Inventor Joe Iannello came up with an idea of how to easily clean the underside of a lawnmower and he developed a new product called the Spray–n-Mow. He designed it, he received United States Patent 7,628,003(PDF) for it, he got it manufactured and now he is marketing his own product and selling it. It wasn’t […]
As a patent attorney here in Buffalo, New York I was very happy to learn that Esther Takeuchi a University at Buffalo professor was among the 2011 inductees to the National Inventors Hall of Fame. So I contacted her and asked her a few questions which she graciously answered (see below). The induction comes from […]
When starting a new business one of the first things that needs to be done is to create a brand. Branding establishes the first impression that your target audience has of your business. Existing businesses sometimes need to re-create their brand. I once asked an attorney “why does the public perceive you as the best […]
Recently I received a calendar from professional patent searcher Martin Keller. On each month of the calendar is a patent drawing that is very unique. So I contacted him because I wanted to thank him for sending me the calendar and see if he would answer a couple questions about preliminary “prior art” patentability searches. Well […]
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) granted an all-time high 219,614 United States utility patents in 2010 – up 31 percent over 2009. All but one of the companies in the Top 50 are up from 2009, most shattering records and many posting double-digit percentage gains. IBM continues to hold down the #1 […]
Recently I met with Fred Landers with Paragon Model Makers Inc. and we had a nice conversation about how he can help inventors build working prototypes and models. Having a prototype is important in the patent process as well as manufacturing process. Like any endeavor cost and efficiency are concerns in trying to reach your […]
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) web page is not very user friendly when searching for prior art patents. But I found an add-on for Firefox called Aspator that makes it much friendlier. The Aspator add-on works with search pages for patents and patent applications on the USPTO and the European Patent Office […]
What Inventors Need to Know… Tom Demitry is an entrepreneur, an inventor, a salesman, a marketer, a man of ideas and as he will tell you first and foremost a father and a man of God. He is constantly coming up with new ideas and new ways to reinvent himself. His passion and enthusiasm are […]
Recently I met with Ron Roberts, President of Rolite Manufacturing. Rolite is a roll forming manufacturer that produces metal products of all shapes and sizes for large and small companies. I toured their manufacturing facility and was amazed at how a compact roll of sheet metal can be stretched, cut, pounded, bent, stamped, shaped and […]
What is happening with regard to the Patent Reform Act of 2010? Recently I asked this and other questions to first term Congressman Chris Lee, who represents New York’s 26th Congressional District. I think it’s important to note that Chris Lee, true to his pro-entrepreneurial stance, has taken the initiative to advocate for Research and […]