How do I protect an invention idea?

I have an idea for an invention. I believe it is very marketable and I want to be sure it's not stolen before I can act on it. Are websites reliable if they provide a confidentiality contract? I feel I need guidance they may be able to provide, but I don't want to be "taken". Are there free legal forms available for provisionary patents I could do on my own, before I reveal my idea to anyone? Is it a good idea to take this step on my own or do I need a lawyer?

Sounds like you are extremely worried about revealing your invention. In that case I would hire an attorney to fill out and file all appropriate paperwork correctly the first time.

Having gone through this myself hopefully I can enlighten you a bit.

First and most important, SERIOUSLY consider this!

*If you should become enticed by commercials to present or sign your invention over to any company claiming they will protect your interest or produce your invention, be VERY leery and **check what they offer very carefully!!! READ THE FINE PRINT.**

Although there are reputable companies out there, there are those that are not.

Also, their process may take years before your product is, if ever, shown to anyone, and it won't be free. There are very few of the millions of ideas that get the inventor rich quick.

Depending upon your financial state there are many options:

1. If you don't have any loot. Keep your idea to yourself and I mean yourself. Do not tell even your best friend or family members.(except your wife if you plan on spending her money too) I know it sounds harsh and you'll be bursting at the seams to tell someone but in the end you'll understand why. Stick to your guns of silence.

As soon as you have the required funding, file the preliminary papers ASAP with the US Patent Office to protect your interests. Send everything REGISTERED MAIL. Keep these receipts, they may come into play someday to prove the date of your Patent Application. As soon as the Patent Office receives your papers they will register your idea as Patent Pending until a possible Patent is issued later.

As soon as you have received your response from the Patent Office, immediately begin writing Patent Pending on everything that relates to your product. This advises everyone that you have filed for a Patent with the US Patent Office and if they knockoff your product they could possibly be liable for Patent Infringement.

You will have to complete the application process within a specified time frame or you will loose your Patent Pending status. So be diligent in completeing the process.

2. There are two basic kinds of Patents you can apply for: DESIGN or UTILITY. (There are others too, depending upon what catagory your mousetrap falls into.)

If it's a particular shape,size,color,material etc. you are wishing to protect, then a DESIGN Patent is what your seeking.

If it's a better mousetrap, then it's a UTILITY Patent you are seeking. There are instances that you could be applying for both on the same idea.

3. You can get the forms available from the US Patent office. http://www.uspto.gov/

You may also be able to get these from a local source if you have a Federal Building near you. The forms are fairly self-explainatory.

Be prepared for ALOT of work if you decide to take this venture on by yourself. The Patent process has some exacting demands.

4. You can do the PRELIMINARY Patent search yourself or hire a Patent Atty to do a PROPER seach. The Attorneys don't come cheap, ranging from $250hr up but if you have a Bill Gates type idea that will change the world than go for the best you can afford. The search process can take weeks or months to complete depending on the complexity of your invention and how many others have tried to invent the same thing.

5.Once the step of registering your invention with the Patent Office is secure you can begin disclosing the invention to whom ever you want.
Having anyone you show your invention to sign a DISCLOSURE STATEMENT is in your best interest, especially any companies you might present it to. This should not bother anyone if they are honest.
Be prepared for companies to reject your idea even if it is a better mousetrap. Alot of companies pay big bucks to have their personnel come up with ideas and don't want outsiders to "embarrass" them. (If they didn't invent it, it doesn't exist...)

Now you can use your blueprints or make proto-types and try and sell the idea yourself or hire a Marketing Company. You can even manufacture the product and sell it yourself.

However, this doesn't mean that there isn't already one of your mousetraps out there somewhere and until the actual Patent is isssued you stand the chance of recieving notice by a previous inventor to discontinue production or pay ROYALTIES.(a percentage of profits)

6. There is also the possiblity that your product or something about the product(name.logo etc) that may/can need to be TRADE or SERVICE marked.

These forms can be attained from the Library of Congress.
http://www.uspto.gov/
Again the forms are self explainatory.

There is an awful lot to be learned about the process of Inventing to Market. I suggest you go to the Library and read what you can. Also pay a small fee to get some ground work information from a Patent Attorney if you can.

I hope this helps,

Good Luck

Thanks for all the information. I really appreciate your help. I didn't feel I wanted to proceed with this without checking out all the facts. I'd hate to blow it. I think my idea is a good one & I didn't want to turn it over to someone else to cash in on. You sound like you really know a lot about the process. Thanks again.
jbmojomama

Your more than welcome.

I went through the process a few years back. Spending 10s of thousands of dollars only to be knocked-off by foreign and Corporate bandits.

The normal attitude towards small capitalized inventors is, "Let's tell them our new product line has a three year back log and go ahead and produce it anyway without them, let them sue us". They know you don't have the resources to sue them all and they could tie your product up in court for years.

Also if you don't apply for foreign patents you will probably see your mousetrap on the shelf a few weeks after you expose it. I know mine is all over America,Europe and the Far East under someone elses name and I don't make one cent on it. Bummer, but a good lesson learned.

I'm not trying to discourage you in any way. I just want you to realize it is a hard,expensive,time consuming task that requires dedication but it can be done.

You may want to look for a substantial backer in the same field your invention is.???

Spend some time asking ALOT of questions from any source you can find without giving up your specific idea.

Good Luck

mileaway -- sounds like you went through the cleaners with your patent ventures! :-O It really is a tough world out there when you consider taking the route toward filing a patent --- it's a long and arduous process to get the patent in the first place; once you have it, it's up to you to market whatever technology you filed, including generating all necessary contacts, capital, etc. (could work, could fail); meanwhile, should a patent litigation issue arise (either from you or against you), you need to spend potentially hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars going through the litigation process, all the while risking the possibility that any patents previously granted could be invalidated if it is concluded that any patented technology in concern was anticipated elsewhere in advance. In short, it could be (and in many cases is) a long and expensive journey that drops you off where you started.

I could go on and on about the countless seminars we have here at Yale of technologies that went awry down the patent road. Then again, this is not to say that patents are purposeless: if your idea is new, useful [i.e., strongly marketable], and non-obvious (three keys to patentable technology) go for the patent. But if you have doubts whatsoever about any of these three criteria, bear in mind that even some of the top patent attorneys from NYC advise some of their clients to skip the patent process and go straight to building a market for their technology instead.

Brad

Your absolutely correct. There have been numerous ideas that for many reasons were never Patented and yet they have gone on to realize great success.
As said by RS Mowery:
"Never let let the World intimidate you or you will never experience the World."

HI, thank you for all the good information. I was wondering what your advice would be if I am making a certain type of bag out of a unique material that has not been used before.

My bag is basic tote shape, it is the material that is unique and is it worth it to get a patent from others using it.

If I did get a patent, would it actually stop others from using this material? Or could they use it but not to make my exact bag? And for every different style of bag, would I have to get another patent for it?

Thank you and hope this made sense?

thank you for any help on this,

merle

I can't give you advice but I can give you a few thoughts to ponder.(Devils Advocate)

First off, is this a new material you invented? or a new application for an existing material?

Is it the design of the bag that is so unique? Or the use of the material?

Is the material covered by existing Patents that will prohibit your using it?

How marketable is this bag going to be? There are alot of bags out there...

Will you do the mfr/assemby/marketing/advertising etc. yourself or need to farm it out(hire someone)? Each one of these items has a long list of needs to be filled. These and more need to be calculated into your cost per unit.

Secondly, Patents cost bucks. Usually quite few. To contemplate attaining a patent for each "Design" could run you into the multi-thousands per bag before you sell a one.

In a market so flooded with bags it might be worth considering(if you build a market/demand first) skipping the expensive Patent process and jumping right into the making and selling.(see Yales post re: straight to market)

I ran numerous test markets to size up the "Need/Desireability" of my products. These can show you pretty quickly if a demand is present. They will also sort out what people are willing to spend amongst other deciding factors.(demographics etc.) As an example: Your local area may have a great demand but in Kalamazoo they couldn't care less.

You need to consider who and how your going to sell to. Individuals(Craft Shows,Flea Markets) or Corps(Walmart,Pennys) etc. Large Corps. can place a very large demanding order with short delivery time constraints and large advertising/packaging demands.

Sometimes it's best if you take a step back, distance yourself from the excitement and look at the total picture of what it you want to attain and what it will take to get there. Revisit all the strange looks and odd critizisms your friends and family have blessed you with. It can help you choose which path is more reasonable for your situation.

I hope some of this helps, Good Luck!

Thank you very much for the reply. I have been toying with this, and would rahter just go for it, and see what happens! As we do not have the money at this time to do all that is needed to do, only to still probably have someone copy us if this really turns out to be big!

I am using a new application for an excisiting matieral. So not inventing a totaly new material, just a fun use out of somehting you would normally not think of doing with it.

I will keep you posted and appreciate your help!

One small problem, I still have not come up with a name that is great! BUt working on it

merle