, 12:03 am, John Larkin
<jjlar...@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
http://www.google.com/patents?id=MNd3AAAAEBAJ&dq=7019307

What's weird is that, until today when I discovered it by accident, I
never knew it existed.

Hi All,

Just wanted to share what little I have learned about the patent
process over the past week. Obviously, I am not a patent attorney, so
standard disclaimer applies...

Let us suppose that you have been working on the NBT (Next Big Thing)
for a long time, and you're finished with it and ready to sell it, but
there are 25 patentable ideas represented by it (because it's Big).

At a typical cost of $10,000 just for the filing, excluding
prosecution, which is the dance that attorney does wiith examiner when
claims are rejected/etc., you're looking at $250,000. Plus, you might
not be able to wait the 18-months-to-5-years to get the patents.

The people at the USPTO have considered this dilema ad nauseum, and
arrived at the Provisional Patent program:

http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/provapp.htm

I will not regurgitate the rules here. You can read them on link
above. What I will say is that, if you have $110US, and you are
confident that your NBT will give you financial leverage within 12
months after release, you will be in a good position.

You would take your ideas, no matter how many, and describe them in
sufficient detail to satisfy USC 35 Section 112 "to allow someone
skilled in the art to be able to produce, yada..". It does not matter
if your document is 800 pages long, but it must contain diagrams or it
will be rejected. You also must pay $135 for each 50 sheets beyond the
first 100 sheets, so 800 sheets would cost total of $110US + 7*$135US.
Add a standard cover***, $110US fee, and postcard if you are
impatient. Send this to USPTO. The receiving office (RO) will open
packet, see the postcard and know that you are impatient, note the
date of reception, stamp it with USPTO seal, and send you the back, at
which point you can claim Patent Pending status and start selling your
product(s). The Provisional Patent application will be tucked away for
12 months, during which you must either convert it to a non-
provisional application, or file separate non-prov (typical)
application and reference the prov application in the non-prov
application. You can also file electronically.

Of course, if you do not file within this 12-month period, the USPTO
destroys the prov application. If you have been selling product during
this time, and you do not follow through with non-prov application,
you will have violated the no-disclosure rule for all countries
besides USA. So you had better be sure 12 months is enough if you
expose your products by selling.

When you file non-prov application, and reference prov application, it
will likely happen that you have violated restriction on election of
species:

http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/documents/0800_809_02_a.htm

....which says that you cannot be greedy and try to squeeze multiple
distinct ideas into one non-prov application. That's OK. The people at
the USPTO are quite aware that this inventors do squeeze many ideas
into a prov application, and they will NOT penalize you with the prov
application if you do this, because in fact, they do not even examine
the prov application until it is referenced by a non-prov application,
at which point, the examiner will simply tell you to "chop it up".

What does this all mean? It means that if you have a system-oriented
idea, one that has potentially disruptive market appeal, but contains
a plethora of patentable subsystems (like Goddard's jet engine), too
many for you to afford (say 10), you have an option:

Pay $110, sell your product, and find the remaining $99,890 in 12
months on merit of your idea.

On the matter of international patents:

There is the Patent Cooperation Treaty [PCT]:

http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/

As you know, inventors all over the world got tired of getting ripped
off by people whom they could not choke for the large body of water
(or border fence) separating them. Enter the PCT. Countries agreed to
following the Golden Rule:

"I shall not let mine citizens steal from yours if you will not let
yours steal from mine."

Before the Provisioinal Patent program, there was no recourse.
Exposure in the USA without a patent meant the automatic surrender of
all rights in non-USA countries, despite the 1-year grace period in
the USA after exposure, which, btw, is still in effect. But with prov
application, situation is just too cool!!!: The non-prov gives right
to file a PCT application ($4000US+) within 18 months, with the
protection afforded by having made claim with USPTO. Then one simply
files in each country individually. Most countries honor the PCT.

-Le Chaud Lapin-
.

Quantcast