Posts in Invention Basics
Beyond the Slice and Dice: Turning Your Idea into an Invention
The patent process actually starts well before you file a patent application or seek assistance from a patent attorney. Every patent application starts with an invention, and …
If You Want to Protect Your Business Method, Reframe It as a Technical Invention
The most effective way to protect an inventive business method is with a patent on a technical invention. Ever since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2014 Alice …
Why Engineering Companies Get into IP Trouble: Five Tips to Mitigate the Risks
Too often, engineering companies are in such a race to come up with the next big thing that they forget to consider the crucial step following their …
Congress Must Work to Understand the Language of Inventors
One of the more dramatic moments in my $20 million dollar patent brawl occurred in the pivotal preliminary injunction hearing at the courthouse in downtown Tyler, Texas. I …
Distinguishing Colloquial Obviousness and Legal Obviousness
Have you ever worked with a lay inventor who had a hard time dealing with obviousness under U.S. patent law? Many patent lawyers have. It is …
Your Developers Could Be Publicly Disclosing Source Code By Using Third-Party Code Repositories
Recently, I met with a potential client to discuss key points that developers and management should keep in mind in taking the first steps to begin developing …
Seven Steps to Success in Business or Entrepreneurship
There really is no one-size-fits-all approach entrepreneurs and business executives can follow, and there is no roadmap to success that will work in all cases. That doesn’…
Strategies for Preparing Infringement and Validity Opinions
A company must be strategic in any business decision it makes in order to ensure that it takes the necessary measures to avoid liability for its actions. …
Mitigating ‘Justified Paranoia’ via Provisional Patent Applications
As mentioned in Part I of this series, many inventors will seek to obtain some kind of patent protection so they can stake claim to their invention. …
Justified Paranoia: Patenting and the Delicate Dance Between Confidentiality and Investment
Most inventors understand that a certain amount of paranoia goes a long way when dealing with an idea or invention. Ideas cannot be patented, but every invention …
Combating the ‘Dunning-Kruger Effect’ in Inventors
Patent professionals encounter many different personality types working with their colleagues and inventors. On one end, there are those who do great work but lack confidence in …
Anatomy of a Valuable Patent: Building on the Structural Uniqueness of an Invention
From a conceptual standpoint, it would seem logical to assume that writing text to describe a particular invention ought to be easy for the inventor of that …
How Can I Sell an Idea for Profit? Unlocking the Idea-Invention Dichotomy
Selling an idea and waiting for lottery-like winnings to arrive at your doorstep seems to be the American dream. It is certainly the dream of every inventor, …
Keeping a Good Invention Notebook Still Makes Good Sense
It is worth remembering, however, that an invention notebook is not just for proving when you invented aspects of your invention, which will rarely if ever be …
Understanding Substitutes: Is your invention desirable to consumers?
Frequently one of the most challenging aspects of inventing is determining what need a particular invention fills. This is not to suggest that inventors do not know …
