- Record your ideas, Keep drawings, sketches, pictures, etc.
2. Is your invention marketable?
- Ask friends and relatives what they think.
- Get a formal evaluation from a university.
- Talk to chain store buyers.
- Have a market study made by a legitimate marketing expert.
- Visit the SEEDS Business Resource Center
3. Can your invention be protected with a patent?
- Not every invention needs a patent. But if you intend to license your invention to a manufacturer (or sell it outright), you must have a patent. No one will pay you merely for an idea for a product. Corporations consider that all inventions are in the public domain until you prove otherwise by getting a patent. Thus, the first step in patenting is to find out if your invention qualifies for a patent. This is done by completing a patent search. Visit U.S. Department of Commerce’s United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). United States Patent and Trademark Office
4. Find a patent attorney.
5. Make a Prototype
- A prototype almost always help you to pin down the details of your invention, and such details help in the patenting process.
6. Apply for a patent with help of patent attorney
- The The United States Patent and Trademark Office's Web site provides excellent, detailed information, explanations and links to application forms. You can file for a patent online and search a database of patents issued since 1790. http://www.uspto.gov
7. License or Produce?
- License (or sell outright) the rights to your patent, or produce it and take it to market