Word of advice on the pro bono patent program.

[memeticmaster]

Ok so I heard about the Pro Bono patent assistance program the patent office set up here.https://www.uspto.gov/patents-getting-started/using-legal-services/pro-bono/patent-pro-bono-program It said to get assistance I needed to meet 3 qualifications.

1. Be making under 3x the poverty rate of my area. Ok I am on disability that is not going to be a problem.

2. Prove that you have a basic understanding of the patent system one of two ways, either A. Have a provisional patent already filed, or B. Take a course in the patent office and pass its tests.

3. Actually have a patent-able invention not just an idea for an invention. For example just saying that you want to invent a better battery will not get you a provisional patent, however if you have an idea that could make a better battery you are good to go.

I can't afford a provisional patent since it costs around 140 dollars to file, and me and my family are living hand to mouth. So I decide to take the test instead. This is where the nightmare begins. The material is poorly implemented basically you go threw a bunch of slides while a person talks to you about patent law. Not so bad so far then comes the tests if you miss one question you fail the quiz, which wouldn't be so bad except there is no button to take you back. You have to reload the whole page. Then once you get past a quiz its onto more slide show. Ok we hit another quiz get one question wrong and you have to redo all the other quizes. Now this might be a genius way to instill various concepts into the population or it might just be poorly designed. What happens next makes me think it is the former. I finally finish the infernal course, and go to take the next step. Which is to click on my state to go to an external website and find out about getting assistance locally.

The site it directs me to says they require me to have a provisional patent before they will help me.

If they had just said that in the beginning I would have realized that I am screwed. Now I just wasted a whole mess of time learning more about a system that is just out of my reach.

[Tom Gralewicz]

After having worked on a few patents and seen plenty of litigation while I was working for large corporations I have the following opinion:

1) Your patent is only as good as your pockets are deep.  Unless you can hire enough lawyers to make it expensive to violate your patent you won't get anything from it.

2) Most patentable ideas are the result of a convergence of a need and the technology to fulfill it.  As a result there are usually lots of people getting the same idea about the same time.  Now you need lawyers to show you had the idea before they did.  Case in point the telephone, there were 3 claimants to the invention at the time, plenty of court costs before Bell won.

Important:  Spend DAYS looking for similar inventions, both on line and in the magazines that deal with the industry you are building for.  Its amazing how often a great idea has been around for years but you didn't hear about it.  This kills 99.9% of all patents.

3)  You are better being first to market than first to patent.  Cash in first, get your name associated with the invention, then it doesn't matter what anyone else does, its still "klenex" instead of "Facial Tissue."  Its also easier to defend a patent if you have been selling the item for 3 years :-)

Tom Gralewicz

Chronic Maker

(414) 380-1716

milwaukeemakerspace.org

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[Pepin Lachance]

Thanks for the advice I am still going to attempt to get a provisional. I guess I could rely on NDA's in the meantime to fund raise for my ideas.

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[Pete Prodoehl]

Open source it. ;)


Pete

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[Shane T.]

A while back, I had gotten someone from the Milwaukee Public Library to do a speech on patents and such...would there be interest in doing that again?

[Adam Cohen]

When you get a provisional you only have a year to pony up the big bucks for a real patent, or you lose it all anyways.

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[Pepin Lachance]

Well the pro Bono program is supposed to help with that.

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[memeticmaster]

That would be amazing!!

[memeticmaster]

I've seriously considered doing that. The problem is me and my family are deep in poverty, and I don't want my daughter growing up that way. I know to well that she would probably be doomed to a lifetime of poverty if that happens. I do believe that my invention would make the world better so I have been tempted.