hobby inventions, innovations, ideas, etcetera

[magnetic1]

Don't post here. Once you post here, your 35 U.S.C. 102 bar time clock starts ticking (1 year). If you truly think you have a good idea and it is novel, not obvious, and possibly patentable, do not post it here. You may lose your rights to it, if it is really a good and patentable idea. Contact a local patent attorney and see if you can get something out of it before you donate it to the public for free. If you ever plan to patent your idea in a foreign country, posting here will immediately eliminate that possibility (for most countries).

 

He's right Though I think maybe if you post in the member section what wouldnt be fully "public" ??

 

Im a patent examiner, either SharkB8 despises me or he loves me. Dunno which

 

What area do you work with SharkB8?

Edited April 17, 2008 by magnetic1

[Sharkb8]

sending PM to magnetic1 (it won't be hate mail)

 

 

By the way, sign me up for the PH on a track idea. I'd love to have one of those! Also, I like the idea of having glass or acrylic tanks pre-drilled and pre-set with oscillating/swiveling powerheads built right into the glass. All the powercords could be centralized and come out the back somewhere. Each would need an intake tube too.

[treesprite]

sending PM to magnetic1 (it won't be hate mail)

By the way, sign me up for the PH on a track idea. I'd love to have one of those! Also, I like the idea of having glass or acrylic tanks pre-drilled and pre-set with oscillating/swiveling powerheads built right into the glass. All the powercords could be centralized and come out the back somewhere. Each would need an intake tube too.

 

NAGA what do you think? Can you fill this order?

[Kengar]

He's right Though I think maybe if you post in the member section what wouldnt be fully "public" ??

 

Im a patent examiner, either SharkB8 despises me or he loves me. Dunno which

 

What area do you work with SharkB8?

 

 

It would be public. Access to the infromation would be unctrolled in that anyone could join WAMAS and see it. More than a select group of people. No restrictions placed on those who do see it as to whether they could further disseminate the infromation. In short, total public disclosure.

 

BTW, what art unit are you in? (Subject matter, not number please.)

[steveoutlaw]

Stay on target.

Edited April 24, 2008 by steveoutlaw

[vaironman]

I've got this idea for a plug in, submersible, self contained device to move water around the tank. It will be held on to the glass by suction cups. Once I get this idea patented and mass produced, I'm going to start working on a device that will control the force of the flow of these devices, maybe even alternate the flow between multiple devices. And then, since the suction cups are destined to fail causing a sand storm and chaos in the tank, I will patent a magnetic holder that I will charge a nominal fee for, that will replace the failing suction cups.

 

I am going to be RICH!!

 

 

Sorry, your idea looks very much like the vortex, koralia, Tunze and if not rejection by 35 U.S.C 102, it will be rejected in a combination of patents/application of 35 U.S.C 103.

 

Got to have an improvement from an old invention/multiple inventions and the device/apparatus has to be novel and "enable". Meaning the idea has to be able to work in real life. An examiner might and can ask you to demonstrate to him/her proof of your idea.

 

Cheers.

Edited April 17, 2008 by vaironman

[treesprite]

I am talking about inventions, not Joe and Jack racing to the patent office after they invented the same item at two different times and places.

[lanman]

Oops! Well, I guess the word "Sharkb8" isn't exactly original. Being that I'm an attorney, it was intended as a double entendre. As for the rest, I will PM - we are getting off topic again.

 

And where are these 'shark' attorneys when you need one? Ladyfriend hired an ambulance chaser ... turned out to be a total pussycat, and he gave up the personal injury game right after settling for nothing; said it was 'too cutthroat' for him. Sigh....

 

 

bob

[dandy7200]

What are the in house experts take on this service?

 

http://www.legalzoom.com/trademarks-patent...t-overview.html

[steveoutlaw]

What are the in house experts take on this service?

 

http://www.legalzoom.com/trademarks-patent...t-overview.html

 

 

Robert Shapiro himself created this site and Bill O'reilly promotes it..........how can you go wrong?

 

Seriously, I've not used it before so I don't know how good it is.

 

 

Treesprite - The closest I've come is my hang on sump......but as a unique as it is, it's an idea stolen from the biocubes and aquapods......just on a larger scale.

Edited April 24, 2008 by steveoutlaw

[magnetic1]

What are the in house experts take on this service?

 

http://www.legalzoom.com/trademarks-patent...t-overview.html

 

Dan,

 

Patent Pending means nothing. Seems like that site is really trying to make people think it is and just spend the money to get that "status". "Patent Pending" misleads people into actually thinking they have a patent which is hardly the case. All it means is an application has been filed in most cases. Just because it has been filed, this does not mean a patent will be granted!

 

Most of these patent service companies are scams, though this one looks decent. They do charge a boatload though as filing a provisional patent app yourself would only cost a little over $100. You can search yourself using many services like Google Patent search, the USPTO website, patent fetcher, etc. The basic filing fee for a full app. is $75 I think for small entities. The service fails to say how much they charge for responses to office actions as well as other fees AFTER filing. Those billable hours can rack up once they file the app and it goes back and forth between the attorney and the office.

 

Also keep in mind that after you get a patent, you need to pay a fee to maintain it (every few years from $500ish to $2000ish for "small entities").

Edited April 24, 2008 by magnetic1

[vaironman]

magnetic1 is correct. Does not mean a thing. All its mean is you have filed an application with the USPTO and your date of application for your novel idea started.

 

Patent pending means that you have filed an application with the USPTO and that's all its mean.

[ctenophore]

Patents are a fools game for even the biggest players in the marine aquarium industry. The cost of any litigation would be far more than any recoverable damages, not to mention the not insignificant cost of (good) prosecution. My wife is a patent attorney at a big firm downtown, so I know a little of how the game is played. Trust me Dan, you need to spend your time and money out-innovating the next guy rather than trying to keep them from copying last year's idea. That will promote the progress of science and useful arts more than a bunch of years-long court battles.

[vaironman]

It's true, patent is a game of words.

[Brian Ward]

What are the in house experts take on this service?

 

http://www.legalzoom.com/trademarks-patent...t-overview.html

 

Dan,

 

I agree with Justin here. Patents are ungodly expensive. If you really want one that's bulletproof hire a patent attorney to put together the package and submit it for you. I don't think patents are a waste of time, but you should definitely rely on innovation to keep the business going insted of defending your patents. The patent is, however, a marketing angle and a deterrent against the big guys copying your ideas.

Edited April 24, 2008 by Brian Ward

[Sharkb8]

ditto to the above.

 

Typical cost for prep and pros of a US only patent is in the 5000-10000 USD range at a typical DC pros firm. Thats attorney costs for filing. If you prep the spec yourself and just want us to file, its just the filing fee. Answering Office Actions are typically 3000 USD each. If your idea is truly new and not obvious, you can get it maybe in a couple Office Actions. If its not so unique and the art is crowded (there's lots of similar stuff out there) pros can drag on for years and years.

 

Typical infringement lawsuit cost is in the ballpark of 10 million USD. Only purpose to getting a patent for anyone here is to hopefully market it (sell the rights to it) to a big company like Tetra, etc. And I agree, the fish business is not big bucks, unlike the biotech business (my field).

[treesprite]

would someone like to invent a way to drill an established tank risk-free?

[vaironman]

Yup, I need that idea to help me fix the same issue as forrest, also.

[treesprite]

what about something that can be attatched to the inside of the tank over the intended drill area (to be drilled from outside) which would keep the glass from cracking? Now my mind is wandering into the realm of something like one of those ear-piercing guns but for bulkheads - the bulkhead goes right in automatically as teh hole is made.

[treesprite]

I've got this idea for a plug in, submersible, self contained device to move water around the tank. It will be held on to the glass by suction cups. Once I get this idea patented and mass produced, I'm going to start working on a device that will control the force of the flow of these devices, maybe even alternate the flow between multiple devices. And then, since the suction cups are destined to fail causing a sand storm and chaos in the tank, I will patent a magnetic holder that I will charge a nominal fee for, that will replace the failing suction cups.

 

I am going to be RICH!!

 

I was thinking I wished I had some kind of outside-the-tank wavemaker device and remembered that there was a thread about inventions on here somewhere. Did a serach and discovered that it was a thread I started, and discovered that Steve had already mentioned such a device. Haha.

 

Any progress, Steve?

 

I know Dandy made progress

[paul b]

I have a patent pending now and years ago I had a provisional patent. This patent pending for the Majano Wand cost me about $23,000.00. That was about a year ago and since then we now have over $40,000.00 invested. Plenty of that is lawyers fees and those fees are extreamly overpriced. They may charge you $30.00 for a short telephone conversation. I didn't send them a Christmas card because they would probably charge me to read it.

After the patent you need insurance which is about $3,000.00 a year and a factory to build it. Then a mold $3,500.00 a shipper and wholesaler. You only get a small percentage of the profits. If you go with one of those invention companies, you will get almost nothing.

I didn't go with them but at one time I went to one just to check it out.