NEWS & INFORMATION
CHECK
OUT OUR CLIENT'S RECENTLY ISSUED PATENTS !!!!
Andy Gibbs, inventor/
entrepreneur extraordinaire, founder of Patent
Cafe has a FANTASTIC web site that is of interest to inventors.
* FEBRUARY 11 is Thomas A. Edison's
Birthday. Edison was born on February 11, 1847 and died at age 84
on 10/18/31 and was considered the biggest failure at age 22 when his first
invention, the automatic vote counter, a technological success was a marketing
flop. Nobody at the time wanted to speed up the vote counting or
voting process. There were fillibusters who kept a bill on the floor of
the legislature by talking it to death. Today, we get to know who
won or will win an election practically 5 minutes after the polls close!
Edison learned from his first mistake and vowed "never
to invent something unless there is a market for it". After
his other patents totalling 1093, he tried to follow that early lesson
he learned with reasonable success on most of his inventions. Edison's
advice is still good today. Don't invent anything
unless there is a market for it, otherwise you'll be your best customer!!
Find out what the market wants and needs and fill it!!
JOE
2. BUT...don't stop there...IDEAS WITHOUT SOLUTIONS ARE WORTHLESS!! PEOPLE BUY PRODUCTS NOT IDEAS!!
3. SOLVE THE PROBLEM on which your idea is based. For instance, if I have an idea for tripling the growth of tomatoes by feeding the young plants with a 'special' (magic fertilizer), to get BIG tomatoes (as big as grapefruit) ...a GREAT IDEA, BUT, I don't know what that magic fertilizer is...yet...there is NO SOLUTION, hence NO INVENTION. And, IDEAS are NOT PATENTABLE!! So, you must solve the problem and thereby TURN YOUR IDEA INTO AN INVENTION!
4. Always, CHECK THE MARKETPLACE BEFORE YOU GO TOO FAR to see if your invention already exists. Go to stores, consult TV commercials, catalogs, home shopping club shows, flea markets..anywhere your invention may most likely be found. If it does exist, see if you can improve on what is already invented, since most inventions are improvements to already existing products. If not, then INVENT something else.
5. CONDUCT A PATENT SEARCH or hire a patent professional to help you do this and to INTERPRET the meaning and RELEVANCE of the terms, drawings etc. There are over 6 million US issued patents and the patent office considers all patents in the whole world (even old, expired patents) and publications before it issues a patent.
6. FILE A PATENT APPLICATION: If their is a market for your invention and it is NEW, USEFUL, and UNOBVIOUS, among other things, and a patent search does not uncover any prior art damaging to your invention, then, a patent professional such as a patent agent or patent attorney can help you file a patent application for your INVENTION. Note: Although several books can guide you through the basics of the patenting process (like the booklets from the PTO mentioned above and others), do as much as you can on your own, then solicit professional help. When you seek professional help, HAVE A WRITTEN DISCLOSURE OF YOUR INVENTION AND SKETCHES PREPARED FOR REVIEW AT SUCH TIME. Confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements are recommended prior to disclosing your confidential information to product developers and prospective licensees. Patent attorneys and patent agents are bound, by law, by 'attorney/client priviledge' and do not necessarily have to sign such agreeements.
7. You can OFFER YOUR INVENTION FOR
SALE and to potential licensees for a royalty and other compensation
that you agree upon, preferably, AFTER YOU HAVE A PATENT APPLICATION
ON FILE IN THE PTO..ie. patent pending. Most licensees do not
consider unsolicited ideas and practically insist on patented or patent
pending inventions before they will consider them. Also, if you actually
sell or ('just') offer your invention for sale; you have one year from
that date to file a patent application otherwise, you, or no one else can
EVER get a patent on that invention. For instance, you place an 'offer
for sale ad' in a magazine for your invention (before filing for a patent)
on 1/26/99. The 'one-year-clock starts ticking'. Even though
you may never make an actual sale, you only have until 1/26/2000 (1 year)
to file a patent or forever lose your patent rights. So, file a patent
first, and then start your marketing and sales program, otherwise, you
may unknowingly lose your patent rights.
