Specialists in High Quality Patents Our Low Overhead Lets Us Beat Any Price
We have obtained more than 8,000 patents for our clients, and we have a 99.9% success rate in securing patents before the US Patent Office.
We have also have written patents for products that have appeared on “Shark Tank”.
Many of the patents we have written have been successfully enforced in Federal Court. Our patents have been used to sue the largest technology companies, phone manufacturers, communication companies, medical device manufacturers and clothing manufacturers, just to name a few.
We are experts in responding to patent office rejections (“Office Actions”) with a special expertise in responding to patent eligibility rejections (rejections under 35 USC 101). We are routinely called in to obtain a patent where others have failed.
With over 20 years experience at patent writing, patent strategy and patent office action responses at the best possible price, contact us today for a free consultation.
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Patent FAQ
What is a provisional patent application (PPA) and why would I want to file one?
A provisional patent application is a temporary patent application that you can file that establishes your filing date. The provisional application lasts for only one year. At the end of that one year, the provisional patent lapses, and you need to file a non-provisional utility patent application if you want to continue with protecting your invention. However, during that one year pendency of the provisional application, your filing date has been established in the patent office by the filing of the provisional patent application. During that year, you can claim patent pending status, and nobody else can file any patent and get an earlier filing date than your invention. A main advantage of a provisional patent application is that they can be prepared and filed much faster and cheaper than a full utility application. The disadvantage of the Provisional patent application is that it is never examined by the patent office, and can never turn into a patent. So the provisional patent application allows you to protect your invention temporarily at a lower cost with a provisional patent application, but eventually you’ll need to file utility patent application if you want to continue that protection.
An example might help to explain the process and the advantages:
Jane invents widget x, on January 1, 2020. Mike invents widget x a month later on February 1, 2020. Mike immediately files a provisional application on February 2, 2020. Jane, however, takes her time, and files a full utility patent application, but not until March 1, 2020. Mike eventually files the full utlity patent application, on February 1, 2021.
The result: Mike gets the patent, and Jane does not get the patent. Even though Jane invented the patent first, and even if Jane files a full utility application before Mike, Mike still has an earlier filing date than Jane and so Mike gets the patent.
What is a utility patent application and why would I want to file one of those?
If you have the money, and are sure you will be filing for a patent, then a full utility patent application is usually the way to go. Utility patent applications get examined by the patent office, and eventually become enforceable US patents. Once you have the patent, you can use that to stop any other person in the United States from making, using or selling the invention that is claimed in your patent application.
Which should I file a provisional patent or utility patent?
That’s a tough question, and really depends on your circumstances. If you have the money, and you know for sure you want the patent, then you should file a full utility patent application. It’s more money, but it starts the patent examination process. On the other hand, if you’re not sure about your invention, or you’re on a budget, a provisional patent may be the best for you.
How much does a provisional application cost, and how long does it take to get it on file?
Our standard package includes preparation of a patent specification and filing of a provisional application for a grand total of $1500. Normally, we can get these on file within 2 to 3 days after receiving all the information from you. That means you can get patent pending status for your invention within a few days if you want to.
Is there any way to reduce this cost? We have no-frills provisional filing options. Consider our $199 (plus filing fees) option where we provide you a form that you fill out, and we file and get you a serial number and patent pending status. Email for the complete price list!
How much does the utility patent application cost, and how long does it take to get on file?
Most utility patent applications cost around $3500-$5000 to prepare (depending on complexity), and there is also $1000 filing fee, and a fee for drawings if you can’t do them yourself (usually around $400 for the drawings). There is a lot more complexity to a utility patent application then there is to a provisional patent application, and utility patent applications typically take 2 to 4 weeks to get on file.
How long does it take to get the patent from the patent office?
Provisional patents are not examined, so we get the provisional patent receipt from the patent office immediately on the filing. Utility patents, on the other hand, take a lot longer. Most utility patent applications wait at least a year before their examined, and some substantially longer. After the examination, the patent office will respond and usually ask you what you think is patentable about your invention. After all of this back and forth with the patent office, most patents take between one and 2 years to obtain them.
Is there any way to speed up the patent process? Yes! You can ask the patent office to expedite the examination of the patent, by payment of an expediting fee.
Are there any other costs to get a patent after the filing?
There will be other costs. The patent office almost always initially rejects all patents, and requires a response explaining why your patent is entitled to a patent. Sometimes, more than one response is needed. Even once the patent office agrees to allow the patent, there is still an issue fee. And after the patent is issued, there are maintenance fees.
I’ve been selling my product for over a year. Can I still get a patent?
No – you have to file for a patent within one year of the earliest disclosure or sale of your invention. But nobody else can patent your product either at that point.
Example: Jane invents widget x on January 1, 2018, and starts selling it that day. Mike invents widget x on December 31, 2018, and files a provisional application on January 2, 2019. Jane files her patent application on January 3, 1990. Neither Jane nor Mike can get the patent because Jane has had “widget x” on sale for more than one year before either patent application was filed.
Does my patent cover me everywhere in the world?
No, a patent only covers you in the United States. You can file other patents to cover you elsewhere in the world, at an additional cost.
I’ve heard that my competitor can make “one little change”, and can get around my patent. Is this true?
This is a myth. A well written patent, like the ones we write, will cover many of different modifications and ways of using your invention. A well written patent will prevent someone from getting around your patent by making an insignificant change.
What about a poor man’s patent?
The US patent system now operates on a first to file system: that is the first person to file the patent application is awarded the patent, even if someone else had invented the idea first. This is one of the strong reasons to file a provisional application as fast as you can (see FAQ above): because if you’re the first one to file, then you win. Under the old patent system, the patent was awarded to the first person to invent, even if that was not the first person to file. Under that old system, people did lots of things to try and establish that they were really the first inventor of the invention even if they weren’t the first to file. This is the basis of the poor man’s patent. People would write themselves letters explaining the invention, and never open the letter, reasoning that this would prove that they were really the first inventor. All of these different ways of establishing that you are the first inventor were called, collectively, a poor man’s patent. Under the modern first to file system, the poor man’s patent gives you no rights at all, and thus the poor man’s patents are now nothing but an urban folktale.
My Patent got rejected by the Patent Office. What can I do?
MOST patent applications get initially rejected by the Patent Office. We can respond on your behalf (sorry, but this is not included within the filing fees) and we are successful in overcoming rejections from the Patent Office the overwhelming majority of the times.
