10 Things I Know About... Patents

10. Legal Bankground

To be a patent attorney, in addition to being a lawyer, a person must have a science or engineering degree and is required to pass a patent bar examination in addition to a state bar exam. Most patent attorneys are former engineers or scientists.

9. The Basics

You can patent a new and useful process, machine, manufacturing process, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof.

8. Length Of Service

An issued patent can be maintained in force for 20 years from the date of filing.

7. Protective Measure

An issued patent can be used to prevent others from making, using, or selling a product or method covered by claims of the issued patent.

6. Tech Counts

Software and computer related inventions are proper subject matter for patent protection. Business methods can also be patented.

5. Grace period

In the United States, if you publicly disclose an invention (offer for sale, publicly use, or publish in a publication), you have one year to file for patent protection on that invention. This grace period is for the U.S. only.

4. Exceptions

If an invention has been offered for sale for MORE than one year, or has been in public use for MORE than one year, or was published MORE than one year ago, in most cases you no longer can file for patent protection on it.

3. Overseas Rules

Most foreign countries do not provide any one-year grace period, thus any public use or disclosure of an invention immediately prevents filing for a patent on that invention in most foreign countries.

2. Details, Details

A patent application must describe an invention in enough detail so someone “skilled in the art” can make and use the invention without undue experimentation.

1. Expensive Proposition

Don’t underestimate the time and cost. Patents are expensive, typically costing many thousands of dollars to have prepared and filed. Once filed, they often pend for several years before being approved.

Chapin is a registered patent attorney and principal with Chapin Intellectual Property Law LLC in Westborough. He can reached at Barry.Chapin@chapin- ip-law.com.