How to Know When You Need a Patent
Determining when you need a patent, which excludes others from selling, manufacturing or offering a particular design or invention, depends on meeting standards set by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). While the USPTO discourages people from patenting mere designs or suggestions, they allow people to patent inventions and machines that serve specific uses.
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Instructions
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Visit a local USPTO office, or go to their official Web site, to research current patents and see if your invention or design is original. You can also download all applications and forms from their Web site (see Resources below).
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Know if your invention or design fits the USPTO's definition of "useful," such as a machine that effectively performs its duty as defined within your proposal.
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Hire a patent attorney or patent agent to determine whether your design or invention is worth patenting, and if there is a sufficient need for the design you have proposed.
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Effectively describe the invention or design in detail. Your patent proposal must include a thorough written description and drawings that show all features.
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Make sure your invention or design has not been described in any other publication in the world, or has not been in public use or sold prior to the patent filing. This would exclude your idea from a patent.
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Expect a period of 18 months from the time a patent proposal is filed to the time it is published by the USPTO.
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Tips & Warnings
Patent attorneys and agents are individuals who have been trained to help inventors when they decide to go through the patent process. You will find a registry for them on the United States Patent and Trademark Office Web site (see Resources below).
Don't label inventions "patented" or "patent pending" when you know you haven't filed the proper proposals and applications and paid the associated fees. Doing so is considered fraudulent, and is against federal law.
