By Keith Haddaway of Venable LLPClients new to intellectual property management and patenting frequently comment that the patent application process is “puzzling” especially with respect to timing and the amount and type of information that should be included. Particularly in smaller or newly formed organizations, patent professionals are often asked to address issues such as:
- “We have this idea for a widget that does X, how do we know if we should patent it?”
- “Project Y has been moving along for a while, do you think we have enough information for a patent application? What do we still need to do?”
- “We would ultimately like to patent four related ideas, but we only have one that is ready to go right now. Should we wait until all four are ready to file an application or should we file them one at a time?”
- “Development of a system that uses our widget will be complete in 18 months, but we have ideas for some components now. When and how should we proceed?”
- “I know that I should fill out an invention disclosure form of some sort for this idea, but the form asks for a lot of information and I just don’t have time.”
These are all valid concerns, and a person or organization less familiar with the patenting process can easily find themselves lost. A lot of the mystery can be alleviated with efficient internal tracking in conjunction with consultation with a paten...
