Question for those that have experience or knowledge regarding patents: How do you check if an idea has already been patented? Do you have to check country or global patents? What if patents are in-progress? Would you still find them? If there is no idea for the patent, how do you go about patenting it? What kind of patents are out there and how long does it give you the right to your idea? Any books to recommend? How do you go about patenting an idea and how specific do you have to be?
I do know, however, that this is what patent lawyers are for. If you’re serious about getting something patented, you should hire one. They aren’t cheap, but if you had to basically be both an engineer and a lawyer, you’d charge for your services too.
I went through the proces of filing 3 patent applications in 2001 for some work I did at a high-tech startup. You can search for both granted patents and pending applications here: http://www.uspto.gov/patft/index.html
It can take a long time - none of the ones we have filed have been either granted or rejected yet.
If you are serious about filing an application, it’s worth a brief chat with an IP lawyer to be clear on the disclosure rules and application timetable. There were rules on what we could and could not say in public (print, talks, unencrypted email), and some rules on when we had to file the application.
Patents are country-specific, and the rules and timing vary between here and Europe (for example).
Not only do you have to have an idea, but to be patentable, the idea has to have been “reduced to practice” - you at least have to have a functioning prototype that embodies and demonstrates the key claims you make. You also have to include a description of a method that can be used so that this can be reproduced.
thank you very much for your reply, that was helpful. I will check out the link you provided and probably talk to an IP lawyer. your response was very much appreciated.
the most comprehensive book out there on the topic that i have seen, even for those that will be hiring a lawyer. understandable and nearly essential to understand the intricacies of what it really takes to do it successfully:
‘patent it yourself’ by david pressman
but before you spend the big bucks, i would very highly recommmend you also peruse:
All those ideas for nuclear powered cars/planes/etc that the guys who worked on the the H-bomb project for the US during the 1940’s comes to mind ( if my recollection of Feynmans autobiography is correct ).
If you are serious about it, you will get a patent attorney. What you are really paying him for is the non-infringment letter. Cuz if your idea is really good, the fight is protecting it, not getting the patent in the first place.
You can do a search in the patent database at the European Patent Office here: http://ep.espacenet.com
Patents are online as PDF’s.
This is also a great resource if you want to find out what interesting new bike parts different companies are introducing later. Just serch for Shimano, Campganolo, SRAM etc. You can read about Shimano’s new electric group for example.
Try this site: www.freepatentsonline.com As the name implies, it’s a free patent database searching site. It covers US patents and applications, and a sizeable range of European patents as well. For a free service, it’s pretty decent. It’s not a bad place to get started.
I’m a patent attorney. THis is a very very basic patent 101 How do you check if an idea has already been patented? - You can check in the US by going to the US Patent and Trademark Office web site http://patft1.uspto.gov/netahtml/PTO/search-adv.htm If you wanted to search for any patents that Trek might own that ahs a claim that mentions seat you can search as follows: AN/Trek and ACLM/(seat and bicycle) The AN refers to the assignee which in this case is Trek and ACLM is for searching anything in a claim and in this case it is (seat and bicycle). Claims are what define the metes and bounds of the patent and what the inventor is staking out as his invention. Do you have to check country or global patents? Yes if you want to patent in that country as well as finding out if your invention was published in a foreign country and therefore became public information to anyone here in this country and therefore would bar you from getting one here. What if patents are in-progress? Would you still find them? You need to search the published applications. These are published by the US government patent office after 18 months or so from the filing date. However, if the person seeking a patent promises he is not going to seek a patent elsewhere where they publish the applications then he can request a no publication and you wouldn’t know about it until it issues. If there is no idea for the patent, how do you go about patenting it? If you mean that no one has thought about such an invention and has not published such an idea or sought a patent then you can apply for a patent. As long as it is functional and has some utility and is novel (i.e., no one else has thought of it) and it is not obvious (i.e., it is not something that if you combined A+B you would get your invention) then you can seek a utility patent. What kind of patents are out there and how long does it give you the right to your idea? There are patents on anything and everything. People have come to me with some far fetched ideas (Have you ever heard of the singing epitaph on a tombstone? or the rectal rotor router for when you are plugged up?). You have to ask yourself though if after the time and expense (greater than $10K in a lot of cases) you will see a return on your investment. If all you want is a plaque on a wall with your patent certificate save your money or donate to a charity. A patent is good for 20 years from the filing date. And if you are serious consult an attorney. Any books to recommend? Go to the US PTO website. They have some good guidance for the solo inventor How do you go about patenting an idea and how specific do you have to be? You need to specify the preferred embodiment of your invention. You need to specify in detail all about the invention without keeping any element a secret. If you do not do so you risk a rejection and a good chance you won’t get the patent. Remember the patent gives you the right to prevent others from practicing your invention for the life of the patent (It does not give you the right to do so however as there may be other patents blocking you from doing so). After the patent expires the world is entitled to it. Coke thought it better to keep it a secret. They have lucked out that no one has got the formula after all these years. Or retro analyzed it to get the ingredients.