Re: bowen labs receives patent
a_weisman_at_yahoo.com
Date: 01/11/05
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Date: 11 Jan 2005 06:45:08 -0800
zipzip wrote:
> the awaiting patent from bowen on the q-rib test was approved by the
us
> patent office
>
>
http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=6838247.WKU.&OS=PN/6838247&RS=PN/6838247
>
> a patent only means they have the rights to the test, not that is
> approved for diagnosis by any state or federal agencies.
> but interesting news all the same.
Yes a patent only means that the inventor has gone through a process
intended to establish the uniqueness of their invention. The patent
office doesn't even really certify that (or there'd be no disputes in
patent litigation, or many fewer). The patent does not establish that
the invention works (many inventions are patented that never work), or
that it is safe or effective, and in this case does not establish the
validity of the test itself.
And personally I think the test has about zero validity.
Patent FAQ's > About Patents
General FAQ's regarding the background of the patent system.
0.1 What is a patent?
A patent for an invention is the grant of a property right to the
inventor, issued by the Patent and Trademark Office. The term of a new
patent is 20 years from the date on which the application for the
patent was filed in the United States or, in special cases, from the
date an earlier related application was filed, subject to the payment
of maintenance fees. US patent grants are effective only within the US,
US territories, and US possessions. Under the 2000 AIPA rules, patent
terms may be adjusted. Refer to the 20 Year Patent Term Adjustment FAQs
for more information.
A patent allows one to prohibit others from making, using, selling,
offering for sale or importing the invention into the United States for
a period of up to twenty years from the date of filing the application.
0.2 What technology is protectable under a patent?
The invention must be new, useful, and non-obvious. Typically
inventions are aesthetic designs, functional items, functional methods,
or asexually reproduced plants.
0.3 How long is a patent valid?
Patents issuing prior to June 8, 1995 can last up to 17 years from the
date of issuance. Patents resulting from applications that were pending
on June 8, 1995 can last up to the longer of: 17 years from the date of
issuance or 20 years from the date of filing. Patents resulting from
applications filed after June 8, 1995 can last up to 20 years from the
date of filing. Under the 2000 AIPA rules, patent terms may be
adjusted. Refer to the 20 Year Patent Term Adjustment FAQs for more
information.
0.4 What competition does a patent prevent?
Patents provide the right to exclude others from making, using,
selling, offering for sale or importing the invention described in the
claims. This is perhaps the most powerful monopoly legally obtainable
for products. See the 18 month pre-grant publication FAQs for
information relating to infringement that occurs after your patent
application is published.
0.5 What is the geographic scope of a patent?
A patent is national in scope. A United States Patent protects the
inventor's product or technology in the United States. Patents can also
be obtained separately in most foreign countries.
0.6 Can one infringe a patent without having knowledge of the patent?
Yes. Infringement occurs when one practices the invention described in
the claims. Knowledge, or lack thereof, is generally irrelevant to
issues of liability. Independent development is not a defense.
Knowledge of the patent by the infringer, however, can be relevant to
damages. Many companies do new product clearance searches to avoid law
suits. Under the new 18 month publication rules, inventors can receive
a statutory royalty payment for infringement if infringement occurs
between the publication date and patent issuance. See the 18 month
pre-grant publication FAQs.
0.7 Can I keep some information about my invention a secret?
There is a requirement that the invention be completely disclosed.
Failure to disclose will invalidate the resulting patent. One cannot
maintain information important to the patent as trade secret if the
information was known as of the filing date. There are significant
changes in the treatment of pending patent applications that inventors
must become familiar with, namely the publishing in the public domain
of most all patent applications 18 months after the claimed priority
date. See the 18 month pre-grant publication FAQs.
0.8 What rights does a patent provide?
The right to prohibit (see previous question) does not automatically
include the right for the inventor to make, use, sell, import and/or
offer the invention for sale. Anyone is free, however, to engage in
such activities unless there is a law prohibiting it. The prohibitory
laws of greatest concern include FDA regulations, firearm and
explosives regulations, and patent laws whereby one's invention
improves on another's patented invention.
0.9 What do the terms "patent pending" and "patent applied for" mean?
They are used by a manufacturer or seller of an article to inform the
public that an application for patent on that article is on file in the
Patent and Trademark Office. The law imposes a fine on those who use
these terms falsely to deceive the public.
0.10 Why does the law recognize patents?
Patents were designed to reward persons for particular benefits
provided to the government and the people with a monoply. Originally,
the "benefits" was losely defined and the monopoly was not well
connected to the benefit provided. In time the "benefit" to be offered
became more narrowly defined to require a teaching about something
unknown. The monopoly offered as a reward also became more closely
related to the benefit. The inventor received a limited monoply on the
subject matter of the teaching (i.e., the invention as described in the
claims). The impact of these events still permiate patent law today.
0.11 How was the duration of a patent determined?
Utility patents, prior to Gatt, lasted 17 years from date of issuance.
The master-apprentice relationship was a seven year relationship.
Custom had it that when an apprentice learned something from his master
that was not otherwise known in the trade (i.e., an invention) the
apprentice would not practice it for two apprentice periods following
the end of his apprenticeship. The master could have developed the
invention at the start or at the end of the apprenticeship, making the
average time in the middle. Adding half the existing apprenticeship
period with the two subsequent apprenticeship periods (3-1/2 + 7 + 7)
gave 17-1/2years of a monopoly for the inventor. For convenience sake,
the half year was dropped, giving a 17 year monopoly. Design and plant
patents lasted 14 years from the date of issuance (7+7). Gatt changed
the durations which are now based upon a compromise of time periods
from the contracting governments.
0.12 How important was patent law during the formation of the United
States of America?
The significance of patent laws was recognized by the drafters of the
United States Constitution. Article I, Section 8, Clause 8 states: The
Congress shall have power ...To promote the progress of science
[patent] and useful arts [copyright], by securing for limited times to
authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings
and discoveries.Promulgation power for most federal law, including
trademark law, is not seperately set forth in the Constitution like
patent and copyright law, but rather is promulgated under the
interstate commerce clause.Today, many people would cite the United
States patent laws as the reason why the United States is a world
leader in technology. The European Patent Office (EPO) and Japanese
Patent Office have similar strong patent systems.
0.13 Did the United States Patent Office believe that all inventions
would be uncovered?
Originally, it was believed that there was less than a thousand
inventions that could ever be discovered. The number fluctuated
somewhat and eventually was abandoned. One interesting result of the
belief that we still enjoy today is found in the Library of
Congress.The patent office originally required the submission of a
working miniature model. Each of these models were to be donated to the
Library of Congress, where they can still be found today. The reasoning
behind such requirement is so that the Library of Congress would hold
an example of every invention. This practice of submitting miniature
models was discountinued as the estimated number of total inventions
continued to increase and as space decreased.
0.14 How much does a patent Cost?
The 'cost' of a patent can be divided into two parts, generally: (1)
Patent application / filing and prosecution costs, and (2) US Patent
Office filing / issuance and maintenance fees.
(1) The preparation of a patent, and the prosecution of a patent after
application (responding to the Patent Office Office Actions) can be
performed by the inventor, although the Patent Cafe recommends the use
of a qualified patent professional - Patent Attorney or Patent Agent.
The total costs vary according to the complexity of a patent and the
fee schedule of the patent professional, but the inventor should assume
that the total Professional costs up to and including issuance will be
in the $3,000 - 8,000 range. Patents can be filed for about $2,100, but
this is only the application. Don't be fooled into thinking that this
is the total cost of the patent.
(2) Patent Office Fees below are for small entities (Independent
Inventors and Companies with less than 500 employees) and are in
addition to the Professional Preparation Fees in (1) above). See the
USPTO for other fees.
Patent Application (Filing) Fees (to submit your patent application)
for Small Entities
Basic Patent filing fee - Utility $355.00
Design Patent filing fee $160.00
Plant Patent filing fee $245.00
Provisional Patent Application filing fee $75.00
Patent Issuance Fees (paid after Patent Office approves patent)
Utility Patent issue fee $620.00
Design Patent issue fee $220.00
Plant Patent issue fee $300.00
Patent Maintenance Fees (to keep your patent in force)
Due at 3.5 years after issuance of patent $425.00
Due at 7.5 years after issuance of patent $975.00
Due at 11.5 years after issuance of patent $1,495.00
0.15 How can I tell if the Patent Attorney / Agent I'm talking to is
legitimate / honest?
Check the US Patent Office's current registry to see if the patent
attorney or patent agent is listed: Roster of Patent Agents and
Attorneys Remember, there is a difference between 'legitimate' and
'good'. Ask the provider for references of other inventor clients, as
well as for copies of patents they have filed in your field (for
instance, certain patent attorneys specialize in Chemical Patents,
Software Patents, etc. - so find the one with technical expertise in
your patent technology)
0.16 I have an IDEA; what should I do next?
Before an inventor begins spending money on the patent process, they
must first verify the marketability or feasibility of the invention.
Way too often inventors go down the road of inventing 'just knowing
their invention will sell' - but not having the desire to see whether
it won't sell. So the recommended steps to proceeding with the
invention process are: (1) begin an inventor's journal and record in
writing everything having to do with the invention, (2) complete some
good market research and verify the marketability, and (3) begin the
patent process. For a good step-by-step reference, see the Inventor's
Starting Point.
- Next message: lyme_lighthouse: "[BLINK 01/11/2005] IF YOU ARE NEW TO LYME..."
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