I'm about to get an education
The husband has an idea for an accessory for a tool. It's an idea he's had for some time now -- several years -- but only recently did he finally make a prototype. It was very home-made looking and clunky; a few days later, he literally had a dream about it and made a second prototype that looks good and works so well that he has been able to sell several of them to friends who are in the same profession as him.
Suddenly, the idea of a patent doesn't seem so far-fetched.
For those who know anything about patents, though, you know the clock is now ticking and we have one year from the date he first publicly displayed and/or sold his invention to apply for a patent. If you let that year lapse without filing, your idea is no longer patent eligible. Today we had a consultation with a patent attorney and it looks like we actually have a shot at getting this thing patented! He seemed impressed with the idea and talked to us at length about our options. I got the referral to this attorney from an attorney at my firm, so we were pretty comfortable talking to him and didn't feel pressured to do anything. He told us about ways we could save money or defer paying some of the amounts we will have to pay. It won't be cheap, but it's not going to cost as much as we thought, either. The idea behind filing the patent application is really about being able to put "patent pending" on it and then approach a few companies to see if they want to buy the idea. If we are unsuccessful in selling the idea, we can still make and sell the product and be protected by the patent -- but that would mean starting a business, etc., and we don't really envision starting a business with only one product. It's kind of a stand-alone idea. Of course, he could just do it as a hobby or find a way to get local retailers to sell it, but that would be a looooooooooooooooong road to recovering our investment.
Anyway, it's kind of exciting. I'm not a gambler -- far from it -- but this isn't quite like just rolling the dice. I have to look at it as an investment. Plus, I don't want to stand in the way of the husband's dream. He's been talking about this for almost as long as we've been together and now that he's actually done something about it, I've got to give his ambition the respect it deserves. So, I'm about to immerse myself in anything I can to learn about the patent process. I've got my work cut out for me!
Wish us luck!
Suddenly, the idea of a patent doesn't seem so far-fetched.
For those who know anything about patents, though, you know the clock is now ticking and we have one year from the date he first publicly displayed and/or sold his invention to apply for a patent. If you let that year lapse without filing, your idea is no longer patent eligible. Today we had a consultation with a patent attorney and it looks like we actually have a shot at getting this thing patented! He seemed impressed with the idea and talked to us at length about our options. I got the referral to this attorney from an attorney at my firm, so we were pretty comfortable talking to him and didn't feel pressured to do anything. He told us about ways we could save money or defer paying some of the amounts we will have to pay. It won't be cheap, but it's not going to cost as much as we thought, either. The idea behind filing the patent application is really about being able to put "patent pending" on it and then approach a few companies to see if they want to buy the idea. If we are unsuccessful in selling the idea, we can still make and sell the product and be protected by the patent -- but that would mean starting a business, etc., and we don't really envision starting a business with only one product. It's kind of a stand-alone idea. Of course, he could just do it as a hobby or find a way to get local retailers to sell it, but that would be a looooooooooooooooong road to recovering our investment.
Anyway, it's kind of exciting. I'm not a gambler -- far from it -- but this isn't quite like just rolling the dice. I have to look at it as an investment. Plus, I don't want to stand in the way of the husband's dream. He's been talking about this for almost as long as we've been together and now that he's actually done something about it, I've got to give his ambition the respect it deserves. So, I'm about to immerse myself in anything I can to learn about the patent process. I've got my work cut out for me!
Wish us luck!
posted by PlatinumGirl at 6:59 PM
4 Comments:
Good Luck to you and your husband! I hereby request rights to be the product distributor in the Fresno area!
Very cool!!!
That is a very supportive and constructive attitude. If he doesn't understand how fortunate he is to have you as his wife then he needs his ass kicked.
I'm sure he knows though. Good luck; stick it out!
Gary: Thanks! We'll keep it in mind.
Pixie: :0)
Tracy: I think he does. Now, just crossing our fingers that this pans out!
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