I have a merely verbal idea for a medical appliance that could save
possibly $millions in geriatric care every year. I don't have design
abilities, venture capital or skill in researching the US patent data
base. I've googled this idea a little and haven't found anything like
the appliance in medical appliance supply houses, nor through
conversations with geriatric nurses. I have an "inventors notebook"
with just the dated verbal description. I don't want to pay an
explotatitve "invention submission" law firm the about $500 they'd
want for a search. On the other hand, if I haven't re-invented the
wheel and the idea has merit, I'd be content with a very small piece
of its worth, say 2% of net profit. How can I expose my idea and to
whom, get it patent searched and exposed to possible design and
financing sources, while hopefully ensuring that I can make a modest
amount of money from it, if it is worthy of production?

I have worked with a number of small inventors like yourself, and,
while there is certainly effort required on your part, you can protect
your idea and investigate its value for about a year without excessive
expense.

Searching the United States patent database really is not as
complicated as it looks. Furthermore, at this stage, the expense of a
formal patent search is probably not that worthwhile, and unless you
are careful about who does it, it is potentially not going to be very
good.  If you use the Advanced Search option, located at
http://patft.uspto.gov/netahtml/search-adv.htm, you can look for
relevant patents based on keywords from 1976 to present.  Each patent
will have its US classification associated with it.  After you have
identified potentially relevant patents based on keywords, you can
then use their associated classifications to look for other relevant
patents from 1790 through 1975.  Provided that you are familiar with
the appropriate terminology related to your invention, you should have
success identifying the relevant "prior art."

Please be aware that foreign patents can also be used to prevent you
from getting a patent in the United States, even if the object has not
been patented in the United States, and that any patent search is
immediately invalidated because there are new inventions arriving at
the patent office every day.  You are reducing the risk that your
invention is already out there, but you cannot truly eliminate it. 
Furthermore, even professional patent searches rarely look for
international patents because of the sheer number of patent offices
that would have to be searched and language translation issues.

The other thing you can do is obtain a provisional patent, which will
save you the expense and complexity of filing a formal utility patent
application for one year while giving you protection from others
taking your idea from you.  "Provisional Application for Patent" at
the United States Patent and Trademark Office web site
(http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/provapp.htm) provides an
extensive description of the provisional patent application.  It is
much less expensive than the formal utility patent application, and
the requirements for how the materials must be presented are much
looser.  You can include your notebook pages, sketches, and
black-and-white photographs of any prototypes you make.  You will want
to describe your invention, along with any variations you can think
of, in as much detail as possible, but you are not committing yourself
to a specific design or designs until you file your formal utility
patent application in no later than one year.

You are permitted to file both provisional patent applications and
regular utility patent applications by yourself without employing
professionals if you so desire.  However, your likelihood of obtaining
a utility patent that is commercially meaningful without the
assistance of a qualified professional is poor because the process is
complex.  To save money on the patent application process, you can
choose to use a patent agent rather than a patent attorney.  A patent
agent has passed the patent bar and is permitted to prosecute a patent
application on your behalf.  Unlike a patent attorney, though, a
patent agent cannot litigate.

Once you have filed your positional patent application, you can then
mark any prototypes or versions of your invention that you offer for
sale "patent pending."  You are also then in a position to discuss
your invention with other people without them being able to easily
take it from you.

One approach for evaluating the market potential of an invention that
many inventors I have worked with have taken that has been successful
is to identify potential end-users of their devices and get their
input on them.  From these end-users, inventors have learned what
salespeople typically call on them to sell related devices, and then
they have used enthusiastic end-users to get them in contact with the
salespeople.  When the salespeople are interested, the inventors have
been able to work their way up the food chain to a manufacturer, or
have been able to use the salespeople themselves if the salespeople
are independent brokers and the inventor chooses to manage the
manufacture of their invention themselves.

You will certainly have more success in attracting the interest of end
users and potential manufacturers and investors if you have a working
prototype, but you are not required to have anything other than a
functional design expressed in words and drawings to receive a patent.
 The closer your prototype is to a workable product, though, the
easier it is for other people to understand it and appreciate it.

End users and others in the industry can be valuable sources of
financial and design assistance or can refer you to sources of
assistance as well.  Other alternatives for design assistance could be
the hiring of an engineer, such as those at www.weinvent.com.

Good luck with your invention.

Sincerely,

Wonko

This is very good,worth the posted price. I found out about a company
that allegedly will design and market for someone with just an idea,
but when calling it got no response to a message left. I did find the
web site mentioned (as well as the ads. above on this answer page.)
How do I authorize payment?

Dear Planner,

This invention follows the patterns of other ideas and how they get
into destination markets. It is similar to selling an independent
movie, or going public with your gold staking grounds.  Except your
market is the medical industry.  Take it from a veteran, it is worth
the effort.

In a nutshell:

1.It is all business. From the beginning to the end, visualize the
whole business process in your mind.
2. Design it, create a rough prototype.
3.Paten it at the UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
4.Take it to conferences ? that deal with the medical industry
5.Cut the deal - the toughest part.

Details:
1.Business: 
Since it is all business, you must think very carefully and be
specific about details. A blind man told me not to get up until you
see exactly how you will get there.  He visualized the path even
though he was blind.

Think of what the cost, cash flows are and the legal responsibilities.
 Who will have the money to pay for such invention?  I am not talking
to sell it to individuals.

Sell it to the big guys, the manufacturers.  Sales guys who are very
experienced at it approach the manufacturers, or else the
manufacturers go to conferences themselves. Sales guys hunt people
like you.  And if they think they can sell what you got, they will
hound you and play each other off to get your work.

Manufacturers get distributors who sell it to wholesalers or retailers
who pass it on to the consumers.  You want the big fish.

Now, your job is to find out who the big fish, manufacturers are.  Do
this by going to one of those stores that supply such items.  Write
the names of the manufacturers from the labels on these products.

Your job is to find out where do these manufacturers get their ideas. 
Call them and ask for the top management who is in charge of acquiring
new inventions, ask what conferences are they planning on visiting
next or if they stick to certain sales guys. Often they either tell
you what they will attend or they will ask you to send them some
pictures.  Watch out. Ensure it is patented by the time you send a
picture. Contracts will be later.


Costs.  Do not worry about producing mass-market merchandise.  Think
of at the initial costs only. There are plenty of
distributors/manufacturers who are looking for a new product.  Where
do you find them?  At the conferences where new me suppliers are
presented by individuals as yourself.
Ok, how much will you need?

This is the cash flow that you will need. It requires you to really
think about the details:
Money to create a working prototype
Patent money.  Do not worry about the lawyers yet. Patent info is below.   
Money to travel to specific conferences including entry fees. 
Lawyer fund, for the contract.  



2.Design a working prototype.  
Make it look very presentable.  Design a new one if it gets ugly.  Do
it until it looks like something that you just bought.  You are
selling this.  It says a lot about your product.  Take a few pictures
and how it should be used, make a color page about it that say your
name and your contact, and the benefits of it.  Make a few business
cards.  You will need these when you go to the
conferences/manufacturers.



3.Patent:
Do not worry about the search unless you plan on using someone else?s
work that you will enhance. Copyright the patent at:
http://www.uspto.gov/
Fees:
http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/ac/qs/ope/fee2004dec08.htm
I got it from here:
http://www.copyright.gov/

Follow the forms. If they are complicated, go to the library and get a
self-help book or some help book for dummies on patents.

US has the best property rights laws in the world. If you are in
Canada, these patents are also protected through this office.  It is
your proof that you came up with it first.



4. Conferences
This is the tough part.  Make sure you allot enough of a budget to
wine and dine the acquisition executives.

First, find out where the conferences are.  Be specific because you
only need a few reputable ones to go to.  These usually happen every
year, around the same time, in specific large cities, in the same
stadiums/conference halls.

Search the web.  Large public libraries will have magazines, the
conference promoters like to advertise there.  Scan a whole year of a
reputable publication/magazine for the conference to figure out what
month they usually happen and where.  Usually they will have one big
one on each coast plus Canada.  Sign up.

And, as above, find out where the big fish are planning to attend. 
This is where the honey is.  Three moths prior to the conference call
the acquisition person and ask for an appointment if necessary, send
them a picture, do a website etc.  You want to be visible to those
guys. Confirm the dates. Sales.



5. Contract.
These come in various shapes and forms.  This is it.  If acquirers
think they can sell it, they will work on you.

Scammers get more creative, real guys do not want to overpay.  The
difference between them can be recognized when you use your judgment -
common sense.

If you have to pay = stay away.

During your visualization, imagine how many customers the
manufacturers can get.  What kind of pay you would be happy with.

If you have never seen such a contract, to get ideas about realistic
industry contracts, I would recommend for you to read financial
statements of manufacturers/distributors listed on the stock exchange
or the OTC exchanges.

Go straight to the notes to the financial statements. Often, in the
notes to the FS, they will give some detail in the intellectual
properties section on what type of products they have and what
contracts are they are bound by (% of royalties, flat payments, stock
options, shares, etc).  Also check the section for Contingencies and
anything to do with obligations. That will give you an idea.

You do not want a contract based on profit only.  What will happen is
they will do profit loss statement, add a few management fees, and you
get 0 profit.  You might as well invest your time in a trip to a
tropical place.

You do not want a contract where they get you to pay for all the
travel and selling expenses and they will promote your product because
they will travel well and drink expensive wine at your cost.

You do not want deferred income.  They will pay you later. When? Exactly.

You want a % of gross proceeds. Gross means before expenses.  Make
sure the contract says when the payment is due and minimum
installments.

Yes to Flat payment to obtain the right to promote the product for a
limited time to specific regions.  Money up front is nice.  You are
probably broke by now.  After the expiry date, you retain the right to
get someone else to promote it in case these guys cannot do this. 
Regions.  The right to sell it in USA to 280 million people is worth
more than the right to sell it to 40 million people in Canada. 
Europe?  See the picture?

Yes to flat payment to buy it out right if the price is right to you. 
Do not underestimate your product.

Yes to Royalties and a combination of the above.  Eg.  flat payment
plus % of profits or % of gross proceeds or royalties, stock options,
shares ...


These are some of the tactics/questions they will ask/use:
Q: What did it cost you to make it?
A: Under such and such... keep it low...

Tactic: Make you feel like your product is common, not unique,
useless, but look, here I am to save you from this nuisance, and this
is the best offer anyone will give you, aren't you glad that I came to
save you from you product?

This is what one conversation was like: Your product is great. You
know there are other inventions.  They are great too.  Yours cannot do
this...  It seems expensive to produce... It will be hard to push this
product.  But I am thinking that if you pay me up front $10,000 and I
will promote it for you... You get 1% of the profit.

I am not kidding these guys are gurus at finding suckers.

Ensure all you patent ducks are in a row.  They will need a contract
that ensures they will have exclusive rights and no infringement.

If they want to sign today, ask them to send you the contract.  Take
diligent time. Everythng.  Again, EVERYTHING in that contract is
negotiable.  First negotiate.  Come up to reasonable terms.  Then take
it to a lawyer, he will review it.
Before you shake the hand, and sign, ask when you can pick up the
money. Or when it will be wired to you.  Delay in pay, talk to the
other contact you made at the conference.

Hope this helps.  The first time it is a bit painful.  The second time
comes like second nature.  You can do this.  Anyone can do this.  It
is done all the time. Go to any show/ conference to see an example.

It is so rewarding. If you do not do anything about it, in a few years
you will be kicking yourself. But when you get so excided about it and
try it and see things happen- it is the best.

Go to the top page and read the nutshell points again.
Eve

Thanks ever so much, Eve, for your extensive comment. Although
retired,  I find myself working full-time  as an (unpaid) elected
official. I made the mistake of running for and winning a seat on my
borough council, which is heavily involved on the losing side in
big-stakes litigation I'm trying to end. (I'm in Pennsylvania.)I just
don't have the mechanical design talent, time or motivation and don't
really need any money out of the idea. It arose out of the experience
of observing how my mother, at age 90, with Alzheimers and dimmed
senses, but still mobile, got injured, even though in a (good) nursing
home, and eventually died. The spiral toward her death was a fairly
typical for many  "difficult to manage" care-needing seniors and I
believe the  invention I thought of could extend life and reduce costs
of such care. If this invention was feasible and useful, I'd love to
see it produced in Pennsylvania, or at least the U.S.A. (I had the
idea of an "invention convention" bringing together people with verbal
ideas, designers and venture capitalists  to see if American ingenuity
with localism could invent our way out of our job loss crisis.)
There's a state government organization callled the "Ben Franklin
Partnership" which I thought was supposed to foster such invention. I
wrote to it but never got an answer. Also, I never got a response from
local economic development and government officials on the invention
convention idea.

Hey,

I understand.  
Sorry to hear that you had no reply from these organizations. 

An idea without full design cannot be patented.  The forms require
extensive documentations.

I do not know too many engineers/business people who would invest time
and money in a verbal idea/pictues without seeing the item.

If you ever decide not to care about getting any income from it, you
may want to consider posting it on the web...  The pages from the
"inventors notebook" that is.

Cheers.

Please remember that (a) without a patent or a binding non-disclosure
agreement, anyone to whom you show your idea may take it and exploit
it fully with complete impunity; and (b), you cannot get a patent in
the US if you have offered your invention for sale more than one year
prior to the application date of the patent.  This is known as "the
on-sale bar."

Moral: get a patent before you share your idea with ANYONE.  If you
cannot wait, then get written non-disclosure agreements which contain
"non-use" provisions before you let anyone see your idea.  Any such
agreement should also recite that you are not offering the invention
for sale to the recipient (to avoid the on-sale bar problem should you
elect to apply for a patent).