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Patent Application Process

Bryan James

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Hey everybody, I recently hired a mechanical engineer to draw up some blueprints and images of an invention that I came up with that would eventually be licensed (or sold outright), and now onto the patent application process (utility patent; I don't need a provisional patent because nothing will need to be changed in the design). Should I hire a patent attorney/agent, or no? Do any of you folks have any experience with filing patent applications? I understand the application process is very precise. Any advice would be welcomed. Thank you.
 
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Empires

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File a provisional patent first. It gives you a year cushion while you figure this out. It costs $65 and can be put together yourself. When I filed my provisional patent application I had a patent attorney look it over and make edits and improvements.

However small the risk, there is still a chance every day that someone files before you. The best patent application is the one submitted yesterday.

I can't speak for filing a utility patent because I haven't got there yet but I would recommend a patent attorney 100%.
 

Lucky Lu

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For an utility patent it is best to use a specialized attorney. They know the way around the language to use in order to have you better covered against copies or "inspired on" products. Overall the cost is worthy and pays itself. What Empires suggested about a provisional patent is not a bad idea and in fact you can file it using the popular legal websites on the market or directly.

Best of luck!
 

Patrickg

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Hey everybody, I recently hired a mechanical engineer to draw up some blueprints and images of an invention that I came up with that would eventually be licensed (or sold outright), and now onto the patent application process (utility patent; I don't need a provisional patent because nothing will need to be changed in the design). Should I hire a patent attorney/agent, or no? Do any of you folks have any experience with filing patent applications? I understand the application process is very precise. Any advice would be welcomed. Thank you.

I would second the notion to do a provisional. I file mine on my own. And it’s easy. Just follow the steps.

One thing I learned about provisional patents is they don’t even look at them they just approve them.

It’s more about putting a placemark to when you file your actual patent.

I also filed my own patent. It’s much harder. But I plan on doing a lot of them. So I read a book.

“Patent if yourself” NOLO production.

It’s written by patent attorney. Very big book but way cheaper than using an attorney.

It obv depends on what your trying to do with patent how complex it is. You could spend 10-30 grand on patent attorney.

However, they may be worth it. Because at the end of the day patents are only as good as the wording.

A few other notes.

It’s also expensive then to defend your patent. And your better off just being really good at marketing. Because the Chinese or whoever if it’s a good idea. Will knock it off.
 
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Nick M.

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From what I've heard, the actual patent application is easy and straightforward.

What's hard is all the research for prior art (I believe that's the technical term).

Basically, when you file a patent, two of the things you need to demonstrate are:
  1. The concept you're patenting
  2. No previous patent was filed for the same concept
The second point requires a lot of research. Because if there's anything else that's similar, you must show that your concept is distinctly different. When you hire a patent attorney, the majority of their time spent is the research.

Now I've never filed a patent before, so take my advice with a grain of salt.

Though if I was considering filing a patent myself, I'd ask myself a couple of questions:
  • How much do I value my time?
    • If you're only going to file one patent, it may not be worth your time spent learning the process. If you're going to file more, it may be worth it.
  • How much could I spend on an attorney?
    • Obviously, if you don't have the funds, you'd have to either get the funds for an attorney or do it yourself
  • What would happen if I mess up the application?
    • If an attorney messes up your application and it gets denied, I believe you can sue them for malpractice (or something like that) and recover your funds (plus maybe more). If you mess it up yourself, you have nothing legally to fall back on. Someone correct me if I'm wrong here.
 

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