| 
|
| Patents |
| A
patent is a right, granted by the United States
to an inventor, excluding others from making, using,
selling or importing an invention without the inventor's
consent.
There
are many ways to financially benefit from a patent.
Your patent may be sold for monetary gain. You may
also license your patent for a percentage of the
sale price. You may also be the exclusive manufacturer
of your invention.
Click
here for a complimentary Patents Assessment
|
| KNOW
MORE ABOUT PATENTS
• The
Patent Application Process
• The
Patent Process
• Marketing
Your Patent
• Our
Patent Team
• Patent
Terminology
|
| The
Patent Application Process |
| How
many times have you heard about an Invention idea
that you thought of well before it was patent protected?
Thousands of patents are submitted
to the United States Patent Office each week by
inventors keen on profiting from their unique idea.
According to the "American
Intellectual Property Law Association AIPLA Economic
Report of Survey 1997" the Overall Average
Cost of Patent Application $10,400.00.
At AVITA we designed a Patent Research
Team because we were frustrated with the cost associated
with the Patent Industry. Inventors were seeking
our firm out after spending more than $ 15,000 on
a Utility Patent application only to have the invention
sitting on their shelf collecting dust.
The problem we saw was that inventors
were getting patent protection on an invention that
may not have any market feasibility once it has
been protected.
Our goal at AVITA is to provide
each inventor with an understanding of the Patent
Process.
|
| The
Patent Process |
| AVITA
goes through a five-step process to obtaining a Patent
Issuance:
Assessing the Idea:
Our team of experts will review your ideas with
a complimentary assessment and provide feedback
on your invention
Formal Patent Search:
A patent search to determine prior art that may
exist showing a similarity with your concept will
be conducted by a patent researcher.
Preparing/Filing the Patent
Application:
Preparing a Utility or/and a Design patent application
will be assessed. Included in the preparation are
the USPTO application fees and formal patent drawings.
Prosecuting the Patent:
Once the application is filed, it is “Patent Pending”
and enters a prosecution phase. In the prosecution
phase, each Official Action issued by the USPTO
generally results in the need for an Amendment to
the application to be prepared. If the prosecution
phase is successful the USPTO will issue a Notice
of Allowance.
Patent Issuance:
Once the patent has issued the USPTO requires that
maintenance fees be paid at periodic periods.
|
| Marketing
your Patent |
| Once
the invention has received “Patent Pending” status
or has been formally issued, there are four steps
to marketing your Invention.
Design Development-
The purpose of the Design Development phase is to
explore design options, and settle on the one that
functions best, is easiest to use, simplest to produce,
and most attractive to market.
Design Documentation-
When the design concept has been finalized, each
component must be defined in detail for production.
Engineering drawings, component specifications,
and electronic schematics must be created.
Fabrication Step-
All final engineering drawings, electronics schematics,
components sources, material specifications, and
any other information necessary to produce the design
are gathered together into a final fabrication package.
This is the information manufacturers will need
to give actual production bids.
Sales-
AVITA brings products to market through sound evaluation
and testing including; manufacturability assessment
of the prototype design and marketability assessment.
This includes a detail marketing plan customized
for your specific invention.
|
| Our
Patent Team |
| At
AVITA we formulated a Patent Research Team that would
address the entire invention process; from the idea
stage to the marketing stage. On our team we included
a Patent Researcher, a US Registered Patent Agent,
a Structural Designer, and a Marketing Consultant.
We
chose to work with a US registered patent agent
because similar to a patent attorney they are qualified
to prepare, submit and prosecute patent applications
to the US Patent Office. The difference is in the
cost involved in utilizing the services of a standard
patent attorney and attorneys can litigate on your
behalf in court if the need should arise to legally
protect your patent.
|
| Patent
Terminology |
Patent
A patent is a right, granted by the United States
to an inventor, excluding others from making, using,
selling or importing an invention without the inventor's
consent.
Patent Agent
A patent agent is a person licensed to represent
inventors in front of the US patent office. They
prepare patent applications, file patent applications
and negotiate with the patent office to get patents
allowed. An attorney is not required.
Patent Attorney
Patent attorneys are patent agents that have passed
a State or Federal bar exam. Patent attorneys can
file lawsuits. Patent agents cannot. The US patent
office, however, makes no distinction between a
patent agent and a patent attorney.
NOTE: Both patent attorneys
and patent agents are registered with the PTO, and
are fully authorized to prepare patent applications
and obtain patents for their clients. Though, Patent
agents usually charge much less for their services.
Patent Search
A formal search conducted by a patent researcher
to determine any prior art/inventions that that
may exist that show a similarity with your concept.
Patentability Opinion
A professional patentability opinion by a Registered
Patent Attorney upon review of prior art that determines
whether or not your invention is patentable.
Patent Application Process
The formal preparation of a utility or/and design
application.
Utility Patent
A patent that protects the functional aspects of
an invention. Utility Patents are granted to anyone
who invents or discovers any new and useful process,
machine, article of manufacture, compositions of
matters, or any new useful improvement The term
of a utility patent is 20 years from the date of
filing.
Design Patent
A patent that protects the overall appearance of
an invention and is granted for any new, original
and ornamental design for an article of manufacture.
The term of a design patent is 14 years from the
date of issuance.
|
|
|
