The process of preparing and obtaining a patent has several stages.
The first stage of the patent is to prepare and draft your application. There are different requirements concerning the written description, drawings and claims. If an attorney is involved, it is always important to have effective communication between the inventor and the attorney. The inventor should be sure that he/she discloses all of the relevant details of the invention and the attorney should be able to understand the invention.
The second stage is filing your application. The filing requirements vary depending on what type of patent application you are filing. An application that does meet the filing requirements is awarded a filing date and application number, which are provided on the Filing Receipt that is issued by the United States Patent Office. Once there is a filing date secured, the invention is “patent pending.”
The third stage is prosecuting and reviewing your patent application. Once the application is filed, the application is assigned to a patent examiner. He/she is responsible for reviewing the application, searches for prior art and makes any objections or rejections in an office action. This process can be lengthy and can take several years. This process can also be expensive depending on the number of responses required to get the patent application ready for allowance.
The fourth stage is allowance. Once the patent is allowed, the United States Patent Office sends a Notice of Allowability to the applicant but may include requirements before the patent issues.
The fifth stage is issuance. Once the issue fee is paid, the patent office assigns a number and issues the patent.
The last stage is maintenance of the patent. Once a utility patent is issued, there are maintenance fees required to maintain the patent in force. Design patents do not require a maintenance fee.
