6 reasons

Protecting Your Invention: 6 Reasons Why Patent Searches Matter

By: Edward Ayres

 

When it comes to taking a new product idea from sketch to shelf, one of the first steps in the process is a patent search and novelty assessment. You need to be certain your idea is novel. New. Distinguishably different from other inventions. To make that conclusion, a patent search and novelty assessment are required.

Before going further, I want to define one term that you’ll see frequently in this article, and whenever you’re discussing patent searches, patent applications and patent prosecution: prior art.

Prior art refers to issued patents, expired patents, patent applications, publications and products relevant to your concept that existed before your patent application was filed.

Here are six reasons why it’s crucial to have a quality patent search and novelty assessment conducted.

  1. Avoiding Infringement: A patent search and novelty assessment help you identify prior art that may be related to your idea. This reduces the risk of unintentionally infringing on another person’s or company’s intellectual property, which can lead to costly legal disputes and litigation. Without a patent search and novelty assessment you can easily end up infringing on someone else’s patent and not find out about until it’s too late.

According to Harvard Library, “The most common reason to conduct a comprehensive prior art patent search is to make sure no other similar invention already exists.”

  1. Assessing Patentability: A thorough patent search is detrimental in determining if your invention is novel (aka unique) and non-obvious compared to existing prior art. The U.S. Patent & Trademark Office states that for a patent to be issued, your invention must meet four criteria:
  • The invention must work.
  • A clear description on how to make and use the invention must exist.
  • It must be novel, which means something that’s not been done before.
  • The invention cannot be obvious or readily apparent in relation to prior art.

A patent search is essential in assessing whether your concept meets those criteria, and determining if your product is likely to be granted a patent or not.

  1. Understanding Market Landscape: Are you curious about your competition? As a product entrepreneur, you should be. A thorough patent search will provide insights into existing innovations and emerging technologies within your field. This will be extremely beneficial in helping you understand the competitive landscape, and in identify opportunities for differentiation.
  • Pro Tip – Competition is a good thing. For every Coke, there’s a Pepsi. Just make sure your product stands out.
  1. Strengthening Patent Applications: A patent search can help you identify gaps and weak spots in existing patents that your invention can fill. Remember, to be granted a patent, your invention must be unique and non-obvious. The information you learn from the patent search can be used to strengthen and broaden your patent application. It can be used to clearly demonstrate how your idea is distinct, different, and better than the prior art. This adds significant value to your patent application, and gives your product a competitive advantage over the competition.
  2. Informed Decision-Making: Knowing the prior art landscape can be instrumental in guiding your product development and intellectual property strategy. For instance, a patent search can literally help you improve your invention and strengthen the scope of your patent application. Additionally, you may discover alternative approaches, technologies, solutions, or even potential collaborators based on the patent search results.
  3. Avoiding Investment Risks: Properly prepared patent applications can be expensive and time-consuming to prepare. You don’t want to investment in a patent application if there is a good chance it will never actually be granted. Additionally, investors often require a patent search and novelty assessment in order to assess the viability and uniqueness of your invention. A comprehensive patent search and novelty assessment will empower you to make an informed investment decision and even help you secure essential funding.

One more note on avoiding investment risks: John Ferrell, Esq. stated, “A patent search is a bit like purchasing insurance. If finding out your invention is not patentable after the application is filed would create a financial or business hardship, then it’s worth it to have a patent search performed prior to filing a patent application.”

Overall, a patent search combined with a novelty assessment are foundational steps in the patenting and product launch process. They help ensure that your invention is both unique and commercially viable.

And one final note: just because you have never seen your product concept advertised online or sold in stores doesn’t mean something very similar to it isn’t buried in the patent archives. The team at Inventor Process, Inc. recommends finding out before investing significant time, money and passion into your invention.

Let me know if you have questions about patent searches, novelty assessments, or about anything invention-related. You can contact me at Info@InventorProcess.com. Helping inventors is all we do.

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