Patent Question.

Patent Question.

Bob	8/23/2003 5:19:46 PM
How do you do market research on a product to determine if you should file a patent, without telling the world what it is and therefore making it "Public Knowledge?" I have and idea and am not sure if it will sell. If it would sell I know I should then file for a patent. But I am not made of money and want to find out if it would really sell before spending too much cash on it. I have tried to contact my target customer which is Police Departments. I have asked to interview an experienced police officer to determine if the officer thinks his department or police in general would have an interest in this product. I have tried to keep the "Product" secrete but they do not want to spend time unless I tell them exactly what it is. They are unwilling to sign a non disclosure. They just say "What is it." Any suggestions?



"\|-\|erc"	8/24/2003 6:07:52 PM
"Bob" <oso_bob@yahoo.com> wrote in message How do you do market research on a product to determine if you should file a patent, without telling the world what it is and therefore making it "Public Knowledge?" I have and idea and am not sure if it will sell. If it would sell I know I should then file for a patent. But I am not made of money and want to find out if it would really sell before spending too much cash on it. I have tried to contact my target customer which is Police Departments. I have asked to interview an experienced police officer to determine if the officer thinks his department or police in general would have an interest in this product. I have tried to keep the "Product" secrete but they do not want to spend time unless I tell them exactly what it is. They are unwilling to sign a non disclosure. They just say "What is it." Any suggestions? A provisional patent is the first stage of obtaining a patent, much cheaper and it gives you 1 year until you have to proceed to a full patent in which you can disclose information. What most companies call 'patent pending'. Note it takes one year before the provisional patent is approved, during that time the document is kept in a safe. Therefore if there are disputes to the invention date they will require evidence going before the 1 year period. Herc



"Richard"	8/24/2003 6:51:00 PM
Bob wrote:>> How do you do market research on a product to determine if you should file a patent, without telling the world what it is and therefore making it "Public Knowledge?" I have and idea and am not sure if it will sell. If it would sell I know I should then file for a patent. But I am not made of money and want to find out if it would really sell before spending too much cash on it. I have tried to contact my target customer which is Police Departments. I have asked to interview an experienced police officer to determine if the officer thinks his department or police in general would have an interest in this product. I have tried to keep the "Product" secrete but they do not want to spend time unless I tell them exactly what it is. They are unwilling to sign a non disclosure. They just say "What is it." Any suggestions? Do what many companies do, go ahead and get the ball rolling on producing the item and stamp on it, "patent pending". Just make sure you file for the patent before actually showing it to the customers. That way if somebody tries to steal your idea, you have the documentation to show it is your idea and they lose.



"sam adams"	8/25/2003 6:14:28 PM
"\|-\|erc" <chess3@ozemail.com.au> wrote in message news:gp_1b.768$Ca5.34326@nnrp1.ozemail.com.au... A provisional patent is the first stage of obtaining a patent, much cheaper and it gives you 1 year until you have to proceed to a full patent in which you can disclose information. What most companies call 'patent pending'. Note it takes one year before the provisional patent is approved, during that time the document is kept in a safe. Therefore if there are disputes to the invention date they will require evidence going before the 1 year period. Herc Ouch! Bad, bad, bad stuff here... 1) a provisional is optional, not the first stage of the patent process. many just file regular apps. 2) a provisional automatically DIES in one year. so, you gotta file a regular appl within that one year to relate back to the prov's filing date. 3) kept in a safe? hmmm.... imo, you get what you pay for. provisionals are cheaper than regular apps. iff your situation is right, a provisional can be helpful. ask a local patent attorney or agent for help. they will assess your situation & advise you accordingly.



"\|-\|erc"	8/26/2003 2:03:05 PM
"sam adams" <spammaps@spammaps.doh> wrote "\|-\|erc" <chess3@ozemail.com.au> wrote in cheaper and you that the Ouch! Bad, bad, bad stuff here... 1) a provisional is optional, not the first stage of the patent process. many just file regular apps. but appropriate for the original post concerning disclosure and cost 2) a provisional automatically DIES in one year. so, you gotta file a regular appl within that one year to relate back to the prov's filing date. as I wrote, a full patent DIES if you don't renew with hundreds of times the provional fee. 3) kept in a safe? hmmm.... Are provisional patent applications public or are they kept confidential? Copyright 1993-1995 Oppedahl & Larson LLP. Disclaimer: This is not legal advice. Click for information on the purpose of this page. All patent applications received at the US Patent Office are kept secret by the Patent Office imo, you get what you pay for. provisionals are cheaper than regular apps. iff your situation is right, a provisional can be helpful. ask a local patent attorney or agent for help. they will assess your situation & advise you accordingly. in your learned opinion, I've filed a provisional patent and for a fairly low cost it was published in every patent office in my country. Herc

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