Most patents issue in the sixth-week after payment. The final chart shows patent applicant delay in payment of the issue fee. The chart was created by comparing the date of issue fee payment to the three-month payment deadline. Why the delay? For Former American: You cannot extend the time for payment of the issue fee. If you miss it due to inadvertent error, you can revive.
However, if you miss it because the client has budget issues, or you want more time to consider things, or whatever, a petition to revive is out of the question. Docketing error and a heart attack while uploading are good excuses, while indecision or low budget are no excuse at all.
Excuse the digression, but in the U. The EPO sends to the attorney of record a full copy of the docs intended for grant, from page 1 of the spec through to the last sheet of drawings. Crazy, you might think, but it makes sense because, at the EPO, the spec to issue must be in strict conformity with the allowed claims.
There must be no discrepancy between what the claims define as the invention and what the spec describes as embodiments of the invention. So, what the EPO shows you as the text intended for grant will likely have amendments in the spec that are, for you guys, more deeply troubling than the content of the allowed claims.
Best check it carefully before it goes to issue, for you will be held to it, post-issue. This seemingly trivial point allows EPO Examiners, oftentimes, to isue a Notice of Allowance instead of a string of objections. What you get is a listing of the various pages of spec and claims and the dates on which you filed them at the EPO.
US specs are amended by the paragraph, not by the page. At least claims are amended by providing a marked-up full claim listing, but they no longer require a clean version. Sometimes a page or 2 of the spec is sent along if the Examiner hand-wrote changes.
Still, the system works. If you want a patent, come forward with a proposal that we can take to issue. I like the idea of having the check before the patent issues, and I like the idea that silence is deemed acceptance.
Having to think about these issues is why we get paid the big bucks — especially while we wait for Bilski. Reminds me of the system of calls between two rock climbers, A and B, half way up the Troll Wall, on opposite ends of a long rope and out of sight of each other.
Neither comes off belay till the following rigorous sequence of calls is complete:. And yet I so rarely get phone calls from examiners before the application is filed, offering helpful tips for how to typeset my application so somebody in a completely different department of the PTO will have an easier time doing something the examiner never actually does.
For example, as part of the reply to the NOA, the Applicant must provide a clean version of the specification and claims, including all changes made during the prosecution. A bond paper copy of the patent grant is sealed and mailed by the Office of Data Management. All allowed applications ready for printing will be selected by chronological sequence based on the date the issue fee was paid.
Special handling will be given to the following applications in these categories:. Patents shall be issued in the name of the United States of America, under the seal of the Patent and Trademark Office, and shall be signed by the Director or have his signature placed thereon and shall be recorded in the Patent and Trademark Office. The Fee s Transmittal form PTOLB provides a space item 2 for the person submitting the base issue fee to indicate, for printing, 1 the names of up to three registered patent attorneys or agents or, alternatively, 2 the name of a single firm, which has as a member at least one registered patent attorney or agent, and the names of up to two registered patent attorneys or agents.
If the person submitting the issue fee desires that no name of practitioner or firm be printed on the patent, the space on the Fee s Transmittal form should be left blank. If no name is listed on the form, no name will be printed on the patent. The Office does not look to the assignment record to determine the name of the assignee to be printed on the front of the patent.
Assignment data printed on the patent will be based solely on the information so supplied. Inventors often call the USPTO for updates, but they have a designated attorney or agent representing them.
Consider an Interview with your examiner - The USPTO encourages examiners to take a proactive approach to examination by reaching out and engaging our stakeholders in an effort to resolve issues and shorten prosecution. If the examiner determines that your application is in satisfactory condition and meets the requirements, you will receive a Notice of Allowance. Utility and reissue patents are issued within about four weeks after the issue fee and any required publication fee are received in the Office.
A patent number and issue date will be assigned to an application and an Issue Notification will be mailed after the issue fee has been paid and processed by the USPTO. The patent grant is mailed on the issue date of the patent. It includes any references to prior patents, the inventor s ' names, specification, and claims to name a few.
It is bound in an attractive cover and includes a gold seal and red ribbon on the cover. Order certified documents - Order certified documents with the USPTO ribbon and seal as well as the signature of an authorized certifying officer.
Maintenance fees are required to maintain a patent in force beyond 4, 8, and 12 years after the issue date for utility and reissue utility patents. If the maintenance fee and any applicable surcharge are not paid in a timely manner, the patent will expire.
For other assistance, please see our contact us page. Step 1 Anchor Step 1 Contact Patents. Patent Pro Bono Program for independent inventors and small businesses. The Program provides free legal assistance to under-resourced inventors interested in securing patent protection for their inventions.
What are patents, trademarks, servicemarks, and copyrights? Inventor resources Online services. Step 2 Inventors Assistance Center. The Inventors Assistance Center provides patent information and services to the public.
Patent and Trademark Resource Centers. A nationwide network of public, state, and academic libraries. Public Search Facility. Located in Alexandria, VA provides the public access to patent and trademark information in a variety of formats. Trained staff are available to assist public users. Law School Clinic Certification Program. Free legal help provided by law students, who gain experience drafting and filing patents and trademark applications for clients of the law school clinic.
What can and cannot be patented? How do I know if my invention is patentable? How long does patent protection last? How much does it cost to get a patent? If you prove that your patent is infringed, the court can award you damages for the infringement, and will usually issue a court order for the infringer to stop. The grant of a patent begins with filing a patent application with an issuing authority, such as the USPTO. The application is assigned to an examiner, who examines the application, conducts a search, and determines whether the invention in the application meets the requirements of patentability.
In the U. If the examiner determines that the invention is not patentable, the applicant is usually given an opportunity to respond. The exchange between the applicant and the examiner called the prosecution of the application continues until the examiner makes a final determination. Once the application is allowed, the applicant pays the issue fee, and a few months later the patent will issue. The process takes an average of 25 months, although the time varies depending upon the examiner and the subject matter.
There are some procedures available to speed up the process. The process of patenting a product begins with the preparation and filing of a patent application. A patent application is a very complicated and difficult document to prepare, and applicants are best served by getting help from a patent attorney.
The patent attorney monitors the application and prosecutes the application argues with the patent office to obtain allowance of at least one patent claim, so that a patent will issue. It typically takes two to four weeks to prepare the application. The patent application process takes about 25 months on average, although the time varies depending on the examiner and the subject matter. The short answer is you cannot patent a name, but you can protect it with a trademark.
Trademark rights are acquired wherever you use a name. To enjoy the strongest protection, though, the name should be registered as a trademark at the state or federal level.
Federal registration is preferred because it confers nationwide protection as well as a number of other benefits, including:. Whether you have an unregistered or registered trademark, if someone uses a mark that is so similar to your mark that consumers are likely to be confused, you can bring an infringement suit. If you prove infringement, the court will award damages, and likely issue an order forbidding further use of the infringing mark. They prepare, file, and prosecute applications on those new inventions.
Prosecuting a patent generally means advocating for the best protection possible with the patent office. Once a patent issues, patent attorneys can help clients license the patent. If someone infringes the patent, patent attorneys enforce the patent in court.
If a client is sued for infringement, patent attorneys defend their clients, trying to prove that the patent is in not infringed or is invalid.
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