Kansas City Patent Attorneys & Lawyers for Hire

Product Patents: What Are They?

A U.S. patent is a property right granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) in order to protect an invention. A process, product, or utility patent lasts for 20 years from the date you file your patent application with the PTO, but you’ll need to pay “maintenance fees” to have rights for the full 20-year period. An industrial design patent provides production for 14 years and is used for designs and aesthetic aspects of products. Once this time period expires, the invention becomes public. There is no universal patent office, nor even a European patent office. Therefore, if you wish to have worldwide pro

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What Are Proprietary Rights?

Proprietary rights, also known as property rights, are the theoretical or legal rights that an entity has to own property, whether tangible or intangible. Property rights are some of the most basic rights in a free society. They give individuals the right to accumulate, own, hold, delegate, rent, or sell their property. Within economics, property rights form the basis for all market exchange, and they don't always refer only to what's lawful. They might also refer to what is ethical or moral.

The definition of property is expansive. Property can include physical resources, land, non-human creatures, and intellectual property.

Who has the right to what property isn't always clear. If you own a car and the title is in your name, you have property rights to that car. Not every case of property rights i

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What Does Inducing Infringement Mean?

Inducing infringement means that a party is responsible for someone copying an idea without permission which can take the form of a trademark, copyright, or patent infringement. The party didn't do the infringing, but the infringement is still their fault.

For example, let's say someone invents a self-inflating balloon and then patents it. The inventor then sells the patent to a major company, and now the balloon is sold in every department store. Years later, the inventor says he still owns the patent and sells it to a different company. Once the second company starts selling self-inflating balloons, the first company can sue it for infringement, and it can sue the inventor for inducing infringement. While he didn't infringe

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Updated July 7, 2020:

How Much Do Inventors Make?

The question "how much do inventors make" does not have one answer. A great invention at the perfect time can earn the inventor millions, a few good inventions can keep the inventor going for years, or inventing can be a money sink that never amounts to anything. However, there are several ways to profit from an invention idea you should know about.

Invent Smarter, Not Harder

If you want to invent something because you always wanted to do so or because you're passionate about the product, that's perfectly fine. However, you shouldn't expect to get rich just from following your heart. Inventing as a hobby can be great fun, but you'll need to put in a lot more effort if you want to make a profit.

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How to Find a Patent: Why It Matters

Learning how to find a patent is an important step in securing your intellectual property and involves searching several patent databases.

Thousands of people create new inventions each year. Before you can sell your new product, you need to make sure it's original. This means learning whether a similar invention has already been patented. Trying to sell a product that someone else has already patented could leave you open to a lawsuit.

Patents are publicly available. Generally, patents will be published 18 months after being approved. Certain exceptions apply to this rule. Publicly publishing a patent is the price for having control of your invention.

Searching for a patent can also help you improve your own product. For example, you can make enough changes so that your product is not covered by another person's patent. If you can't find a patent during your search, you c

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