When an inventor comes up with a new idea, they have to be certain that they are the only ones that have come up with that particular idea or invention. As such, it is advisable for one to have a patent pending. This is a document that states that one is in the process of making an invention. The inventor then has a year before he or she can get a regular patent. To get a patent pending, one has to get US provisional patent application.
A provisional patent application is what will allow an inventor to say that a certain invention is theirs. It is advisable to get a US provisional patent application if you have a new invention so that the process of filing for a regular patent will be much easier. A provisional patent application will also allow one to sell their idea to buyers and present it to any potential investors as solely their idea.
Getting a provisional patent application is easier and cheaper. The process does not require many steps and if one is a sole inventor or working for a small firm then the whole thing is even easier. In addition to that, there are no formal processes so it is not entirely necessary to have an attorney. This will cost one a less amount of money.
It is beneficial for an inventor to file a provisional patent application. This is because if they have a limited amount of money to work on their invention, they can have the provisional patent application as they work on the invention and then proceed with the regular patent application once they have achieved their intended goal. This saves one from having to spend too much money creating an invention which may not be very rewarding in the end.
A provisional patent application will also come in handy when one has new inventions as they are in the process of creating their first invention. What this means is that, more often than not, when applying for the provisional patent, the invention listed may be specific but then as the creation comes to an end, it will be more improved, better than the first one. The provisional patent application will protect one if this is the case. The risk of losing the invention reduces considerably.
Provisional patent applications can also be gotten when one has already received a regular patent. If one makes improvements to the earlier invention, they can apply for another provisional patent so that they can protect their invention.
When one has a provisional patent, they have to pay a certain amount of money to the Patent Office. However, if they have stopped working on their invention for a while for any particular reasons, they can stop payments and resume them once they start working on their project again.
Although a provisional patent application does not require too much work, it is important to include full details of the invention to prevent obstacles when getting a regular patent later on.