A patent attorney and inventor-client should first come to an agreement on the representation terms, costs, expenses and expectations. That's the attorney-client relationship. The patenting process includes the basic steps of: 1) identifying the invention, 2) searching and examining the prior art, 3) assessing patentability of the invention, and 4) preparing the filing a (utility) patent application with the US patent office. Once the examination of the application begins, one or more examination reports are made by the Patent office, and responses and any changes to the claims of the application are submitted, ideally until an allowance of the application.

Answer Applies to: Ohio
Replied: 11/17/2011

Disclaimer: The response above does not form an attorney-client relationship. This answer may or may not apply to you and should not be relied upon as legal advice. LawQA does not make any representation as to the expertise or qualifications of this attorney. This attorney may or may not be admitted to state bar of your state.

How do you know your invention is best protected with an utility patent? Is there any ornamental features to it?, then maybe is better a design patent. Is there a method as part of your invention?, then maybe is better to keep it secret. Have you done a world patent search?, how do you know no one else has invented it? The are many questions that has to be answered before deciding in protecting an idea. There are multiple ways in doing it and maybe the one you think is not the best one. Now, assuming you have something deserving a utility patent. The first step is to create the patent drawings. These are not assembly or engineering drawings, these are special drawings that show your invention is the best light and includes all the patentable features. After the drawings the patent attorney can begin the drafting of the application. Drafting the application can take a few days depending on the complexity of your technology. Once you revise the draft and all corrections are made, then it is ready for filing. At this point you will have "Patent Pending" protection. Now you are free to offer for sale and introduce your invention to the market. The actual patent certificate will come about two years after successful prosecution. The next logical step is to create a prototype. A prototype can be made with the drawings you get with the patent. We use 3D cad programs to create a virtual design that can be inserted into a prototype machine. Now, how do you know you are going to make money with your invention? Have you done a market research? What is your selling price? What is your target audience? What is your profit margin? The fact that you can get a patent doesn't mean you will make money. The patent office has millions of patents that did not make a single dime. My advice is to look at your business strategy a long with your legal strategy, if not, you might waste your time and money.

Answer Applies to: Florida
Replied: 11/17/2011

Disclaimer: The response above does not form an attorney-client relationship. This answer may or may not apply to you and should not be relied upon as legal advice. LawQA does not make any representation as to the expertise or qualifications of this attorney. This attorney may or may not be admitted to state bar of your state.

Fairly painless. Basically you will have to communicate your invention to your patent attorney. Depending upon what it is he may suggest that a patent search be done by you, him or a patent searcher. He may also not opt for one. Then he will require drawings. He may ask you to provide them but more likely he will want you to use his patent draftsman. Then he will draft the patent and have you review it. When you feel that it truly embodies what you have invented he will submit it to the USPTO. Eventually across the next 3 years or so the USPTO and your attorney will correspond and make adjustments to the patent claims as necessary to ensure that the patent grant that the govement issue to you is truly deserving under the existing patent laws. I would urge you to first get a good firm quote on what the entire patent will cost you. Get it in writing. It is common for simple patents to run well in excess of $10,000. Shop around before deciding on a patent attorney. Dont be lured only by the name of a big firm. If you are looking for estimates of the costs please call my office. At least you will have a starting point to work from.

Answer Applies to: Oregon
Replied: 11/17/2011

Disclaimer: The response above does not form an attorney-client relationship. This answer may or may not apply to you and should not be relied upon as legal advice. LawQA does not make any representation as to the expertise or qualifications of this attorney. This attorney may or may not be admitted to state bar of your state.

Most people will search the Internet for a local patent law firm. This does not ensure that they are "good". You might want to ask them about similar inventions they have patented, how long they have been witting patents, how many per year they file, the costs and the percentage of issued patents. You should get patent pending within a month or two, but it takes several years to get the patent examined and issued.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 11/17/2011

Disclaimer: The response above does not form an attorney-client relationship. This answer may or may not apply to you and should not be relied upon as legal advice. LawQA does not make any representation as to the expertise or qualifications of this attorney. This attorney may or may not be admitted to state bar of your state.

We would be happy to assist. Our fees are as follows: Utility Patent - protects structure and/or function of a useful device, process, machine or composition of matter The first step that we recommend is a patent search with a patentability opinion to see if the invention has been done before and what else is similar. The search with opinion takes two to three weeks, and our fee is typically between $1,150.00 and $1,800.00. If the invention is for computer, electronic, chemical, or for business method inventions, it could be higher than this range, up to $3,000.00. The search is optional, but recommended. Assuming that the invention is patentable and that you wish to proceed, the next step is preparation and filing of a patent application. This takes about four weeks and typically costs between $4,700.00 and $7,700.00, depending on simplicity/complexity. Again, computer, electronic, chemical and business methods could be higher, up to $15,000.00. There is a filing fee of $530.00 to the Patent Office. The day we file the application you will enter PATENT PENDING status. Lastly, most patents require patent drawings, which we contract out to a draftsman at $100.00 per page. Most applications will have about three pages of drawings.

Answer Applies to: Georgia
Replied: 11/17/2011

Disclaimer: The response above does not form an attorney-client relationship. This answer may or may not apply to you and should not be relied upon as legal advice. LawQA does not make any representation as to the expertise or qualifications of this attorney. This attorney may or may not be admitted to state bar of your state.

We have software that you can use to guide you in describing your invention (Background, Summary, Figures, and Detailed Description) in a way that is useful for us. The software we use from a company called PowerPatent. By collaborating and optimizing your intimate knowledge of your invention with our legal skills, our fees for preparing the utility patent application can be reduced to $2000 and quality is very high.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 11/17/2011

Disclaimer: The response above does not form an attorney-client relationship. This answer may or may not apply to you and should not be relied upon as legal advice. LawQA does not make any representation as to the expertise or qualifications of this attorney. This attorney may or may not be admitted to state bar of your state.

A simple Google search will turn up many useful discussions on how to apply for a utility patent and what you can expect. The most important thing you need to know is that you need to start by retaining patent counsel. It costs significant money to properly prepare, file and prosecute a patent application

Answer Applies to: New York
Replied: 11/17/2011

Disclaimer: The response above does not form an attorney-client relationship. This answer may or may not apply to you and should not be relied upon as legal advice. LawQA does not make any representation as to the expertise or qualifications of this attorney. This attorney may or may not be admitted to state bar of your state.