Posts Tagged ‘patent process’

A quick note before you spend $6,000…

Thursday, March 25th, 2010

Hi all.

We’re looking to license the cup holder as an easier way to get it out to the world. (Those people who AREN’T dedicated readers like yourselves.) One of the companies we’ve come across is a company called Davison out of Pittsburgh, PA. Davison’s bread and butter claim’s to take an inventor’s idea, and to the sum of $10k to $15k they will do an initial patent search, do design work yielding a workable product, make a prototype, and then attempt to license it out. Since the “Nearly” Universal OH cup holder is already in existence, we were directed to the licensing department and asked to pay $6,000.00 US, plus 10% on any royalties we would receive, and the company “guaranteed” they would submit it to 45 companies specifically targetted for our drink holder. Handling this matter personally, when I asked for references, I was told they have a strict privacy policy, and no references would be allowed. Fair enough, but could my email address and phone number be given to current clients who might be interested to share their experience? Negative, they don’t do that. Okay, so more or less I’m supposed to pay $6,000 with no guarantee and no actual person to talk to about their experience with Davison? When I pushed for a non-company reference I was directed to the corporate website, which contained a few. Push me to the web, I’ll go to the web, and lucky for us I found references, a lot of bad ones.

I went to Google (which I urge EVERYONE to do when dealing with a company, especially something that sounds too good to be true) and did a search for “davison licensing reviews” and found a few results. Most were calling the company a scam, and although it’s not an exact scam (some people did claim however they paid $10,000 to $15,000 and never received a prototype of their idea) it is important to note (from this Forbe’s magazine article on Davison) that the company does in fact make most of it’s money from the design process, and only a small fraction of a percent of its income comes from royalties of sucessfully licensed products. Another big problem stated by the website (here’s the website for Davison complaints) was that the company’s customer service was horrible once you handed over your money.

Key lessons to be learned here.

1.) The internet is a wonderful tool, so use it. If something sounds too good to be true, don’t assume it is, just check it out on Google. Although you’re rarely find positive reviews (keep this in mind if you find nothing on a company or service as that might be a good thing) if people are unhappy, you’ll definitely find out it’s not worth doing and why the person feels that way. Another good place to search after Google is the Better Business Bureau, of which Davison also had like 200+ complaints.

2.) The design process is expensive. Although I’m personally unsure of the follow through on their services (since I will now not be paying them), Davison’s price tag for the design budget is in the ballpark. I think for the design and patent application itself was right around $12k for our universal cup holder. I would suggest not cutting any corners though, and if you’re truly confident in an idea (and you can find more helpful info on the patent process on our blog) take the time to meet with a patent attorney and at least do an initial patent search. Should the results be positive, look for a qualified design firm (usually an engineering firm) that you can work personally with to monitor how your funds are being used.

Other than that, good luck, and it’s still possible to bring a product to market, just don’t expect it to happen overnight.

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What to expect from the patent process.

Sunday, January 3rd, 2010

It is quite imperative for inventors and companies that bring out new products to be able to protect their inventions. His is why they need the services of patent firms that specialize in providing patent and application protection as this helps them in protecting their intellectual property from pilferage.

Getting a patent is not a very simple process as it could be quite long drawn out (as we learned by patenting our universal drink holder). There are quite a few process and procedural steps where the patent application is scrutinized by the patent examiner and clarifications sought from the inventor. The process starts with the inventor making an application for a patent, and the application as well as the invention being scrutinized to ascertain as to which part of the invention can be patented. If the patent application and the invention stands up to scrutiny, a patent is granted for a pre-defined period of time.

There are all kinds of inventions that are of varied scope. Some inventions do nothing more than add a concept to the vast body of concepts that exist from earlier. Take for instance a car video game. There could be a host of ideas and features like the car being turbo boosted or even damage to the car in the event of collisions. To this, if you add the novelty of showing how the racer is progressing on a race track map, this idea of racer display on the map could well be patented. Those who are still not prepared to file for a full fledged patent can file a ‘provisional patent application’. The advantage of patents is that these can catapult young inventors to global fame and name, not to mention the monetary benefits that accrue from it.

When filing for a patent application, it makes sense to submit formal drawings of the invention. These drawings help in projecting the image of the invention in all its distinctiveness and uniqueness. These drawings are prepared by trained draftsmen, who have long years of experience in this field. Once the idea of the invention has been conceived, design patents are prepared, which are an aesthetic representation of the form of the invention in question. The tenure of design patents is generally 14 years.

There are other kinds of patents which are of the nature of utility patents. These patents are able to protect the use of machines, medicines, components and computers in addition to ingredients which add to the utility of the invention. These patents are handed out for novel machines or even processes and are distinct from design patents that are appropriate for inventors of new manufactured articles. The concept of provisional utility patents is rather rare and not apt at an elementary level.

Manufacturers also have a great utility for patents because they invest huge sums and need to protect the uniqueness of their invention. The idea behind giving a 17 year manufacturing patent is to reward innovativeness as it is beneficial to consumers. While unrestricted monopoly is not beneficial, the idea of a 17 years patent seems to be a kind of middle path. Inventions that come prior to an invention are know as ‘prior art’. The way to get a patent on your invention is to prove that your innovation is quite distinctive and is a significant improvement on the prior art.

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What is implied by “the patent process”?

Friday, December 18th, 2009

Inventors need patent firms that can give them application and patent protection services. Having a patent law firm with experienced attorneys on your side can help you prevent others from using your intellectual property.

The patent process is generally very long. During this period, the application generally travels back and forth between the applicant and the patent examiner until both sides agree as to which part of the invention is worthy of a patent. The patent process generally involves filing a patent application and undergoing examination at the patent office. If examination is successful, a patent is granted and is enforceable for a limited term thereafter.

Inventions come in all shapes and sizes, and if your widget does nothing more than add one novel concept to a mountain of old concepts, that novel concept may just be patentable. So, for example, if your video game is an automobile racing game, you might use familiar concepts such as turbo boosting your car, damaging your car when collisions occur, and displaying a racer’s progress on a map of the race track, but at one point, displaying the racers was a novel idea, and perhaps patentable. Inventions which, if handled wisely, may fetch young and enthusiastic start-up entrepreneurs great success in terms of financial and global fame. Inventors not ready to file a full patent application are encouraged to file a “provisional patent application”. The provisional application provides more benefits and protections to inventors than the disclosure document.

Design applications require formal drawings (like of cup holders) when filed since the look of the invention as shown in the drawings is the basis of the application. A draftsman with many years experience in preparing formal patent drawings is usually available for this service to clients. Design patents (these patents are concerned with the aesthetic appearance of the invention) must be generally within one year of the idea’s conception. Design patents of this type tend to have a term of 14 years.

Utility patents, on the other hand, are applied for when the invention you wish to protect has a use such as a machine, ingredients, medicines, computers, etc. A provisional utility patent application is less common and not something you need to understand at an introductory level. Utility patents are granted for inventions such as new processes or machines. Not to be confused with design patents which are granted to inventors of new designs for articles that are manufactured.

Invention protection is important to manufacturers too. The manufacturer has the biggest investment at risk and they’ll take whatever steps are necessary to protect it. Inventiveness is good for consumers, monopoly power is bad for consumers, and we reward inventiveness by granting 17 years of monopoly power. It’s someone’s idea of a compromise between too little and too much. Inventions that come before your invention are referred to as “prior art”. The differences between your invention and the prior art need to be explained and defended in order for a patent to be granted.

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