We, my husband and I, have a product that we produced and started selling in Dec. 2005. We started the patent process in Jan. '06 but ran out of money before filing it. We continued the sale of our product on a very small basis, but without interruption through the present. We were able to get a little monetary infusion into our company and went to see the patent attorney we started with. He said it was too late to patent our product, but that no one else could either because it had been over a year. My question is what protection, if any do we have against someone else coming in now and taking our formula and marketing it?
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Product protection without patent
- Thread Starter Marmi
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Might the attorney be talking about this?
35 U.S.C. Section 102(b) states that a U.S. patent application must be filed within one year of the publication of an invention. A patent may still be obtained if the inventor can evidence the fact that the inventor made the invention before the publication occurred.
Without the protection of a patent that has been granted, anyone can copy and use your invention. Typically the "pending" status will make second comers think twice about trying to do so.
35 U.S.C. Section 102(b) states that a U.S. patent application must be filed within one year of the publication of an invention. A patent may still be obtained if the inventor can evidence the fact that the inventor made the invention before the publication occurred.
Without the protection of a patent that has been granted, anyone can copy and use your invention. Typically the "pending" status will make second comers think twice about trying to do so.
Thank you for your answer. Although the idea for the product was introduced in a memorandum to raise money for manufacturing and marketing, the actual product was not produced until the money was procured. If the memorandum constitutes publication the question is moot. If, however, the memorandum does not constitute publication then could we still be able to submit a patent?
And if this is the case, the inventor can produce evidence that the invention
was made before the publication occurred.
And if this is the case, the inventor can produce evidence that the invention
was made before the publication occurred.
What did the lawyer you were speaking to tell you about the issue concerning publication?
Our lawyer didn't mention publication. The first I heard of "publication" was from your answer to my original question. I've done some research and have come up with the terms "first to invent" , "non-abandonment" and "infringement". Could there be any protection afforded from any of these? Obviously, we were not very pleased with the IP attorney that we dealt with and I am seeking a little more education on the subject so that I can at least have an intelligent conversation and ask the correct questions. Any input you can give me will be greatly appreciated.
Here is what I see about that "quote":
35 U.S.C. 102
http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/documents/appxl_35_U_S_C_102.htm
Or here:
http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/mpep_e8r6_appxl.pdf
Where did you get this:
A patent may still be obtained if the inventor can evidence the fact that the inventor made the invention before the publication occurred.
I couldn't find that in the law, and have been reading alot.
I used sections of your "quote" and came up with no sources during a search.Would like to see this validated, it would be interesting.
Thanks for your support!
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