The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is the federal agency for granting U.S. patents and registering trademarks. In doing this, the USPTO fulfills the mandate of Article I, Section 8, Clause 8, of the Constitution that the legislative branch “promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors…
Is a trademark application right for you? Trademarks, patents, copyrights, domain names, and business name registrations all differ, so it is important to learn whether a trademark is appropriate for you. A trademark typically protects brand names and logos used on goods and services. A patent protects an invention. A copyright protects an original artistic…
Congress established the United States Patent and Trademark Office to issue patents on behalf of the government. The Patent Office as a distinct bureau dates from the year 1802 when a separate official in the Department of State, who became known as “Superintendent of Patents,” was placed in charge of patents. The revision of the…
An office action is an official letter sent by the USPTO. In it, an examining attorney lists any legal problems with your chosen trademark, as well as with the application itself. You must resolve all legal problems in the office action before we can register your trademark. In an office action, an examining attorney may…
Patent Pending Number A patent pending notice can be written on the device, business cards describing the product, websites or other forms of marketing (social media, flyers, etc.). The patent pending number puts the public on notice that you have submitted a utility patent application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Posting the…
Establishing trademark rights requires that you use the trademark. You can preserve future rights to a trademark by submitting a trademark application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. In general, trademark are not required by federal or state law and not every business needs a trademark. However, a registered trademarks allows you to…
To expunge information submitted in incorrect application: Where the USPTO can determine the correct application file that the papers were actually intended for, based on identifying information in the heading of the papers (e.g., application number, filing date, title of invention and inventor(s) name(s)), the USPTO will transfer the papers to the correct application file…
Once you have chosen your mark, you must also be able to identify the goods and/or services to which the mark will apply, clearly and precisely. The identification of goods and/or services must be specific enough to identify the nature of the goods and/or services. The level of specificity depends on the type of goods…
A patent for an invention is a grant of property rights by the U.S. Government through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The patent grant excludes others from making, using, or selling the invention in the United States. A utility or plant patent in force on June 8, 1995, is subject to either the 17…
What can be patented – utility patents are provided for a new, nonobvious and useful invention: Process Machine Article of manufacture Composition of matter Improvement of any of the above Note: In addition to utility patents, encompassing one of the categories above, patent protection is available for (1) ornamental design of an article of manufacture…
