How to File Provisional Patent Applications?
The application must meet the requirements by including an accurate written description of both the operation of the invention and the components. If drawings are also to be added, it is done for better understanding of the invention. The provisional application should not have a formal patent claim, a declaration or an oath(www.pandapatent.com). The following are ways to handle a provisional patent application:
Conducting a Patent Search
It is the first step towards the acquisition of a provisional patent. The inventor must ensure that nobody else has patented the same invention, described it in a publication or used it publicly. If one happens to use a design patented by another individual, one can be sued for royalties.
Invention Description
The description is written in less complicated terms unless there are complicated terms to be explained. It must be written in clear, full and concise terms so that any person with skill in that field can make use of your idea. A provisional application includes: inventions title, purpose of invention, description of drawings, components of invention, best mode of invention, how to carry out the steps, ways of using the invention and its advantages
Describing can also include the operations of the invention, its usage, the manufacturing method of the invention, problems to be addressed by the innovation, the field in which it applies, vital elements in the invention and the prior art involved.
Listing of inventors
These are the names of individuals who contributed to the coming up with the invention. Anyone with the slightest contribution is considered as a co-inventor, and thus his or her name must appear among the inventor’s list. The names are included since all patent applications must be filled with all the names of involved inventors.
Drawings
It is to help anybody who goes through the invention to understand what it is about and also for clarity. Illustrations are essential since if one applies for a utility patent, the attorney compares the provisional and the non-provisional applications and they should be similar so that they can be confirmed to address the same invention. The available formats for drawing presentations are handmade or computer-generated drawings, dashed or straight line, color or black and white photographs, any view, flowcharts or labeling numbers. Drawings are necessary for clarity.
Provisional Patent Application
Since the patent office does not challenge them, they are cheaper to file compared to non-provisional applications. Though offering patent protection and allow for inventors to claim patent pending, they have a limited utility time which is one year after which they are discarded from the shelves unless a non-provisional patent is filed within the year.
Within the year it is in use, it allows for the inventor to market and freely talks about his invention. Though these applications are in use for only one year, they are not examined by the patent office and thus do not provide any guarantee that a patent will be issued.An inventor is advised on filing a provisional application. If they have disclosed their ideas publicly or they are planning to disclose the concept later if it is still a secret or they are sure to afford the fee to file a provisional patent within the 12 months period allocated and if they know their short term and long term strategies.
Marketing and Development
The inventor may decide to market the idea by himself or enter into an agreement with a marketing firm who do the marketing on his behalf. It is done since the inventor usually has a period of one year to decide whether to abandon or go on with the invention. Since they have already filed a provisional patent, they have the benefit of full patent protection and thus are supposed to explore their market chances.
Non-provisional Patent Application
If an inventor decides to go on and file this application, they can choose to include new ideas and improvements that one may have come across during the one-year period. Since it is filled based on the provisional patent, it is less expensive as compared to when one files it without the provisional patent application. This application provides a 20-year protection since its filing date. Even though a patent application is not filled within the first 12 months but within the first 14 months after the provisional application was filled, it may also have the benefit of the provisional application which is restored by the filing of a grantable petition which restores the advantage.
For the completion of a provisional application, the inventor must file the stated filing fee accompanied by a cover sheet that identifies the names of all inventors, the inventions title, the claim as a provisional patent application, the inventor’s residence and an agency that contains a property interest in the application. The cover sheet could also include a docket number, a correspondence address and the name and registration of the agent or attorney if any.