How Can Somebody With a Non-Technical Background File a Patent
I am the founder of a tech startup that currently outsources all technical work, and our developers were able to develop a novel piece of technology to our specifications. We would like to file for some protection before we go to market in the Fall.
However, my knowledge wrt to coding is unsatisfactory and certainly not enough to file a patent application using technical terms.
Can I still file a provisional patent application using a mix of technical and non-technical terms to demonstrate first to file/first to invent? Will there be any protection afforded to me whatsoever?
I understand very well that it is in our best interest to leave this to professionals, but unfortunately we cannot afford a patent lawyer at this point in time. It is our intention to hire one to (re)file properly in under a year as we scale our budget, but obv we do still want to have the paperwork demonstrating our first use in the market place.
Does filing a patent in this manner bar me from any rights in the future?
Re: Trying to File a Patent with a Non Technical Background
You'll need to tell us where you're located first.
But assuming you're in the US, it's much smarter if you go ahead and do this with an attorney on board. Go ahead without one at your own risk.
Re: Trying to File a Patent with a Non Technical Background
In NY.
Right now my options are file an application on my own, or hold out for 6-8 months until we amass the capital to be able to afford a patent attorney. Hiring a patent attorney right now unfortunately is not in our budget, especially because we have multiple documents to file.
What do you advise in these situations?
Re: Trying to File a Patent with a Non Technical Background
Mess it up now with an amateur presentation and it'll cost you 10 times as much to fix than if you get it done right the first time.
Don't be penny wise and dollar foolish.
Either hire a patent attorney or wait until you have the money to hire one, but I don't think you ought to try this yourself.
Re: Trying to File a Patent with a Non Technical Background
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adjusterjack
Mess it up now with an amateur presentation and it'll cost you 10 times as much to fix than if you get it done right the first time.
Don't be penny wise and dollar foolish.
Either hire a patent attorney or wait until you have the money to hire one, but I don't think you ought to try this yourself.
Other than fees for filing a provisional patent application and amendment fees (i.e. not including standard filing, issue, and maintenance fees), what fees should I be aware of that would drive our costs up that high?
What risks do I run bringing our product to market without any attempt at legal protection?
Re: Trying to File a Patent with a Non Technical Background
Note that the inventors (not you) must file the patent application. You, of course, hopefully have a suitable hire agreement in place that you get rights to such inventions. As pointed out you have ZERO chance of likely doing this right without specific patent filing expertise (let alone even knowing technically what you are talking about).
Once you go to market without a even a provisional patent in place, you lose the "novelty" of the invention. This means that the invention (if it were even patentable to begin with) is then never patentable by anyone.
Re: Trying to File a Patent with a Non Technical Background
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kirkland87
In NY.
Right now my options are file an application on my own, or hold out for 6-8 months until we amass the capital to be able to afford a patent attorney. Hiring a patent attorney right now unfortunately is not in our budget, especially because we have multiple documents to file.
What do you advise in these situations?
You can read the patents in the class where you intend to patent and learn the language of the art. If you understand the technical aspects of the invention and you understand what independent and dependent claims are and would be for what you want to patent, then you should be able to file your own application for at least the provincial. An attorney is better but if you can't afford one now you can still move forward.
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kirkland87
Other than fees for filing a provisional patent application and amendment fees (i.e. not including standard filing, issue, and maintenance fees), what fees should I be aware of that would drive our costs up that high?
What risks do I run bringing our product to market without any attempt at legal protection?
Getting the patent is not that expensive including all the fees. What is expensive is defending your patent and finding the infringers. A patent can prove to be useless if you don't have the capital (millions in some cases) to enforce it.
Once you file an application you are protected if the technology is patentable and your claims are novel. It is not uncommon for a company to file an application and then go to market pending the outcome.
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flyingron
Once you go to market without a even a provisional patent in place, you lose the "novelty" of the invention. This means that the invention (if it were even patentable to begin with) is then never patentable by anyone.
I don't believe this is correct. A filed application is enough to establish novelty if the technology is patentable in the first place.
Re: Trying to File a Patent with a Non Technical Background
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I don't believe this is correct. A filed application is enough to establish novelty if the technology is patentable in the first place.
I think you misunderstood me. The provisional is such an application. There's no such thing really as a "provisional patent," though people tend to call it that. It's really the provisional APPLICATION for a patent. It's the least you can do to establish protections. Of course you can also get protection with filing the non-provisional application.
However, if you market without an application or fail to follow up with a provisional with a non-provisional patent application in the following year, you DO lose novelty.
Note even though the provisional is less formal, you do need to make sure it embodies all your claims.