The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) requires applicants to submit drawings of their invention to help the examiner understand its workings. This applies to all types of patents, including utility patents, which are the most common. The majority of patent applications do contain drawings. You are probably wondering where should I get the drawings for my patent.
Patent drawings are often very technical and just the idea of preparing them yourself can be very intimidating. One question you might be thinking of is can you do the drawings yourself and not have to hire a professional draftsman, engineer or talented artist and the answer is usually yes and there are books you could read to help you along the way. There are several advantages of doing the drawings yourself including cutting significant costs and having more control over your timeline and product.
You have two options when it comes to preparing the patent drawings. You can hire a professional draftsperson or drafting company or you can prepare them yourself. Many inventors do hire a draftsperson to prepare the drawings and such firms are easily found online. The advantages of using a professional are: these individuals or firms usually know what must be included in the drawings and how to describe the inventions visually in a way that the USPTO will accept; and they would save you time and effort of undertaking this task on yourself. There are also disadvantages of using a professional. It can be very costly to hire a professional. Prices vary significantly depending on how complex your invention is. Another disadvantage is that you will lose control over the drafting process and could pay additional money to go through many edits and changes.
If you can write the patent application yourself or at least help your attorney write it, you can probably also do the drawings yourself. You will need to make sure you know the rules of the USPTO for the drawings.
Your attorney could help you decide if you should do your drawings yourself or hire a professional.
