Patent Pending as quickly as next Thursday...

Work with a registered patent agent who...

• Has written hundreds of patents (see samples, video testimonials)
• Works inexpensively (see prices)
• Can work quickly if necessary ("patent pending" as fast as one week!)

Common Questions...

 "What are your prices?" Answer...

 "But what about the quality of your patents?"

 "What's the difference between a patent attorney and a patent agent?" Answer...

 "Do you have any references?"

 "What's the difference between a utility patent and a design patent?" Answer...

 "What's the difference between a utility patent and a provisional patent?" Answer...

 "What do you need to get started on a RUSH patent?" Answer...

Patent Search Request

Before you file any patent application, and in particular a utility patent application, it's a good idea to research the prior art patents to see if your idea has already been invented. Not seeing your idea in the market is not enough... plenty of good, patented ideas never make it to the market, for various reasons. You want to avoid the situation where a simple patent search would have found an important prior art patent that ends-up being the primary reason a PTO Examiner rejects your patent application two to three years from now. For the money, we think it makes sense to spend 10% of what you would on a non-provisional utility patent application considering that 80-85% of the time, when conducting a search, we find something pretty close.
And even if we don't find anything close, wouldn't you want to know that too? Patent searches are often done not just to determine patentability of your product, but also to see what the competitive landscape looks like.
So what type of patent search makes sense for you? Most people start with a US patent search and then move to a foreign search if the US search doesn't find anything relevant.

Comparison of Patent Search Products

US Patent Search	Foreign Only Patent Search
Covers U.S. Published Patents and Patent Applications	European (Granted & Published Applications) WIPO PCT Publications Japan (Abstracts only, in English) German (Granted & Published Applications) INPADOC (71 world patent signatories)
One week delivery	One week delivery
Covers US Patents back to the 1700's (keyword searched back to 1971, and from those, reference and class/subclass searched back to 1790)	Covers US Patents back to the 1700's and the rest of the world back to 1968
Includes expert opinion of patentability in US	Includes expert opinion of patentability in US

Benefits and Drawbacks of Provisional Patents (vs. Non-Provisional Utility Patents)

Benefits	Drawbacks
Quick and Less Expensive to File	Does not, by itself, provide any protection
Allows 12 months to perfect the invention design	Delays PTO Examination (until regular Utility Application is filed)
Allows inventor to legally claim "Patent Pending"	Starts the 1-year timer for most foreign patents
Can be filed with less expensive informal drawings	Not attractive, by itself, to potential licensees

Benefits and Drawbacks of Utility Patents

Benefits	Drawbacks
Strongest protection	Expensive (both preparation and filing fees are considerably more expensive than design patents)
20 year duration (from filing date)	Requires three maintenance fees at 3.5, 7.5, and 11.5 years after issuance.
Excellent for protecting how an invention works, regardless of what it looks like	Does not protect the ornamental appearance of the invention
Less Expensive drawings ($100/sheet vs. $125 with design patents)

Benefits and Drawbacks of Design Patents

Benefits	Drawbacks
Inexpensive (compared to Utility Patents)	Protects "ornamental appearance" only, not "how it works" or utility aspects
Allows you to legally indicated "patent pending" after filed	Only 14 year duration instead of 17-20 years with utility patent
Good for protecting items with ornamental or aesthetic appeal (i.e.., hubcaps, car designs, etc.)	Does not protect "how" the invention works
Filing fees less expensive than utility patent ($265 vs. $530)	Drawings more expensive ($125/sheet vs. $100) because they're more detailed
More likely to be granted than utility patents (~95% vs ~40%)