how does a person go though the steps of recieving a patent.?

Answer 1

Been down that road. A noted author and technical writer says it better than me:

http://www.tinaja.com/glib/casagpat.pdf

Answer 2

NOLO is a great, free informational site. Also, be sure to read what the USPTO (United States Patent & Trademark Office) has to say about patents.

Associations may be a good avenue to explore. These organizations will address many of the thoughts, questions and concerns you'll inevitably have as well as many you haven't anticipated yet. See the source box for some relevant links.

Research, research, research – this cannot be stressed enough. Read as much as you can. Here are some book titles that are relevant:

Getting a Patent:
* Patent It Yourself (11th Edition) by David Pressman
* Patents and How to Get One : A Practical Handbook by U.S. Department of Commerce
* How To Make Patent Drawings Yourself: A Patent It Yourself Companion by Jack Lo
* The Inventor's Notebook: A Patent It Yourself Companion by Fred E. Grissom

There are plenty of free informational resources out there. Check the source box for links to articles.

Hope that helps! I wish you much success & happiness in all your ventures!

Answer 3

First it depends where you are in the USA or outside.

In the USA the rule is the first person to invent in the USA has the patent rights in the USA. Outside the USA the first person to file their patent application is the owner of the patent rights.

I am going to assume you are inside the USA. If so the first thing you need to do is collect all the information you have about what you invented and when you invented it. If you don't have enough information then write it down ASAP and date it.

Next you need $5,000 to hire a patent attorney or patent agent to file a soild patent application. Now I know there are a lot of "self-help" books describing how to file a US patent and some people might tell you about a "provisional" patent application but these two approaches are a waste of time. The patent you will get by doing it yourself will not provide you the legal coverage you need to protect your invention and a "provisional" patent application does nothing for you if you are in the USA because a "regular" or non-provisional patent needs to be filed within one year anyway (as explained below). To be honest if your invention is worth anything then it should be patented by a professional.

So if you are a small inventor in the USA who cannot afford the $5,000 or so needed to file a solid nonprovisional patent application then I would advise that you continue to perfect your invention and then begin to sell it to make money to pay for the patent application. I advise this to small inventors in the USA because they have one-year grace period to file for US patent from the date they first offer to sell their invention or show it to the public. That will give you plenty of time to determine the true value of your invention if you work hard on promoting it.

Unfortunately small inventors outside the USA do not have these luxuries. They need to keep their invention secret until they file their patent application.

Also you do not need to actually make your invention in order to get a patent for the invention. You can file for a so-called "paper patent": because the invention has not been made, it only exists "on paper". Paper patents are available for most inventions, except chemicals and formulae, but there is a downside to them. If, on following your description on how to make the invention, someone proves that it did not work then the paper patent is invalid.

Good Luck

Answer 4

Patenting any invention involves following steps, these are generic but complete for initial understanding:

1. Assess whether your invention is patentable i.e., it is new, involves inventive steps and capable of industrial application.

2. File an application with Provisional/complete Specification accompanied by statutory fees and relevant documents.

3. If it is provisional one, you will get 12 months to file complete specifications.

4. After prescribed period, such application will be published in official journal of Patent office. A request is required to be filed in this regard.

5. Thereafter file a request for official examination of such application.

6. In case of any objection in respect of your application, you are required to remove the same within a period as prescribed by the Patenting Authority under the law of Patent.

7. After removing such objections or successfully counter any opposition, if any, your application will be in order of grant.

8. Apply for getting Patent Certificate.

At every step statutory fees is required to be deposited with the Patent Office. As Mr. Mark D. Fox said, it is advisable to seek the assistance of a Patent Attorney/Agent as Patenting is a complex techno-legal procedure. Also keep in mind the commercialization aspects of your invention because your invention may not be commercially viable despite of being patentable. In this case it is useless to spend a huge sum and time on patenting process.

Good Luck.