When you have an idea to build or create something or a process for doing something you get a patent so no one can steal your idea from you. But considering the fact that having a way to protect someone's ideas is an idea in itself did the government get a patent on the idea of the patent? If not couldn't other people offer patents and compete with them?
210619
Damn good question... I know the guy who came up with the patent was named Patent
666633
There's that obnoxious commercial on TV that says you can patent your ideas, but they want money for telling you how. I would just contact the US patent office directly. Google should be able to give you the address and phone number. Good luck.
104483
I don't know, but make sure you have your idea patented before you go showing people. If not, they'll say they're not interested, then turn around and make them.
101310
patent it. go to the government service. if you go to the attorneys they will charge you around 2000-5000. you can also document and date the design, then show it to the manufacturer. they can tell you if it is marketable; but be careful. they can steal you idea/design. so document and date it well. go see an attorney that doesn't try to sell you patent service.
474501
Documents, records and works resulting from an idea are copyrighted but not the idea itself.  Thus, it is true that the expression is the one being copyrighted.
430900
I would start by going on-line to http://acswebcontent.acs.org/home.html\nThis is the website for the American Chemical Society. I would poke around here and find some contacts to pose your question to. I think they could help give you some direction. Also if you are interested in inventions you should pick a copy of "Patent it Yourself" by David Pressman, it tells you all the steps involved in obtaining a patent and how to protect your idea. If your interested in getting this book the ISBN # is 1-4133-0180-0   Good luck.
70928
The first step is to get your idea patented....you don't want to contact MS with your idea and have them steal it...it happened to me with an invention...make sure you CYA
136167
3-steps:\n\n1) Patent you idea (after searching for other similar patents and making sure your idea is original).  This is not too expensive to do.\n\n2) Contact a major corporation who plays in the area of your idea/invention, to partner with them (they will typically (caveat) not steal your idea like some smaller companies may).\n\n3) Have the major corporation make the investment in product development by negotiating a contract for royalties on any sales of the final product, plus prohibition on selling the idea to any third party.\n\nYou're in business!!  Cheers!
149085
Nice to hear from a budding scientist. Today inventions and new ideas can fetch you great commercial returns. However to be the lead or even sole gainer of that idea it is wise to be able to Patent the product. There is a whole set of mechanism to get a patent. Please refer to it appropriately. \n\nNow one of the essentials of patenting is that it must a new, innovative and not an obvious idea. Also that product and idea must not be in public knowledge. So if you get the idea see if it is patentable. If so document properly and tread the patenting path cautiously.\n\nHowever if the patent is not emerging then develop the idea fully, keep you documents in place for apt time to be able to evangelise it. For dissipation of knowledge to others you could use the route of publishing in Scientific journals. The journal will depend on ur subject of work and you geographical location of work.\n\nIn case commercial exploitation is your vision then contact possible buyers or investors. These days there are a lot of angel investors who will see you through.\n\nThere are govt agencies too who take lead in motivating and building up ideas of budding scientists.\n\nHappy innovating and gaining commercial mileage.
491464
Most manufacturers will not even be interested in learning about your invention unless you have first applied for some type of patent application.  In the United States you can file a provisional application for $100 (that is the fee due at filing at the US Patent Office assuming you are an individual inventor or a company with 500 or fewer employees), but in order to ultimately obtain a patent you would need to subsequently file a non-provisional application, or just start by filing a non-provisional application and skip the provisional application process.  In either case, whatever your disclosure contains in the first filing will define the scope of your invention, so you want to make sure it is complete.  You will not be able to update your disclosure later, so the first filing is all important.  This is one of the reasons many inventors hire patent attorneys.\n\nIPWatchdog.com has a a unique process for creating patent applications, a process for which it has its own patent pending. Because this process is more of a team effort the cost is in line with what you would expect to pay an invention submission company, but you get real help and meaningful guidance. This model works because it leverages the energy of the inventor/entrepreneur together with the legal expertise of a patent attorney. Minimizing the involvement of professionals is the way to keep costs down, but you don't want to go it alone without some help, otherwise you risk jeopardizing adequate protection, which would lead to vast amounts of time and energy, not to mention money, being wasted. \n\nThe IPWatchdog process, in a nutshell, requires the inventor to submit answers to a detailed invention questionnaire, with the submitted information being used to create a first draft of the application. A patent attorney then reviews the draft and sends it back to you together with questions, suggestions, explanations and additional information. The inventor then modifies the draft as appropriate and then returns it for a second review. A patent attorney again reviews your application and again returns it to the inventor with comments and suggestions, assuming any additional modifications are warranted. At the time your second review is returned the inventor is provided you with the completed forms necessary for filing at the United States Patent Office.
442991
NOLO is a great, free informational site. Also, be sure to read what the USPTO (United States Patent & Trademark Office) has to say about patents.\n\nAssociations may be a good avenue to explore. These organizations will address many of the thoughts, questions and concerns you'll inevitably have as well as many you haven't anticipated yet. See the source box for some relevant links. \n\nResearch, research, research – this cannot be stressed enough. Read as much as you can. Here are some book titles that are relevant:\n\nGetting a Patent:\n* Patent It Yourself (11th Edition) by David Pressman\n* Patents and How to Get One : A Practical Handbook by U.S. Department of Commerce\n* How To Make Patent Drawings Yourself: A Patent It Yourself Companion by Jack Lo\n* The Inventor's Notebook: A Patent It Yourself Companion by Fred E. Grissom\n\nThere are plenty of free informational resources out there. Check the source box for links to articles.\n\nHope that helps! I wish you much success & happiness in all your ventures!
231797
Here's an example of an invention machine (not necessarily from Invention Machine Corporation) generating an idea that led to a US Patent (but without the actual patent number or title). It's an article about John Koza's 'Invention Machine'.\n\nThe article says :-\n\nHis “invention machine,” as he likes to call it, has even earned a U.S. patent for developing a system to make factories more efficient, one of the first intellectual-property protections ever granted to a nonhuman designer.\n\nGood luck with finding other examples.
14693
It would be very hard to prove that it's your idea.  You could mail yourself your written idea and keep it sealed.  That would have a postmark on it at least.
8589
Definition:\nA product of the intellect that has commercial value, including copyrighted property such as literary or artistic works, and ideational property, such as patents, appellations of origin, business methods, and industrial processes.\n\nHere's some history:\nBy the time the U.S. Constitution was being written, the Founding Fathers had a good philosophical grasp of intellectual property, and provisions regarding it were included: Article I, Section 8 gave Congress the power "To promote the progress of Science and Useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries." Almost as soon as the Constitution was ratified, Congress proceeded to set up a patent law to protect monopolies on inventions. By 1836 the U.S. Patent Office was functioning effectively, and it soon became apparent that invention fared better under the U.S. system than under any other. A monopoly for a limited time on a specific invention encouraged people to invent, knowing they could be protected, and enabled them to sell rights to others who had the capital or existing trade to manufacture and promote an invention.\n\nRest of your answers:\nWikipedia has a great article on this topic, I think it should answer most of your questions.\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intellectual_property
6747
What can be patented – utility patents are provided for a new, nonobvious and useful:\n\n        * Process\n        * Machine\n        * Article of manufacture\n        * Composition of matter\n        * Improvement of any of the above \n\n    Note: In addition to utility patents, encompassing one of the categories above, patent protection is available for (1) ornamental design of an article of manufacture or (2) asexually reproduced plant varieties by design and plant patents.\n\n    What cannot be patented:\n\n        * Laws of nature\n        * Physical phenomena\n        * Abstract ideas\n        * Literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works (these can be Copyright protected).  Go to the Copyright Office.\n        * Inventions which are: \n\n            * Not useful (such as perpetual motion machines); or\n            * Offensive to public morality\n\n    Invention must also be:\n\n        * Novel\n        * Nonobvious\n        * Adequately described or enabled (for one of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention)\n        * Claimed by the inventor in clear and definite terms\n\nYour idea seems a bit abstract, but the best way to know if something is propertly patentable is to consult an attorney.
229119
Don't worry about who is doing it, an agent or an attorney.  Just go to several patent firms and get a quote.  Several people will probably be working on it anyway.  It will be expensive no matter where you go.
236247
there are mainly two kinds of patents- Process Patent (Indian patent) and Product patent(international/US) patent.\n\nProcess patent allows anybody to market any product which is manufactured by a process different than what is patented. Say one company has patented the tea formulation and the process is water+tea+sugar+milk. Now, another company can use any other way (water+sugar+milk+tea) of making tea and market it without giving royalty to the first company.\n\nOn the other hand, product patent ensures that if any any patented product is mfg/marketed by any company (other than the company who patented it), it gives royalty to the company who patented the product/mfg technique.\nThat is why medicines which are cheaper in India as they don't have to pay royalty to the companies who mfg it.