The patent office has recently been working to speed up the patent examination process for all patents, but still it is not uncommon to get a first office action, which is the patent office’s response to your patent application, two years after an application is submitted. But the patent office does have programs to speed the application process.
The first program is a Petition to Make Special either because of Age, must be 65 or older, or due to health problems, doesn’t cost any additional money. Just one of the co-inventors needs to be over 65 or in ill-health. My experience filing patents with a Petition to Make Special, is that the first office comes at about six months after filing. The next USPTO program is a Title One Application which promises a 12 moth first office action response, but again my experience in filling Title One applications is that the first office action comes in about six months.
The cost of Title One Expedited applications is high, for large entity its $4,515, for small entities its $ 1806 and for micro entities the cost is $903.00. There are many USPTO rules on small entities and micro entities, but generally if you have 500 employees or less you are a small entity and if your income is less than $241,830 (today, it changes every year), and you have less than five patent applications (not including provisional applications) you are a micro-entity. Check the USPTO web site for all rules, or call the USPTO Inventor Assistant Hot Line at 800-786-0189 for assistance.
If you file electronically filing a Title One application is very easy, when you pull down the menu on type of application, one option is a Title One Application. You also need to file the USPTO form PTO/A1A/424.
Why Expedite
First you can’t sue anyone for infringement, or file a complaint with a retailer or Internet seller without a patent. Without a patent you don’t own intellectual property (IP). A provisional patent doesn’t count. This is especially dangerous with online retailers such as Amazon. Possible competitors are always looking at Amazon and other sites for competitive products, or new products. If you don’t have a patent, those competitors can duplicate your product and put a damper on your introduction efforts. Amazon does have a program called APEX (Patent Evaluation Express) to address patent infringement on its platform. But that doesn’t come into play if you don’t have a patent. Not all patents cover consumer products that might be sold on Amazon. But if they could be, or you attend trade shows, don’t be surprised if someone tries to copy your idea.
Second, people will not know what your patent will end up looking like until you actually have a patent. A common number I’ve heard from, multiple sources is that only 10 % of patent applications receive a notice of allowance (which means your patent is approved if you pay the issue fee) without at least one office action being filed. An office action is an objection filed by the examiner, often listing previous patents, which often require an amendment to the patent application. Often these amendments have to limit the scope of the patent, which makes it less broad. Which is why it is difficult to license a product without a patent, people don’t know what your patent will end up being.
Here is an example of what can happen with a claim in a patent application for a sewing method that shows how a patent application can change before becoming a patent..
I claim “A method for joining two pieces of cloth together at their edges, comprising the steps of…”. This claim then depends on the steps as to whether or not the claim is broad. If the method “is using a needle, with a stitching process” that claim is broad. But if the steps are “using a needle with a barbed hook and cross X stitching pattern with each stitch no more than two mm apart from another stitch” you have a much narrower patent. The broad claim is unlikely to get approval as there is a lot of prior art. The second claim would have a better chance.
One reason patents don’t receive a notice of allowance is their claims are too broad, the applicant will often narrow the claims to meet the examiners objections. If your objective is to license your idea, you should consider a Title One prioritized examination. But move fast as the USPTO has a limit of 15,000 prioritized examinations per year.