Patent Your Invention

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Your preliminary investigation will reveal whether or not your invention is new. It will also show just how similar your bright idea is to others in the same category. You should explain to the practitioner any features of your invention that you believe are new and important, and how each of them works. He or she must know such things in order to find the prior patents you'll need to see.

There's a chance that, once the search has gone this far, you'll discover your invention to be unpatentable or so close to other inventions that patenting simply wouldn't be worthwhile. In that case you'll be saved the costs of preparing and filing a patent application. On the other hand, the evidence you turn up may show how, by changing a feature in your invention, you can make it different from others and thereby patentable. Last of all, you might even locate expired patents that look like potential moneymakers. Except In rare cases, patents aren't renewable after their initial term ... and some no-longer protected inventions, which may have been developed before a market existed for them, could be very salable today!

COMPARING AND DECIDING AGAIN

Once you've compared your invention with the patents located in the search, you'll have to determine-again, perhaps with the help of a patent practitioner whether you should go ahead and seek protection. (Remember that you cannot get a patent that will prevent people from using previously patented inventions, and that you can get a patent only on those features of your invention that are different from all others.)

If you decide to proceed, you'll be well advised to retain a registered agent or attorney to prepare your application and file it with the PTO. (Of course, you do have the legal right to represent yourself ... but there's really no substitute for professional assistance and experience at this stage.) Give him or her all the useful information you can. Then, once the application is filed, be sure the practitioner keeps you informed of its progress and helps you with any further developments.

As of this writing, the average costs of going after a patent include a basic filing fee of $65 plus additional charges that depend upon the claims you make for your invention. Then, if your patent is granted-a process that could take years, incidentally you must pay an issuance fee of $100 plus a printing fee of approximately $70. Added to this, of course, are the expenses charged by your patent practitioner-if you have one for the search, for writing the application specifications and claims, and for defending your claims against rejection by the PTO. Such costs are, of course, in addition to those you may have incurred in the creation and development of your invention. Unfortunately, there's just no fast, easy, and inexpensive way to obtain a patent.

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