HuntingNet.com Forums - View Single Post - Did you ever just have a really really good idea?
Old 10-25-2006, 06:21 PM
  #10  
Fieldmouse
Dominant Buck
 
Fieldmouse's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2004
Posts: 38,928
Default RE: Did you ever just have a really really good idea?

Believe it or not you can patent things yourself. One problem is that so many things have been patented you may already find some form of the idea already covered in another patent. Two, patents are very hard to defend without deep pockets. If a big company comes along and decides to infringe on your patent rights, there's not much you can do without big bucks.

With that said, in order to get a patent your idea must be original and not obvious. To do this, search on-line on the Federal Government's Patent office. It's free a quite interesting. I use to have the link but not anymore. It can't be hard to find. While you're doing this, you could put your thoughts and description down on paper with any drawings you can make. Take those papers, make a copy, keep one for yourself to make adjustments and such, the other one seal in an envelope and mail it to yourself for safe keeping. DON'T OPEN IT, LEAVE IT SEALED. The US Post Office is an official date and time stamp recognized buy the court system should there ever be a question of who came up with the idea first. The on-line search isn't a complete search, the only way you can do a complete search is make the trip to DC or pay 2-3K for an attorney to do it for you. After you are satisfied you have a unique and non-obvious idea, you can fill out and file the paper work yourself, pay the nominal fee and file for the patent.

Good luck! If you are successful try to sell it. You don't need to have the patent when you try to sell it but it helps. You do need to file with in 1 year after you tell anyone or it's free game. Once you do apply for the patent, you can put patent pending on any correspondence with a company as a way to deter them from stealing the idea and bringing it to market without you.
Fieldmouse is offline