I need help with easy and affordable ways to obtain a patent on a new invention I have. I need FREE info.?

Question

Trying to find motivotional and good info on getting a patent and the right steps to getting my idea on the market. Any ideas for me and how to budget and steps to take.

Answer 1

Motivational material, and information leading to a good business decision can often be at odds. This is just something to keep in mind. There are many rah rah firms that will take your money, and give you a cheerleading session, but, they probably will not help very much as far as getting your product to market.

As far as a patent goes, I'll assume that you have already made the business case that a patent is a good idea. For the vast majority of products, it may not be such a good idea for a wide number of reasons, not the least of which is whether you have the resources to protect the patent, should it be awarded.

The next thing to take a look at is whether your idea is unique, and whether there are any existing devices currently like it. You can do a search at the USPTO website, or even on google patents. What you are looking for beyond identical descriptions, are any claims which may apply to your invention. This is something you can do yourself for the most part, before even consulting an attorney. There is no point in spending $300 for an hour of attorney time, if the item is already patented, only to have the attorney show you something you could find on your own. Now, it may well be something close to your idea is patented, and perhaps even some of the claims would be identical. This does not always preclude going forward, but it certainly complicates things.

There is a fairly decent book call from Patent to Profit you may find helpful. I don't agree with all of it, but there are some decent things to consider.

And lastly, exercise extreme caution when dealing with any invention firms. I highly suggest you look at www.inventored.com as well as the ftc links he provides. Many folks have been scammed, so this is an area of concern. Otoh, such firms are very motivational.

One thing I learned the hard way is this. If you ask people, hey, what do you think, they will sing praises much of the time. If you ask them, will you part with your money, you will get a better answer. Another thing, is whether the idea captures folks pocket from the get go. If they see it, and say, I gotta have me one of these now, it is a good sign.

Answer 2

You should write and outline the development of the product, and perhaps a business plan if you intend on making a business out of this. If this idea is truly unique, patent it.

1) http://simplepatents.com - they charge a small fee to search a patent, but this will save you headaches if someone else already conceived of your idea.

2) http://legalzoom.com - File for at LEAST a provisional patent. This gives you the benefit of putting your foot down as first to file, giving you the benefit of time to create a full patent in the meanwhile.

3) Fine investors, creators, business people. Talk to marketing experts, business experts, and develop a strategy as to how you would sell your product. You can find people on elance.com, guru.com, businessplanposting.com (for investors) and linkedin.com for other business professionals.

Be sure to have filed a provisional patent before telling them your full idea... they can steal it!

Answer 3

you prefer a prosperous sucke . . . I recommend sponsor. here is what you do. You improve a internet site which will attain to all corners of the globe. ninety 9% of the human beings that bypass on your internet site won't in any respect return returned. Of the the rest a million%, a million/2 of them will prefer to fire you out of a cannon crammed with marmalade on your screwball innovations. Then we are all the way down to the proportion of human beings who is composed of a small team which will placed money into any damn element. Out of those 17,500,000 peeps, you purely choose one. sturdy success. i'm going to have a grande steak puree, carry the gristle.