Patent It Yourself: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Filing at the U.S. Patent Office

by David Pressman Attorney, David E. Blau Attorney

Overview

Protect and profit from your invention

For 35 years, Patent It Yourself has guided hundreds of thousands of inventors through the process of getting a patent, from start to finish. Patent attorneys David Pressman and David E. Blau provide the latest information, forms, and clear instructions to help you:

• conduct a patent search the right way
• evaluate your idea’s commercial potential
• file a provisional patent application to get “patent pending” status
• prepare a patent application
• focus on your patent application’s claims
• respond to patent examiners
• get your drawings done right
• protect your rights in foreign countries
• deal with infringers, and
• market and license your invention.

The 20th edition covers the latest patent filing rule changes, including the most recent implications of the America Invents Act first-to-file rules.

With downloadable forms: All essential forms, including a Nondisclosure Agreement, Patent Searcher’s Worksheet, and Design Patent Application are included in the book and are available for download (details inside).

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781413327809
Publisher:	NOLO
Publication date:	10/27/2020
Edition description:	Twentieth Edition
Pages:	672
Sales rank:	1,108,385
Product dimensions:	8.30(w) x 10.80(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

San Francisco Patent Attorney David Pressman is a graduate of Penn State University(BSEE) and George Washington UniversityLaw School (JD) where he was on the Law Review. He has over 40 years of experience in the patent profession — as a patent examiner for the U.S. Patent Office, a patent attorney in corporate and private practice, a university instructor, a columnist, and as author of the Patent and Trademark entries to the World Book Encyclopedia. His books have charted the path for over 300,000 inventors. He is also co-author of How to Make Patent Drawings (with Jack Lo),Patent Pending In 24 Hours (with Rich Stim), and Patents For Beginners (with Rich Stim).

David E. Blau is a patent attorney at Daly, Crowley, Mofford & Durkee in Canton, Massachusetts, and is a member of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and Massachusetts bars. He received his B.S. from the California Institute of Technology, with majors in both Mathematics and Engineering & Applied Science. Prior to law school, he worked for the government as a mathematician, for a number of private companies writing software to perform scalable content storage and distribution and back-office online commerce functions, and co-founded a web design business. He received his J.D. from the Chicago-Kent College of Law with a certificate in Intellectual Property, and has practiced patent law in the Boston area ever since. Outside the practice of law, Dave is a scuba diver and a licensed private pilot who hopes to get his instrument rating someday.

Table of Contents

How to Use Patent It Yourself 1. Introduction to Patents and Other Intellectual Property 2. The Science and Magic of Inventing 3. Documentation and the PPA 4. Will Your Invention Sell 5. Is It Patentable 6. Search and You May Find 7. What Should I Do Next 8. How to Draft the Specification and Initial Drawings 9. Now for the Legalese—The Claims 10. Finaling and Mailing Your Application 11. How to Market Your Invention 12. Going Abroad 13. Getting the PTO to Deliver 14. Your Application Can Have Children 15. After Your Patent Issues: Use, Maintenance, and Infringement 16. Ownership, Assignment, and Licensing of Inventions Appendixes 1. Abbreviations Used in Patent It Yourself 2. Resources: Government Publications, Patent Websites, and Books of Use and Interest 3. Glossaries 4. Fee Schedule 5. Mail, Telephone, Fax, and Email Communications With the PTO 6. Quick-Reference Timing Chart 7. Forms 8. Forms Available at the PTO Website Index

Editorial Reviews

"Patenting an idea can be really expensive and intimidating. When I was starting out, I read this terrific book called Patent It Yourself, by a lawyer named David Pressman. It was really straightforward. Using that book, I wrote GoPro’s first patent myself. It was this 600-page tome that I went maniacal on. When I took it to the attorneys to get their opinion and to see how much it would cost for them to finalize it, they told me I’d just saved myself a lot of money—I’d basically done the whole thing myself. More important, the book gave me a good understanding of what’s patentable and what’s not. For any entrepreneur who’s inventing something, it’s the one book you should read." Bloomberg Business Week - Ask a Billionaire: GoPro's Nick Woodman on the Book 'Patent It Yourself'

"Now in a fully updated and significantly revised 19th edition, "Patent It Yourself: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Filing at the U.S. Patent Office" continues to be a complete course of instruction from start to finish, guiding inventors and entrepreneurs through the process of getting a patent. Patent attorneys David Pressman and David E. Blau draw upon their impressive expertise to provide the latest information, forms, and clear instructions to: Conduct a patent search the right way; Evaluate an idea's commercial potential; File a provisional patent application to get "patent pending" status; Prepare a patent application; Focus on the patent application's claims; Respond to patent examiners; Get drawings done right; Protect rights in foreign countries; Deal with infringers; Market and license an invention. This new 19th edition covers all the latest implications of the first-to-file rules created by the congressional America Invents Act. While unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and academic library collections, it should be noted that "Patent It Yourself: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Filing at the U.S. Patent Office" is also available in a digital book format". The Midwest Book Review

"If you want to cut through the patent red tape and possibly save thousands of dollars, Patent It Yourself... has all the forms and instructions needed to patent a product in the United States." The Washington Post

“Contains all necessary forms and instructions plus advice on marketing your invention.” Money

From the Publisher

"For some thirty years Patent It Yourself has covered basics of getting a patent and become the 'go to' reference of choice for inventors: here patent attorney Pressman updates his volume with the latest laws, forms, and instructions geared to preparing a patent application, evaluating a product's commercial appeal, handling infringers, and protecting rights at home and abroad. Chapters are packed with forms and the latest legal advice and represent some forty years of the author's experiences as a patent attorney. Any general legal reference collection will find this a timely, popular pick!" The Midwest Book Review

The Midwest Book Review

"If you want to cut through the patent red tape and possibly save thousands of dollars, Patent It Yourself... has all the forms and instructions needed to patent a product in the United States."

The Washington Post

"Patenting an idea can be really expensive and intimidating. When I was starting out, I read this terrific book called Patent It Yourself, by a lawyer named David Pressman. It was really straightforward. Using that book, I wrote GoPro’s first patent myself. It was this 60-page tome that I went maniacal on. When I took it to the attorneys to get their opinion and to see how much it would cost for them to finalize it, they told me I’d just saved myself a lot of money—I’d basically done the whole thing myself. More important, the book gave me a good understanding of what’s patentable and what’s not. For any entrepreneur who’s inventing something, it’s the one book you should read."

Bloomberg Business Week - Ask a Billionaire: GoPro's Nick Woodman on the Book 'Patent It Yourself' - Bloomberg Business Week - Ask a Billiona