312player and Ike have applied for one, I think. Anybody else have experience, knowledge, or anything they feel comfortable sharing? I have an idea and don't know if it's worth it and I don't see my husband giving me 5k+ to hire a lawyer.

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Unfortunately, I know quite a bit about patent law. Particularly with regard to process patents. There can be a lot of ambiguity. Often conflicting patents are issued. A patent only has value to the extent of one's ability to enforce it.

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Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Elon, Tulsi, and Don

If you don't know your idea is worth 5k then it isn't worth it.

I'd only get involved with something you can start an actual business with and then use the patent to defend your product/service once proven viable enough to have a chance to make money.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

I originally read this as "parents", and I was thinking that 312player and Ike were trying to buy a pet or something.

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One of my guys makes some BIG MONEY as a Patent guy at one of the major firms downtown. Basically just defends the big names all day.

It's the essence of the patent. You might get it, but you need to defend it, because if you have a proven item that will sell, you have about 3-6 months before they start making it in China.

Great book by the guy who created the wall walker spider thingy. He knew the copies were coming and he wasnt go to spend millioins to defend it, so he just went for it and tried to sell as many as he could before the copies came.

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/how-to-create-your-own-fad-and-make-a-million-dollars-ken-hakuta/1000065991?ean=9780688076016

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"That's what the internet is for. Slandering others anonymously." Banky
“Been that way since one monkey looked at the sun and told the other monkey ‘He said for you to give me your fuckin’ share.’”

Wow. I was totally expecting a very predictable joke from Good Dolphin to Spaulding's question. Didn't get it. GD might give it tomorrow I guess.

All the above is true. Unless you have the money to defend it, its really not even worth the hassle in most cases.

provisional patents are really all you need these days. PATENT PENDING. just write it yourself and file it for $200. that gives you 1 year to sell the crap out of your product and see if its a good idea. if it catches on big, then you can decide if you want to pay for a full patent and really play the cat and mouse game. thing is, china monitors provisional patents filed, so after that 1st year they might have already beat you to it.

elon musk (tesla motors) said it best. the only real reason you need patents is to prevent some other american company from filing the patent in their name, making it ILLEGAL for YOU to sell YOUR idea. its bullshit, but thats the way it is.

like i said, read up on how to write a provisional patent. they are not formal documents, they just need to clearly state what your idea is. anybody can do them. and dont file it until you are ready to make and sell your product, that way you can hit the ground running before anyone knows what youre doing. if your product sells well during the first year, you wont have a problem dropping the $7500 for the real patent.

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the world will always the world. your entire existence is defined by your response.

I don't like you taking these unnecessary shots

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O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.