They generally have very detailed often complicated search features that the free databases do not have. These tools or functions, however, are better suited for patent search professionals. An individuals well versed in patent search and how to maximize the capabilities of a search database can use these tools to carry out a more effective search.
An amateur cannot. We advise the patent amateur who decides to carry on the difficult process of effectively searching existing patents to begin with the free databases. Used correctly, they can provide all of the value you need. Another option for searching patents is to hire a high-volume patent search firm. These firms provide low-cost patent solutions. Generally, they do not provide a large number of patent search options or customization. They generally allow the individual to pay for a national patent search or international patent search.
I do not have many good things to say about these firms. Generally, they perform a cursory search of the claimed invention in either a free or paid database. The search tends to be cursory in nature. These firms do not take a lot of time to really understand the novel and useful elements that can be claimed on the invention. If the searcher does not fully understand the characteristics of the invention, it is nearly impossible to perform a thorough patent search.
In summary, you end up getting what you pay for with these search firms. Their low cost yields a low-value result. The best way to identify these types of firms is that they tend to bundle together all sorts of services along with the search.
For example, they combine a patent search with drafting, filing, prosecution, etc. A patent search's goal is to reach a confidence level of at least 80 percent. Going higher than that would make the cost higher than is realistic. Therefore, the search is limited to what is reasonable based on the invention's assumed value.
Some prior art won't be uncovered by a search because there are laws in place keeping it secret if the patent was first filed within 18 months of your application. In this case, you could throw away thousands of dollars trying to reach percent confidence and never get there.
This is why a reasonable yet thorough search for prior art makes the most sense. If you don't know what's in that secret prior art, there's no way you could distinguish your invention from it anyway. By that same token, if you do not search for prior art, you're essentially flying blind trying to defend your invention's unique qualities.
It makes sense to start with a preliminary search on your own, but you should later add a professional searcher who works alongside a patent attorney. This individual will be able to go deeper than you could. This depends on how much written analysis you need, how complex your invention is, and how much prior art must be considered in the application. While there are many costly aspects of filing a patent application, hiring a top-notch patent searcher and getting an excellent written analysis are easily your best investments.
A professional patent search usually takes about five business days, beginning from the time all the information needed for the search is received. Other than the search fees, you might also have to pay an additional cost to get printed copies of the search results. Even if the USPTO approves your application and grants you a patent after the examination, the evaluation process might not be as extensive as a professional patent search service.
As such, you will be vulnerable to an infringement lawsuit if the holder of another patent notices a conflict. The cost of hiring a professional patent searcher is worth it because it can help you avoid lawsuits. If professional search results show that your invention is novel, you should file your patent application immediately instead of letting the search go to waste. You might want to consider preparing your patent application ahead of time so it will be ready for submission as soon as you receive the patent search results.
The USPTO gets over a thousand patent applications every day, so do not let another person or company patent your product or idea before you do. Upcounsel accepts only the top 5 percent of lawyers to its site. This trick is particularly useful in industries where only a handful of companies are prominent.
A patent gives you a monopoly on your invention for 20 years, which is why many inventors choose to pursue patents despite the costs associated with the process.
In addition to the research fees, you will have to pay:. If your business is larger, maintenance fees for you are typically double what they are for small entities.
The amount of time a patent search takes depends on who is doing the research and the type of invention they are researching. For example, because there are so many software patents in existence, a search for this type of invention might take longer than other searches. A thorough search can take between five business days and four weeks, but that is just a rough estimate. You should give your researcher as much information as possible about your invention. You can include drawings, a detailed description, and the names of any companies whom you know are your competitors.
A professional patent search can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars, but the benefits of such a search may make it worth the price. If you need help with patent searching, you can post your question or concern on UpCounsel's marketplace. Limiting your patent search to those aspects of your product that you believe to be inventive is one of the most important steps of a patentability search.
Consequently, before we request that a search be undertaken on your invention, we will walk you through the requirements for patentability and work with you to identify the specific features of your new idea that should be searched.
Frequently a patentability search will uncover prior art that proves that the invention being considered for the patent application is not new, or that the invention is simply an obvious variation of what others have already done.
In these cases, it does not make sense to file the patent application on that invention since the invention does not meet the requirements for patentability. Even when a patentability search does not prove the invention unpatentable, a patentability search almost always provides information that is useful in drafting a patent application. The results of the search will identify prior art that is close to the invention, allowing the application to be drafted in light of that prior art.
If the prior art is close to the invention, areas that are patentable in spite of that prior art can be emphasized in the patent application. If the patentability search had not been conducted, it is likely that too much time and money would be spent describing aspects of the invention in the application that were not patentable, while not enough time is spent describing the aspects that are more likely patentable.
Unfortunately, even if you have us conduct a patentability search, there is no guarantee that the best prior art will be discovered in the search. Searches generally rely upon keyword searches, and similar prior art references may use different words for the same general concepts.
Furthermore, because of the cost involved, foreign prior art is rarely searched in any significant manner during a prior art search.
Non-patent literature such as product manuals from the s can also be difficult to find and search properly. In addition, under U. A patent application filed before your application will be prior art that can be used against you even if it has not yet published by the time you file your patent application. As a result, prior art searches are never perfect, and you should expect that relevant prior art might appear for the first time in a rejection from the U.
Patent Office even after a patentability search is conducted. In other words, patentability searches are not perfect, and never tell you that an invention is patentable.
Rather, they are useful for telling when an invention is not patentable. In spite of this fallibility, inventors use patentability searches to prevent the filing of patent applications on unpatentable inventions, and therefore the searches are extremely useful even if the patentability search won't correctly identify all unpatentable inventions. Furthermore, even if the best prior art is not always discovered, the discovery of some relevant prior art will greatly aid in the drafting of a patent application.
In some cases, it may be advantageous to have the source performed by professionals inside our firm. In most cases, the overall cost to our client is not significantly different if the search is performed internally as opposed to hiring Cardinal IP or another vendor to perform the search. Yes, and many inventors have become quite skilled at doing their own patent searching.
If you do conduct your own searches, bear in mind that the analysis of search results can be tricky--it can sometimes be difficult to identify patentable aspects of an invention in light of similar prior art documents. In other words, a pessimistic inventor will frequently find a similar patent and despair that there is nothing patentable in their idea when in reality valuable patents can still be obtained. You can also request that a search be done for you directly from a third-party search firm, such as Cardinal IP.
The additional cost from Forsgren Fisher McCalmont DeMarea Tysver covers our professional services in requesting and reviewing the search. Although we believe that we are highly skilled in managing and analyzing patentability searches, we know that we are not the cheapest attorneys that you could find.
If you decide to go elsewhere, we encourage you to hire a patent attorney or agent to conduct or analyze your search.
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