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It is best to reduce your idea to writing in order to document a date of invention. If possible, make one or more sketches of your invention and provide a description of how the invention is used, making note of any problems the invention solves. You should also provide a description of the parts or structure of the invention and how it improves upon other inventions in the related field. This written description and drawing(s) should be dated and witnessed. It will then be necessary to conduct a patent search in the records of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Due to the complexities of patent searching and the patent law, it is highly advisable to use the services of a registered patent attorney or agent for the patent search.

A provisional patent application is, essentially, an informal patent application that does not require claims or formal drawings prepared by a draftsman. The provisional patent application can be filed at a lower cost than a non-provisional patent application and provides a means to establish an early effective filing date in a patent application. Filing a provisional patent application also permits the term “Patent Pending” to be applied in connection with the invention. A provisional patent application is not examined on the merits and cannot, in itself, result in a granted patent. A provisional patent application will become abandoned by operation of law 12 months from its filing date. The Applicant (Inventor) has up to 12 months from the filing date of the provisional patent application to file a corresponding non-provisional (formal) patent application in the USPTO. The claimed subject matter in the later filed non-provisional patent application is entitled to the benefit of the filing date of the provisional patent application if the subject matter was disclosed in the provisional patent application.

In order to protect your invention, so that you can approach manufacturers and/or reveal your invention to the public, you should attempt to obtain a U.S. patent by filing a patent application in the USPTO. You can file either a provisional patent application or, alternatively, a non-provisional (formal) patent application. Once the patent application is filed in the USPTO, you can use the term “Patent Pending” and efforts may be made to commercialize your invention. The filing date of your patent application establishes a right of priority to a patent against others who file a patent application for the same invention after your patent application filing date.

I am ready to proceed with obtaining patent protection for my invention; should I file a provisional patent application or a non-provisional patent application

The decision whether to file a provisional patent application or a non-provisional patent application is largely dependent upon available finances and the stage of development of the invention. Filing a provisional patent application provides the benefit of “Patent Pending” with a right of priority to a patent based on the provisional filing date, while allowing up to 12 months to further develop the invention and obtain funding. The cost to file a provisional patent application is significantly less than the cost to file a non-provisional (formal) patent application. In the end, however, filing a provisional patent application, prior to the non-provisional patent application, will result in a higher total cost in obtaining the patent and a longer time frame from the initial filing date of the provisional patent application to the date of grant of a patent.

Patents are granted by individual countries and are enforceable only within the territory of that country. While a global patent does not exist, there is a procedure to file an international patent application under a treaty known as the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT). The international patent application will eventually be directed into countries that are members of the PCT, as designated by the Applicant, and the international patent application will be subject to examination in the respective patent offices of each country. As a matter of procedure, the filing of an international patent application under the PCT is administratively more efficient than filing separate patent applications directly in each country where patent protection is desired.

While there can be no guarantee that the USPTO will grant a patent, the average time frame from the filing date of a non-provisional patent application to the grant of a patent is between 14 months and 24 months. However, it can take longer if the Patent Office has a backlog of patent applications in the same subject matter area of your invention.

Registered patent attorneys are licensed under both the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and at least one State Bar. Both the State Bar and the USPTO have strict ethic rules governing the conduct of attorneys. Unlike invention promotion firms and virtually anyone else to whom an inventor might disclose their invention, a registered patent attorney is bound by these rules of conduct, as regulated by the USPTO and the State Bar, and must maintain all client information in strict confidence. As a matter of policy, this firm regards client confidentiality as a matter of utmost importance. We encourage all of our clients to check with both the USPTO and the Florida Bar to confirm our standing as licensed attorneys.

Yes. A trademark that is used in connection with goods or services sold in interstate commerce should be registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

The federal registration symbol of the R enclosed within a circle may be used once a trademark is actually registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Yes. When use of a mark occurs within a state (intrastate commerce) then registration at the state level is appropriate.

A federal trademark registration can be renewed every 10 years, indefinitely, so long as the owner of the registration files a Section 9 renewal application verifying the mark is still in use in commerce.

A trademark is used to identify and distinguish one’s goods and/or services in trade, allowing the public to identify the source of origin, and associated level of quality and satisfaction, with the goods or services provided by the trademark owner (e.g., Mercedes Benz star logo, Coca Cola mark and distinctive bottle shape.) A copyright, on the other hand, protects one original artistic creations and works of authorship (e.g., paintings, sculptures, book, computer programs and sound recoding).

The year date may be omitted where a pictorial, graphic, or sculptural work, with accompanying textual matter, if any, is reproduced in or on greeting cards, postcards, stationery, jewelry, dolls, toys, or any useful article.