An initial question that is often asked by inventors is “How Do I Patent My Idea?” While that question may be answered by citing various rules and procedures, the goal of this article is to provide a practical answer to that question[1].

First, and foremost, a great starting place is to find a patent attorney with whom an inventor feels comfortable speaking with about his or her idea; that level of comfort often results from the inventor and the patent attorney sharing a common knowledge base. For instance, when an inventor and a patent attorney have similar educational disciplines, the dialogue between them can often lead to productive discussions that allow the patent attorney to better understand the idea to help get it patented; otherwise, an inventor often finds himself or herself having to spend a significant amount of time educating the patent attorney about basic principles in the particular subject matter for which patent protection is sought.

For example, if a software developer calls one of Patent Ingenuity’s offices (Beverly Hills, Silicon Valley, or San Diego), the firm has a patent attorney with a software engineering discipline work with the software developer. By encouraging communication according to the inventor’s knowledge base, the firm believes that the best patents are obtained.

Secondly, and along those lines, the inventor providing as much detail as possible allows the patent attorney to pick and choose what would be most beneficial for inclusion in a patent application that will be prepared and filed by the patent attorney. The material may be prepared during the course of the inventor working on the idea, or at the request of the patent attorney during preparation of the patent application. Clear communication as to what the idea to be patented is, as well as the possible variations, will often help the patent attorney draft the patent application.

Finally, the inventor reviewing what was previously done (“prior art”), can help the patent attorney in preparing arguments to be presented to the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (“USPTO”) for obtaining a patent. For instance, during the “patent prosecution” stage, the USPTO has the opportunity to allow or reject a patent application. As initial rejections are quite common, the patent attorney highlighting the technical differences between the inventor’s idea and the prior art may help with getting a patent granted.

In summary, seeking the guidance of a registered patent attorney, who can communicate effectively, with the inventor, is often an important factor in answering the question of “How Do I Patent My Idea?”

[1] As this article is provided for informational purposes, the author is not providing legal advice with respect to obtaining a patent. Legal advice for a particular invention may be obtained by contacting the author directly.