Every Inventor know very well what they have invented and what they plan to do with their invention. But the typical inventor has a terrible sense of what their invention could be. A Patent Application should certainly protect what the inventor is doing and what they want to do, but remember in order to get a patent you do not have to produce a working prototype. You just need to be able to explain the invention with sufficient details so that others skilled in the relevant technology area could both make and use the invention themselves without having to engage to engage in undue experimentation, is a topic of another day, but suffice it to say that invariably what the “invention”, is from a patent perspective, is much broader than what an inventor thinks they have, and that is one critical reason why if you can afford to hire a patent agent or attorney, you are always going to be better served by doing so and will wind up with much broader protection than doing it by yourself.
Approach inventing in a business possible way
That means if you have a short term or long term, intermediate and plans in place. Treat your invention from first day itself as if it is going to be successful one day, at least when you are dealing with patent attorney or agent, inventor coach, design consultants, and any other professionals you may decide to work with. Give consideration to what the next several phases of development will be if phase 1 turns out to be successful enough to warrant phase 2 and beyond. By doing this you will start to fill out those short-term, intermediate and long-term goals, which if they can be defined enough on paper can and should be integrated into your patent application. Always think about where you want to go and how you want to get there, as well as thinking about what the competition may want to do to elbow their way into your turf if you are successful. The business reality is if you are successful there will be others who want to get in on the action, that is simple economics 101. So treat your patent application as a master plan and an integral part of your business development.
It is also critical for the inventors and entrepreneur to to have a strategy to succeed, which seems simple enough but is anything but simple for creative types that are so good at invention. If you approach your patent activities you can lay the foundation of your business plan, at least in so far as the technology and technological advancement of your innovation is concerned. But like almost anything in life there is cost associated with succeeding. Regardless of what you may have read or been told, investors love patent and coherent patent strategy. In fact, it almost seems silly to have to say that in this year 2017. Shark tank has become widely popular in even popular culture that it is difficult to imagine that anyone who is serious about inventing has not heard about Shark grill inventors on whether they have anything propitiatory, anything that can be protected any patents pending or issued patents. Patent provide competitive advantage and those sophisticated in business know enough to look for and exploit whatever competitive advantage exists.
Conclusion
Patents are 800 pound gorilla of competitive advantage, but realize if you are going to want and need significant sum of money form investors rarely does a single invention or patent command attention. There are always exceptions, but one patent leading to road of riches is an exception. No one wants to make a approach in a company that has one and done approach to innovation. Take a lesson from Apple Inc. Innovate and then churn your invention for all its worth , re-purposing the technology, expanding into products and service constantly push the envelop and milk the golden goose for all its worth.
