A Provisional Patent Template for Inventors

For entreprenuers and inventors understanding Intellectual Property is a important. One of the key aspects of IP is getting a patent. Patents grant the owner the right to make or produce something exclusively for a period of time (typically 20 years from the date of filing).

This repository contains a template that anyone can use to draft a simple provisional patent and file it with the US Patent office.

I've been through several startups, worked at some very large companies, and had several patents granted. I have used the template here for many of my filings and for assisting other startups in getting their first filings done. More importantly, by using a good template, it saves time for when you must convert a provisional patent in to a full patent filing.

This repo is an overview of provisional patents from a creator / inventor's point of view, along with a template and explanation of the patent process. I'll touch on US based patents, provisional patents, and conversion, but I strongly advise that you seek professional legal advice if you are inexperienced with the Intellectual Property landscape. Also patents cost money to file and issue (outside of time and any legal fees). Patents are not automatically enforced by any government agency. It is the responsibility of patent owner to identify infringers and to use legal action to affect a result.

Quick disclaimer

I am not a lawyer and cannot provide legal advice. If you have any doubts then please seek the advice of a patent attorney

Links to Template, Examples, Resources

Link to Template is word (.docx) version here : Provisional Patent Template .docx

Link to Template in rtf version here : Provisional Patent Template .rtf

Link to a filled out example is here: Provisional Patent Filled out Example .pdf

Here is the USPTO page for getting the latest provisional patent filing sheet SB016. This is the "boilerplate" which contains the office type info such as the address of the inventors and docket or signature info.

Here is a link to where to file on the USPTO. USPTO online filing

International filing? This is a US based form, so cnce you file your provisional you can use the filing date and your filled out application (including your filled out template) to assist your legal counsel in getting patent protection in other countries. Be sure to observe specific time limits.

Finally be aware that filing patents can be expensive. While patents can be one of the strongest ways for their owner to protect themselves from being copied. A patent grant's the owner the right to make or roduce something exclusively for a period of time (typically 20 years from the date of filing). Securing patent rights can help an inventor or small business protect unique product features from being copied and make it easier to raise money. However one should be aware that securing patents can be expensive, time consuming, and may not even be appropriate for many businesses.

When a patent is granted it does not mean it is enforced. If some violates (called infringing) on your patent it is up to you, as the patent holder, to litigate the infringer. Patent lawsuits can be extremely costly. All the patent does is give the right to challenge persons or companies that may be copying your invention. For this reason alone certain businesses (for example restaurants) don’t really need patents at all. Even a secret formula is often better left as a trade secret than a patent. So while patents do secure a limited time right of monopoly for an idea, the enforcement path must also make financial sense to justify the expense of obtaining a patent.

For tech startups investors take a slightly nuanced view. A patent can function as a barrier to entry for a competitor which can buy the start up time. Also patents can bought, sold, or even licensed. These can bring financial value in the right context.

Basic Process

Identify the patentable material. To be patentable an invention must be "novel", "useful", and "not obvious"
- novel - not citable in any previous prior art. The prior art isn't just other patents it can be any existing documents, manuals, old books etc.
- useful - does something useful. This utility can be very small and it can be specific to an arcane science, but should be clear to someone "skilled in the art"
- not obvious - is something that a trained person in the area of the invention would not likely think of
Write a document (that's the template included here) that documents the invention. It must include all the inventors, a description, and atleast one claim. Make sure the documentation is complete so that a person skilled in the area of the invention could make it using the description as a recipe.
Fill out the approriate "Application Data Sheet" (ADS) which is cover-letter-form that goes with the filled out patent info.
File with the patent office directly (see links section) or send your completed template over to your attorney. By using the template you can save your attorney time (and hence you money). Plus it include other details that make conversion from provisional status to full status easier.
Pay the appropriate fee. Latest fees are listed here: USPTO Fees

Quick notes:

A provisional patent is not examined by the Patent office for patentability, instead if functions as a placeholder (assuming all the parts are provided).
The term of a provisional patent is 12 months from filing. This means that holder of the provisional patent has 12 months to convert the patent from provisional status to a full blown patent application. This is a hard deadline and can't be extended (note there are some extremely rare circumstances where this can be appealed by a couple months but it comes at high costs and requires specific legal expertise - stick with 12 months.)
You cannot file a provisional patent on a design patent.
Once a provisional patent is filed the filer can claim "patent pending" on all public product documentation

Supplementary Links:

The following are supplementary links on provisional patents and how they are used.

Closing

This template and the examples are provided under the BSD-2 license