Protect Your Innovation: Avoid Scams Are you looking for help in getting patent protection and/or marketing services for your invention? Are you considering contracting with a company that promises to help you secure a patent and market your invention? If so, there are three very important steps you should take before signing a contract for…
Did you miss the deadline for responding to an office action or pay a maintenance fee? Don’t despair; you’ve got options. Before December 18, 2013, applicants who missed the deadline for responding to an office action but wanted to continue prosecuting their application would have filed a petition to the Commissioner for Patents requesting that…
Should I file a provisional patent application? Source: USPTO.GOV Rob Hodge, Office of Innovation Development One of the most frequent questions independent inventors ask is whether they should file a provisional patent application. But there is no surefire answer. Every situation is unique, and what works for one inventor might not work for another. Only…
Models, Exhibits, and Specimens Models or exhibits are not required in most patent applications since the description of the invention in the specification and the drawings must be sufficiently full, clear, and complete and capable of being understood to disclose the invention without the aid of a model. A working model, or other physical exhibit,…
Source: USPTO.GOV The Department of Commerce’s United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is seeking nominations for the 2017 National Medal of Technology and Innovation. WASHINGTON – The Department of Commerce’s United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is seeking nominations for the 2017 National Medal of Technology and Innovation. The medal is presented each year…
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) utilizes PAIR – Patent Application Information Retrieval System. PAIR has a private site that provides a USPTO/Internet infrastructure capability to securely provide patent application status information to USPTO customers with a customer number associated with the correspondence address for their application and the appropriate software tools. PAIR also has…
Find your Idea’s Fatal Flaw by asking the following questions: “What am I missing? What possible pitfalls am I not seeing? How might my competitors respond? What…makes me think that my business or product idea will work when…others don’t?” Once its flaws have been identified, find a way to fix them. Test Outside your Network…
JOAN E. HIGGINBOTHAM NASA ASTRONAUT (FORMER) PERSONAL DATA: Born in Chicago, Illinois. She enjoys body building (weightlifting), cycling, music, motivational speaking. EDUCATION: Graduated from Whitney M. Young Magnet High School, Chicago, Illinois, in 1982; received a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, in 1987, a Masters of Management…
Source: Entrepreneurs Even if you don’t realize it, everyone deals with trademarks on a daily basis. “Trademark” is another way of referring to brands. Consumers’ purchasing decisions are influenced by trademarks and the reputation such brands represent. It is important for business people to have an understanding of why trademarks are important assets and help grow…
The companies that do this best, according to Beckley, are the ones that will ultimately have sustained success.”In the vast sea of innovation, companies that take the largest risk, close the biggest gaps and identify the newest opportunities are rewarded with the title of true innovators and leaders by their consumers and peers,” he said….
