Anyone get a Patent?

[Red Letters]

Very true. Our lawyers have done patent searches and come back with prior art from old patents from the 1950s for things that never went to market that John Smith thought up in his garage.

Wouldn’t they be expired anyway

 

[TomJoad]

2 decades of product design experience with some companies that are IP crazy and others that are IP adverse.

There are some reasons to patent, and FAR more to not.

Happy to give you my perspective. If you’re interested shoot me a PM.

 

[hunt1up]

Wouldn’t they be expired anyway

Sure. You’d still be able to make the item since their patents are expired, you just can’t patent the idea yourself. So anyone could make it too.

 

[cnelk]

Thanks for all the info guys. Keep it coming

 

[Dust Rider]

One of my co workers gave it a go after developing a tool for exterior construction. It was a slick tool. He got the patent lawyer, spent $7k, and a few months later it was denied. “Obvious Rejection” was the final call. It was to similar to other products to get its own patent. I still use his prototype once and a while

 

[gilby]

I am not a lawyer, but am an R&D engineer and am in the process of filing a patent on a personal project. I'd recommend filing the provisional patent ASAP. The provisional is straight forward after watching some YouTube videos, you should be able to qualify for micro or small entity status meaning it'd be under $200 to file. Once you file your provisional you are able to disclose what the invention is without as the risk of invalidating your ability to patent the invention with a public disclosure. Putting too much detail on Rokslide before you file a provisional patent could be a public disclosure meaning you cannot patent your design.

 

[bbkick25]

I have a patent as well. If you go to an attorney they will get you to submit for the provisional up front. They described it to me a license to sell and have proof you were "first to market" for a full year. Depending on your income, you may be able to file as a micro entity and it's not expensive at all. Your attorney will research any and all patents that are similar. What you don't realize is all of the patents that have been filed that did not make it to the market. So there may be a similar product like yours that already hold a patent, but you aren't seeing it cause it's expensive to take to market. I started selling the prototypes at gun shows, word of mouth, and Facebook. Then, once I was convinced I had a market, I started reaching out to companies with product lines and eventually leased my patent for them to make their version of it through their manufacturers and let them do 100%. Now I just make a little bit of mailbox money quarterly. There is a lot that goes into the final non provisional patent that took me a long time to get so it won't happen overnight. Good luck.

 

[CodeMonkey]

Find a good lawyer ASAP. It took years of applications and dealing with the government to get mine through.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

There are different types of patents, determining which type to get (utility, design, etc.) depends on the product. Having said that, once you patent something it is there for everyone to see and it's just a matter of time before the Chinese knock it off if they see you making sales. Even if you file it in multiple countries. Consult with a attorney...initial consultations are usually free.