PATENT SEARCHING

What is Intellectual Property? What is a Patent? It’s easy to confuse patents, copyright and trademarks.

What a Patent Looks Like

Trademarks

What can be patented? Process Machine Manufacture Composition of matter These classes of subject matter taken together include practically everything which is made by man and the process of making them.

Inventions must meet three criteria to be patentable: 1. New 2. Useful 3. Non-obvious

Three types of patents: 1. Utility 2. Plant 3. Design

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PTO Factoids  First patent issued in July 1790  Began numbering patents in 1836; already 4000 in existance  Approx PTP employees  In U.S. patent applications are held in confidence until patent is granted  Patenting U.S. Inventions abroad (first to file)  Utility patent term of rights: 20 years from date you first apply  Design patent term of rights: 14 years

Attorney Fees: Attorney: could begin near $3500 Patent agent: around $1100 See web site for list of attorneys and patent agents by state. Need to search both US Patent literature and World Patent literature for a comprehensive search

Costs & Fees: GeneralSmall Entity Filing Fees:$940$470 Maintenance Fees: 3.5 Years$940$ years$1900$ years$2910$1455

Searching can be done at a PTDL (over 70 locations) On the web: USPTO IBM Patent Server Various commercial fee based sites From CMU’s homepage: USPTO COS Lexis-Nexis