| May. 17 2008 at 4:31 PM |
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So what is the best way to protect design materials? The provisional patent application is not valid with “design” materials. I have a product that falls under that category, how do I go about protecting it?
Edited by: RRGAJEWSKI - May. 17 2008 at 4:33 PM
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| May. 19 2008 at 10:45 AM |
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consider a design patent application
James Lindon, Ph.D. Patent Attorney
Lindon & Lindon, LLC
Cleveland, Ohio
Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights, Pharmacy Law, Litigation
[this is not legal advice - provided for discussion only]
Intellectual Property for the Individual and Small Business: Identify, Protect, Enforce, Defend.
"Fools rush in where angels fear to tread."
http://www.LindonLaw.com/
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| May. 19 2008 at 6:26 PM |
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Thank you, I found out some more information about a design patent. I'm a student and like most students, I'm just plain broke. What is the cheapest way of going though the process of obtaining a design patent. So far all I have questioned some students about my product and drew it up on paper with some details, applications, and possible market opportunities. The product is a type of a home appliance that targets college students and pretty much every middle income household in the US. From what i can tell, the market looks VERY promising. I have looked into angel investors but all I have as of right now is an idea that I've had for four years and no actual product on my hands. I have looked in stores as well as patent websites (google patents) for a product that resembled mine, but did not come across anything similar.
Are there any non-profit organizations that aid inventors with their products, or do I have to search for potential investors myself? How do I go about taking the next step? Is going with a web site such as Legalzoom.com a good idea? I'm really concerned about my product being replicated/stolen so I do not want to take any steps until I am 100% positive.
Edited by: RRGAJEWSKI - May. 21 2008 at 10:32 AM
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| May. 19 2008 at 6:38 PM |
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Thank you
Edited by: RRGAJEWSKI - May. 21 2008 at 10:30 AM
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| Sep. 20 2008 at 6:51 PM |
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Pretty good perspective on provisional apps and all. (I'm a patent attorney, about to start private practice.) I would suggest the following:
* The waiting period until the first office action is often longer than 1-1.5 years. 3 years is not uncommon these days.
* After a provisional is filed, the 1-year deadline for filing a (US) nonprovisional app also applies for filing foreign apps. A PCT app can be filed as well through the US Patent & Trademark Office (instead of or in addition to a nonprovisional). The PCT app buys even more time: US and foreign apps can be filed as late as 30 months (or 31 in some countries) after the provisional's filing date.
* Provisional apps remain confidential: if no US nonprovisional, foreign, or PCT (international) app is filed within 1 year, it just disappears and never becomes public. (You also lose the "priority" date of its filing.)
* US nonprovisional applications publish around 18 months after the earliest priority date (e.g., if a provisional app is filed, the resulting nonprovisional app will publish 18 months after the filing date of the corresponding provisional app). So, if you want to keepsomething as a trade secret, don't file a ninprovisional app. Even if you are never granted a patent, the application will be public information.
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