Patenting an invention idea

Patenting is by far the most widely misunderstood aspect of invention. In Q&A sessions, queries about how to patent an idea tend to crowd out much more important questions about invention evaluation and development.

Patenting an idea is not easy, not quick, not cheap, and often not effective or worthwhile. It could in fact end up doing more harm than good to your invention project.

For more detailed information about patenting and intellectual property rights, read our invention guide A Better Mousetrap and our free download Patenting Your Invention: the Ugly Truth.

And impartial guidance on how best to protect your invention idea at any stage from concept onwards is included in our invention evaluation and advice services.

Should you patent an invention idea or not?

The deciding factor should always be the profit you stand to make from your invention, so don’t consider a patent until you’ve researched (a) your likely sales or royalty income and (b) the cost of patenting your invention. Then do the maths (basically, a minus b). Broadly, consider patenting an invention if one or more of these apply:

1. Your income from it will substantially exceed your patenting costs.
2. It’s a significant technology that competitors will want to use.
3. Most of your income will come from licensing intellectual property rights to other companies.
4. You can get by with a patent in just one or two countries – usually your most valuable markets. That can be much cheaper and more realistic than going for blanket coverage of all potential markets.

Many invention ideas won’t meet any of those criteria but will still be potentially worthwhile products. If that’s you, look at alternative intellectual property rights. Or ask us for advice!