re: How much to file for a patent?

Kearney, McWilliams & Davis in Houston

www.kmd.law

I was looking into getting a patent too but it’s outlandishly expensive, has a time limit and there are so many ways to screw it up if not done professionally. Pay for it once and have peace of mind.

I can’t afford a patent right now so I looked into trademarking the name of my product, a logo as well as catch a phrase that could be associated with my product. The likelihood of me ever being able to mass produce my this is slim to none but I’m hoping that eventually someone would like to use the name or logo trademark and purchase that from me...also unlikely

Minimum 10K for a software patent. I’m an investor in a software start up and that’s been the average cost. The company has filed 3 so far.

They started with a provisional to secure the idea. You have a year from the date of submission to file a patent.

Search the uspto website. You’ll be surprised what has been patented already.

I used a parent agent for mine in 2002 and it cost me around $5,000.00. Like the barrister said, it’s a million to one shot and if you catch lighting in a bottle you’re going to court to defend. Wouldn’t waste the money or time again IMO.

You got destroyed by a patent agent, that is wildly priced for what he is qualified to do. Makes me think you did very little research and are upset that you chose to go the cheapest route possible.

You can file a provisional as an individual for less than $150 as a micro entity with all fees. Provisional is basically a placeholder and they don’t even open it until you file for a patent. They review the provisional so that any claims you made in provisional are time stamped back on the date you filed the provisional. New claims are not given the time stamp.

A simple patent can be filed by an individual but it is a headache and everything has to be done correctly. A simple patent filing will run $2000 to $3500 from a good patent attorney( likely a degreed Mechanical Engineer). A more complex patent... think machinery... numerous moving parts... etc will cost a hell of a lot more. There is a lot of prior art out there and this stuff is difficult to understand and interpret for most.

Patents are also only valuable if you plan on spending money to defend them. This can get expensive fast.

I personally filed 3 provisionals back in 2016 and 2017. Turned it all over to a firm in Houston called Ewing & Jones and they handled the 3 subsequent patent filings. This doesn’t include international under PTC which costs more just to hold an international time stamp. I spend about $60K-$70K a year on IP. Have 4 granted patents, 2 provisionals and 4 patent applications in now with the USPTO.

You really should speak with a proper patent lawyer because there are a number of strategies that involve filing a patent and then making a slightly néw claims in 9-12 months and it can buy you a lot of time and push out full costs until revenue starts to catch up to cover costs.

Write the design on paper and then physically mail it to yourself.

The postal stamp will be federally dated and if someone steals your idea you can open the letter in court to prove your case.

Trust me, I stayed at a Holiday Inn one night

I already got dibs on 7-minute Abs.

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Use a self-addressed stamped envelope w/ your invention idea inside

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That probably worked in the 1980’s. These days, it’s more secure to post detailed drawings with a detailed description of the product on a Popular message board, such as the OT. That way it is time/date stamped, and you have multiple witnesses to the time and date of the original posting of the idea. Just make sure not to edit your post later. Good Luck!