2016-11-14
Fueled by passion, many inventors and businesses spend a great deal of time focusing on a new invention. It is hoped that the new invention will be a success in the market and meet the needs of those in your field of choice.
Marketing plans and investment opportunities are often in the back of an inventor’s mind when making a new product. Unfortunately, patenting the invention is not generally a priority during the early stages of inventing. As a result, a number of pitfalls exist that can have an effect on the patentability of an invention.
Here is a look at some pitfalls that exist when patenting inventions.
A Lack of Documentation
When creating a new product or method, maintaining good records can be incredibly beneficial. Sketches, drawings and notes can be helpful during the patent process to correctly describe the different elements of your invention. Maintaining good records allows the inventor to review progress, identify what was done correctly, identify what doesn’t work and identify different types of modifications that may be made to the original concept. This information can be vital to successfully obtaining a patent for your invention.
Maintaining documentation may also be useful in the event that a claim regarding inventorship is raised. Knowing who provided what incite, recommendations and changes to the invention may be used to determine who should be considered an inventor.
New Inventions
Inventors generally believe that their inventions are new products, methods or processes that have not been used by others. This is often the case because no corresponding products are available on the market.
In 2014, the Canadian Patent Office granted over 23,700 patents. Now imagine if approximately the same number of patents had been granted every year for the last 50 years. When determining whether or not your invention is new, it is important to not look only at issued patents but also look at the patent applications that have been filed. A search of the Canadian patent database shows that there are over 2,273,000 patents/patent applications which have been filed in Canada. Any of these patents/applications plus any foreign patents/patent applications can be used to determine whether or not your invention can actually be considered new.
The Unique Feature
An invention may be an improvement on an already existing product or a variation of a known product. When looking to obtain a patent on an improvement or a variation, it is important to understand what makes the invention unique. This unique feature (or novel feature) needs to be clearly articulated within a patent application.
You can do it on your Own
This is potentially the biggest pitfall you can make when patenting your invention. On the surface, patenting seems simple: You write up a description of your invention, provide some sketches and complete the necessary paperwork for submission to the Patent Office. On request, the Patent Office reviews your application and the Patent Office approves it. Unfortunately, the patent process is not usually a smooth process.
During the review of your application, the Patent Office often objects to your patent application. In order to receive a patent, your patent claims must describe an invention that is new, useful and non-obvious.
Unfortunately, most inventors do not have sufficient knowledge about the patent rules and processes to be able to successfully prepare an application. It is, therefore, recommended that a patent professional be called upon to assist. A patent agent has training specific to drafting and prosecuting patent applications and an understanding of the patent rules and processes. This experience and training can be the difference between successfully obtaining an issued patent or having your application rejected.
While patenting your invention does not need to be at the top of your priority list, it should have a presence on your list. As you work on your invention, take time out to educated yourself on the patent requirements and processes, or better yet reach out to a patent agent and get yourself informed.
