How do I patent my idea?

[cultkid]

I don't know where to start

I didn’t think you could patent an idea.

Start by searching patents to see if a patent has already been granted.

www.gov.uk/search-for-patent

And read this to see if you can patent your idea or not.

www.gov.uk/patent-your-invention

It's not cheap to get a patent so you might want to do some market research to see if it is a viable business. If you do go ahead, you would probably want to use a patent lawyer to help you prepare the application.

I will look into this thank you

I didn’t think you could patent an idea

Good point, @Finfintytint. It depends what OP means by idea.

OP, you can't patent the "idea of an intergalactic spacecraft" but you could patent new technology to power an engine enabling intergalactic travel IYSWIM. It has to be more than an idea.

I can get my husband to make a rudimentary tool, the patent website is a bit pokey I will have to google how to use it as you need the patent application numbers

You can do free keyword searches of patent databases on Espacenet.com

The official UKIPO web-site provides good information on how to file a patent application.

It's not an easy thing to do though, and you should at least try to get a free initial consultation with a registered patent attorney. Go to the IPReg web-site to find one near you.

I once read that a good way to protect an original idea is to document it, put it in an envelope and post it recorded delivery to yourself, making sure the date you sent it is clearly visible - then lock it away unopened,in case you ever need to prove that it was your idea first.

You don't actually have to have made the thing to get a patent. You just have to write a full description of how one would put the invention into practice.

Of course, making a prototype is very useful to find out if the invention actually works as expected.

Omg @MairzyDoats what a brilliant idea

The sealed envelope idea sounds good, but wouldn't help in most situations.

You gain no legal rights just by being the first to think of the idea.

Plus, you could just send an empty, unsealed envelope to yourself and put whatever you wanted in it at a later date, so it proves nothing.

@MairzyDoats The envelope idea is more for copyright/plagiarism, not patents eg you pitch an idea for a gameshow to a TV production company, they then take the idea and make it without paying or crediting you. It wouldn't work for patents. it would give you no legal protection if someone else patented the idea or made it without a patent ever being filed.

As others have said, the envelope idea doesn't give you any protection. If someone else patents the same invention it may help you to challenge their patent but it won't stop other people copying your invention. You need to consult a lawyer who specialises in intellectual property.

The sealed envelope wouldn't even help you challenge someone else's patent application - you have to have made your idea public before their filing date...

Talk to a registered patent attorney! They'll talk you through the process, and costs without charging for the preliminary advice.

Of course you can patent an original idea, but you have to formalise it in a design specification and lodge your patent request with the U.K. patent office and pay about £200.

It can take up to a year for a design to be formalised as your IP (Intellectual Property) because the Parent Office researchers have to dig around in all their available sources of information to ensure it is unique enough to be patented to you. they can give you an interim approval which gives others a clear message that your design has been lodged and awaiting the final decision.

DH has just been going through this process - he just managed to lodge his design in the nick of time and we're now awaiting the final decision, but we have a warrant with rather a posh seal on it (which cost the princely sum of £20, well worth it!) to show it's pending their final approval/decision.

The Patent Office website is very informative from what DH said.

Patents are protected for 25 years following successful registration as it is deemed reasonable to release the original idea to broader society to benefit from after that time, and 25 years is sufficient to recoup R&D and manufacturing costs during the protected period.

Just in case you’re still reading this OP, the last 2 messages have confused two different sorts of IP protection.

A design registration lasts for up to 25 years (subject to the payment of renewal fees every 5 years) whereas a patent lasts for up to 20 years (subject to the payment of annual renewal fees).

It’s not completely clear which sort of protection the PP’s husband has applied for. It normally takes 4 or 5 years to get a patent, but the process can be expedited. A design application only takes a few months, but the patent office doesn’t do any digging around before registering a design.

In neither case does the patent office give you interim approval, but you do get a filing receipt and application number which you can use to show others that you have a pending application.