patent question
 

so i have this tool that i made. it automatically cleans gutters without the person having to get on the roof or getting on a ladder.

just exploring if this is worth even patenting.

what do you guys suggest?

do a patent search to see if a product already exsists like yours, I'd hire a patent researcher to make sure it's really done well. if nothing exsists like it. Patent it. try to sell it.

dumb question-
is a patent researcher a lawyer?
how do you find such a person?

Its accessable via the internet ,at least 15 yrs ago it was ,govt / patent office ,I remember having to call someone to get the direct link.Interesting stuff when browsing around.

You can search online for free, it takes some digging.

If you're serious about it, and it *loks* like an original idea, hire a patent attorney. DO NOT use one of those shady $100 patent kits.

It's going to run you around $5k-$9k from start to finish to everything properly & airtight.

If you DIY it's significantly less, but then you potentially open yourself to loopholes.

Basically, pretend you're another company and try to disprove your own patent using existing patents. If your patent is airtight, then you're golden.

PS-remember, a patent only gives you the right to sue others for stealing your idea. So if another company starts producing it you have to fight them in court.

that stinks. how in the heck am i supposed to sue an unpronounceable-named chinese company from stealing it.....

I guess it's the same thing US companies have been fighting for years.

I don't have $5k to blow on this. But it sure would be nice to be like that '2000 flushes' guy on TV. Remember him?

A disclosure document signed before sitting down with an invester gives you a little comfort,if money is tight and you want to get the ball rolling youll need private capital,banks dont take risks ,I think they own the US govt right now because of this fact ,only an investor will be willing to gamble with his money but the split on the profits will usually be in his or her favor.You become just the middle man to the idea.Do you remember The Heart Beat of America slogan Chevy had back in the 90s ,that was a covered under a copyright ,the guy who pitched this to Chevy was sent checks over the term of the ad ,it exceeded over 2 million $ when Chevy finished the pitch,a good return for 5 words on a bumper sticker ,tv spot ,or newspaper add.

Hire blackwater to deliver a cease&desist notice :P

Thats one of the reasons that the US does better at capitalism than other countries - we have and enforce IP (intellectual property) concerns.
(mostly...or at least better than China ?)

-John

I have a feeling this has already been done.

Blackwater? I use BC. Cheaper and more effective.

If its something that can REALLY change someones life $$ , you first have to understand that, ---dont listen to patent attorneys--if you have any money-they want it regardless.
Iorder to sue someone for patent infringements--They have to have a lot of money to bother.
Usually what happens is you have some lawyer send them a letter saying stop--and thats as far as it goes.
Patents are for Apple, microsoft etc these days, not for gutter cleaners.

How much protection does patent pending give you I wonder?

I have watched that TV Show Shark Tank. People bring in their Business ideas and Businesses that they need more investment on and the People on the Panel either invest in it or not.

Example. A Couple invented a different type of Sippie Cup; different enough to obtain a Patent on it. They started producing the Cups on their own and were having success but did not have enough Capital to expand their business.
But, Banks would not loan them the Money.

They came to the Show and sold of a part of their Business to one of the Persons on the Panel.
Besides more Capital the Person that bought a share of the Business also brought in a lot of expertise on where to go to increase the Manufacturing and how to Market the product and the results a Year later were that the Couple and their Family were no longer working day and night trying to keep their Business a float and they were now Rich; even though they sold part of the Business.

I recommend watching a that show if they have it in your Area. What I saw was is that the Inventor/Produces even when successful could not push their Business forward due to lack of Money and lack of knowledge if business practices.
Also the Panel of Investors was not interested in just a Person with an Idea and a Patent. They wanted to invest in a already started Business that had some record of sales success.
The Investors also did not want to invest in a Business with someone who did not know how to keep proper records or have some sort knowledge of running a Business.
When they ask how many did you sell in X amount of time, how many unfilled orders do you have how much Profit have you already made they expect that info right now.

My Father has a Patent on something that is not as useful or saleable as your Idea. What He found is that there is plenty of People that are willing to produce the item for you as long as you can "Foot the Bill" for the production and met their minimum Production requirement.
Of course they were not concerned if My Father could actually sell those items or not.

goggle has a good patent search engine.
For a start, you should look at a provincial patent which gives you a years worth of protection. If you cant get financing in year, its a bad idea usually