It has always amazed me how many people have some kind of an invention idea. I am equally amazed by the fact that over 90% of these people never do anything with their idea.
Then I realized why people didn't follow up. They have no idea how to get started!
So how does an inventor start? Where do go, what do you do? Of equal importance is what you should not do. Let's tackle them both.
First the 'Do Not List.' It is short and simple.
1. Do not pay any money to an invention marketing or development company EVER
2. Do not go to a patent attorney just YET. You will later but only after your invention is completed in every aspect to make sure it works.
3. Do not expect immediate financial results if any at all. The entire invention process is lengthy and a risk.
That is the entire Do Not List. If you act on any one of the items you will succeed to fail.
How about the 'Do List.' It is also pretty short and but not so simple.
1. Write everything you do regarding the invention in a bound notebook.
A. Date each page.
B. Sign each page.
C. Have a third party witness sign each page as well.
2. Do your own preliminary patent search. You can go online to the United States Patent and Trademark Office and simply follow the links.
3. Spend a few dollars to obtain a professional evaluation from a reputable company. This should cost no more than a couple of hundred dollars. The results of the evaluation should tell you if you should continue your project or not. It is money well spent.
4. If you received a negative evaluation, your list stops here. If positive, continue.
5. Build a crude prototype with off the shelf components to see if can really work. You will also learn that the product will need some kind of modifications along the way as well.
6. Apply for a Provisional Application for Patent at the USPTO. You can do this on your own without the expense of a patent attorney. The filing fee is only $105.00 (as of this writing).
7. Research the type of companies that would be candidates to approach to license your product.
8. Develop marketing materials to be sent to those companies.
9. Construct a more complete working prototype.
10. Apply for full patent protection with a patent attorney.
Once you have completed the ten items above, the hardest part now begins. Simply put, convincing companies that they can make money with your invention. If you can do that you have become a successful inventor.
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