Here at Salient, we’ve designed many products that have jumped into the world of patent protection. The patent process is a structured path that is ideally approached with best practices.
For those best practices, we often turn to Antoinette (Toni) M. Tease, a registered patent attorney who we have worked with and trusted for years. Here is a look into one of her Intellections® newsletters…
Starting the Patent Process, By Antoinette M. Tease
Intellectual Property and Technology Law
The first two issues I address with every new patent client who contacts me are ownership and disclosure. Before you proceed with the patent process, you need to make sure you own the patent rights to the invention, and you also need to make sure that your invention is not in the public domain due to previous public disclosures, offers for sale, public use, etc…
To begin the patent process, we require three things of inventors: 1) a signed engagement letter, 2) a completed disclosure form, and 3) a retainer for the patent search. A prototype is not required for the patent search, but it is highly recommended because it will enable the search firm to focus more specifically on those structural aspects of your invention that are potentially patentable.
There are limitations to any patent search, four of which are mentioned here:
- Most patent applications are published 18 months after filing, and applications filed with a nonpublication request are not published until the patent issues. This means that the patent search will not include any applications filed in the 18 months prior to the search.
- A typical patent search will include U.S. patent references only; foreign searches may be conducted, but they are quite costly. Foreign patent references may be cited by the examiner, however, in reviewing your application.
- A typical patent search includes patent references (issued patents and published patent applications only). Other types of publications (such as articles) are also considered prior art but are not typically included in a patent search.
- There are issues with the patent office’s classification system (classifications are not always consistent or accurate) that sometimes result in a reference not being included in a patent search that was conducted according to the most relevant search classes and subclasses.
For all these reasons, I tell inventors to consider the patent search a “snapshot” of the prior art but not to treat it as a guarantee of patentability.
Once the search is completed, we provide our best assessment as to the chances of patentability. If the client decides to move forward, then we usually file a nonprovisional patent application….
Read the rest of the story HERE.
Stay tuned for an upcoming video interview series on the Patent Process with Toni Tease…
Igniting Budding Engineers & ThinkFun!
Reposted from the SmartPlay blog by ThinkFun President & Co-Founder, Bill Ritchie
Maker Studio Construction Sets: Igniting Budding Engineers
We’ve got some great new ThinkFun products and programs arriving this Spring 2015. I’m proud of them and I want to take the opportunity to describe them to you. The first one I’ll describe is our new Maker Studio Construction Sets.
Our Goals Going In
We usually seek out products that build on our mission to ignite minds and give kids an early advantage. In this case, we wanted to do several things.
- Stimulate interest in engineering and creativity
- Make a product that was open-ended—not just one-and-done building
- Add challenges on top of the builds—ask kids to make their contraption actually accomplish a task
For the Maker Studio sets, we teamed up with two awesome inventors, David Yakos and Parker Thomas; both of them are active in the Maker movement. In fact, on our YouTube Channel, we feature David’s “Pitch Video” to us because the vision was so clear and aligned.
What Is Maker Studio?
Each Maker Studio set consists of a set of parts and instructions for how to build machines using discarded household items like food boxes and plastic bottles. The parts are magical—they are a collection of wheels, gears, axles, connectors, rubber band motor and instructions that show players how to build four machines.. Step 1 is to make household items into moving contraptions. But there’s much more to it. You can create many things with the parts in each set by using different containers and different decorations. The real beauty of Maker Studio is the fact that it has challenges to make your project do something. Push an apple across a table. Lift a soup can from the floor. That’s why we all it Open-Ended.
It Would Have Flopped!
It’s funny… just a few years ago these products would certainly have flopped. How do you explain something that is “open-ended” on a store shelf?
But in a world of YouTube channels and social media, we have a whole new opportunity to present the Maker Studio imagination by showcasing the cool stuff that kids are already making, then inviting our audience to join in themselves and share their own designs and builds.
And to prove our point, we’d like to introduce Bella Yakos and her YouTube Channel, Made By Bella. Bella is the 7 yo daughter of one of the inventors. Take a look at some of Bella’s videos, and you’ll see why we think Maker Studio sets are going to set brains on fire!
This is new territory for us, we’re excited! We are seeing great interest from the Maker movement, STEM and STEAM advocates, and Girls in Engineering programs. It’s the beginning of a whole new category of products for us, products that let the players tell the story.
Here’s hoping that it works! I’ll keep you updated along the way.
You can follow along with Bill and the ThinkFun team HERE!
And click HERE for more about Maker Studio in the News
Patent Law Q&A
Pursing a patent can be a long and tricky process, and here at Salient, we’re often asked for advice on how to navigate the road to a patent number. Our best advice for over 15 years has been to contact Toni Tease at Intellectual Property & Technical Law in Billings, MT.
We collaborated with Ms. Tease, who allowed us to pick her brain in a Q&A session, and we’d like to share what we learned with you in bite-sized pieces.
Here’s the first in an upcoming series of Patent Law Q&A videos we’ll be releasing over the next several months. Enjoy!
Find more info on Ms. Tease at her website teaselaw.com, and check out her blog Intellections®
David Yakos is Co-Owner and Director of Creativity at Salient Technologies, Inc.
Filing for a Patent – Patent Law Q&A Ep. 1
Where is the best place to start when you’re pursuing a patent?
In this issue of Patent Law Q&A, Patent Attorney, Toni Tease and Product Designer, David Yakos answer that question by exploring what qualifies as an invention, what makes an invention patentable, and the steps necessary to file for a patent.
Click on the video below to listen in on their conversation!
Find other Patent Law Q&A Session on the Salient Technologies YouTube Channel, and keep an eye out for new videos.
Toni Tease is an experienced Patent Attorney and Owner of Intellectual Property & Technology Law in Billings, MT
David Yakos is Co-Owner and Director of Creativity at Salient Technologies, Inc., a product design firm in Bozeman, MT
Provisional Patent Applications – Patent Law Q&A Ep. 2
What’s the difference between a Provision Patent Application, and a Non-Provisional Patent Application? Are there benefits to filing for a Provisional Patent?
Find the answers in this conversation between Patent Attorney, Toni Tease, and Product Designer, David Yakos.
Click on the video below, to listen in on their conversation, and explore more Patent Law Q&A on the Salient Technologies YouTube Channel
Toni Tease is an experienced Patent Attorney and Owner of Intellectual Property & Technology Law in Billings, MT
David Yakos is Co-Owner and Director of Creativity at Salient Technologies, Inc., a prodcut design firm in Bozeman, MT
Best Practices for Disclosing an Idea – Patent Law Q&A Ep. 3
Sharing an invention or idea you’d like to patent can be a pretty intimidating prospect. It can be difficult to determine with whom your idea is safe, when a signed NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) should be in place, when you’re able to speak freely, and whether you’re becoming completely paranoid, or being appropriately careful.
In this Q&A session on patents and patent law, Toni and David discuss when and with whom it’s safe to speak about your invention or idea, when NDAs needs to be in place, when an idea becomes public, and how that impacts the timeline for filing your patent.
https://youtu.be/58VL4qwZ_wI
Find other Patent Law Q&A Session on the Salient Technologies YouTube Channel, and keep an eye out for new videos.
Toni Tease is an experienced Patent Attorney and Owner of Intellectual Property & Technology Law in Billings, MT
David Yakos is Co-Owner and Director of Creativity at Salient Technologies, Inc., a product design firm in Bozeman, MT
The Benefits of Patent Pending – Patent Law Q&A Ep. 4
What does it mean to have a Patent Pending, and what are the benefits of being Patent Pending?
Patent Attorney, Toni Tease and Product Designer, David Yakos explore the perks of having a patent pending, and how it can impact the future of your invention.
Click the video below to listen in on their conversation, and check out other Patent Law Q&A videos on the Salient Technologies YouTube Channel
Find more info on Ms. Tease at her website teaselaw.com, and check out her blog Intellections®
David Yakos is Co-Owner and Director of Creativity at Salient Technologies, Inc.
Kickstarter Success, New Employees & Patent Law
Client News: PowerPod Kickstarter campaign successfully funded!
Salient client, Velocomp successfully funded their Kickstarter campaign for the PowerPod cycling meter this past September, raising over $128K of their $50K goal in just 30 days!
PowerPod is a bicycle power meter that uses Velocomp’s patented power measurement technology. When c
ycling, more power means faster speeds and longer distances; better physical fitness and calorie burning.
Salient continues to support John Hamann and the Velocomp team as pre-production and tooling begin this November and production begins in the next week. If all goes according to plan, Velocomp will begin shipping fulfillment orders from their headquarters in Jupiter, FL by the end of the month. Check out the PowerPod Kickstarter campaign and post-campaign
updates here. Great work, guys!
Salient News: New Employee, Kirk Turner
The Salient team grew this June with the addition of Kirk Turner.
Originally from Maine, Kirk migrated west to the University of Utah before attending Western Washington University, where he graduated with a BS in Industrial Design and a minor in Sustainable Design in 2014. Happy to relocate to Bozeman and all the outdoor activities it has to offer, Kirk is an avid fisherman, skier, climber, cyclist and adventurer.
Kirk brings creative, precision artistry to Salient, and has expanded our in-house capabilities with his excellent Industrial Design chops.We’re excited to have Kirk on board, and all the skills he brings to the table!
Product Design Tools: Patent Law Q&A Series with Toni Tease & David Yakos
Filing for a patent, and the entire patent process can be intimidating and confusing. This spring, Salient’s David Yakos sat down with patent attorney Toni Tease of Intellectual Property and Technology Law to break down the patent process into bite size pieces. You can view the Q&A series on the Salient YouTube channel. We’re still adding episodes, so check back for new videos!
