Improvement and new use patents are for inventions that improve on or feature new uses for existing inventions.
Countless inventors have successfully navigated the patent system on their own. In fact, federal law requires patent examiners at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to help individual inventors who apply for patents without a lawyer's help.
How to File a Patent in Florida Do You Have an Idea or Invention? Every invention begins as an idea. Perform Market Research. Verify Patent Eligibility. Conduct a Patent Search. Determine Inventorship & Ownership. Choose the Type of Patent. Prepare the Patent Application. Submit the Patent Application.
The Poor Man's Patent Is Obsolete Being the first to invent will no longer save you is someone else filed first. So even if you did write out the idea for your invention and mailed it to yourself, that date would not matter.
The five primary requirements for patentability are: (1) patentable subject matter; (2) utility; (3) novelty; (4) non-obviousness; and (5) enablement. Like trademarks, patents are territorial, meaning they are enforceable in a specific geographic area.