Don’t let the “One Year Rule” kill your invention!
You’ve invented the next best thing since sliced bread. That’s good. But you’ve been chatting about your invention in the lunchroom with your co-workers for months. That’s bad.
What many inventors don’t know is that you have ONE YEAR from your public disclosure to file for a patent on your invention. Once you mention it to friends and family, even if it is just in idle chit-chat, the one-year clock starts ticking.
After one year from disclosure passes, an invention cannot be patented. It becomes, in patent lingo, “prior art”.
Let me be extra clear on this very important point: If you’ve talked about or demonstrated the invention in public, or offered it for sale, or described it in any public venue (in a published article, on a Web site, etc.), the one year clock starts to tick. And it can’t be stopped. After the one year time frame concludes, the invention becomes part of the public domain — and it can’t be patented.
One small twist to this absolute rule: If you disclose your invention to another party using a Non-Disclosure Agreement (“NDA”) or similar type of confidentiality agreement, in most cases you are exempt from the One Year Rule.
Bottom line: If you’ve already disclosed your invention, and 12 months have not yet passed, and you want to maintain your ownership of the invention, a patent application would seem to be your next step. Review other articles and postings within my Web site here for some patent application tips and advice.
Hope this information is helpful. Happy inventing.
– Eric
Hi Eric. Thank you so much for already answering a lot of my questions. I dont have an idea right now, but if I ever do, does it matter if someone sees me making my invention. I work at a machine shop. So if I was in there making something, but didnt tell anyone WHAT I was making, would I be in the clear. Also, im assuming it wouldnt matter if I were to tell someone “Ive got an invention thats gonna make me rich”, as long as I dont say what it is.
I think both of these things wouldnt apply to the one year rule, but just want to make sure.
Hello Eric i just wanna start by saying Thank You for your informational webpage. I quit thinking about my invention because i thought the process was too complicated. I feel that i can be successful if i follow your guide.
One of my concerns about my invention 1 year rule. The idea that it could be to late, once again throws my optimism about my idea in the gutter. How does the patent office trace this time frame, and what if i don’t have an exact date in which i released the information to a friend? It is my idea, i invented it, and I want a patent, but due to my reservations about the patent process have passed the 1 year rule. Can i still proceed and obtain a patent, and if I do, what would be the benefit of my friend saying it was longer than 1 year? If you could please respond to my email address or let me know if you commented on this post i would greatly appreciate it. Thank you for your time and philanthropy.
- just another dreamer, Mike
Hi Chris.
In your case, the key would seem to be not disclosing enough information that someone could figure out what your invention is. If someone sees you working on something, but has no clue what you’re building, I can’t see the one-year rule kicking in.
Thank you for your question. Best of luck in your upcoming inventions.
Hi Mike.
I appreciate your honesty and integrity. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office does not, independently, “trace the timeframe” as you say. It is, in large part, an “honor system”. But consciously providing false information to the patent office is a huge no-no, as there are severe federal penalties if one is discovered.
As I mentioned in my post located at http://patent-your-inventions.com/?p=139, you have to be totally honest regarding all aspects of your application (including the one-year rule). In the patent application, you have to sign the following oath:
“I hereby declare that all statements made herein of my own knowledge are true and that all statements made on information and belief are believed to be true; and further that these statements were made with the knowledge that willful false statements and the like so made are punishable by fine or imprisonment, or both, under 18 U.S.C. 1001 and that such willful false statements may jeopardize the validity of the application or any patent issued thereon.”
I hope the above gives you some background on this important information. Again, kudos for being honest.
I’ve got an idea that I want to get a ‘Patent Pending’ license (?) on but every site I go to for Patent Pending always describes how to get a Patent. I just want something to protect my idea until I can gain some capital from it to afford a Patend – and I’m REALLY having a hard time finding the information. Would someone PLEASE, reply back to me with some instruction as to where I should go with my idea, how to get a Patent Pending License so I can go forward and start selling my idea to shops here in town, put it in co-signment shops and sell it at Flea Markets, etc. to see how the market is going to take my invention? I’ve been searching everywhere on the net trying to find out this information but have come up with nothing! I really need your help A.S.A.P.! If you didn’t need my e-mail address above, my home address is: 2151 E. 10 Mile Rd., #1, Royal Oak, MI 48067. I’ll be waiting anxiously to hear back from you on this because I’d l ike to have this going buy the middle of summer! And time’s flyin’ bye! Thank you so very much for your help! Billy Goodson
Hi Billy. Glad to provide an answer.
The short answer is that “Patent Pending” is not a separate thing (“license”) you get, but is the state of a patent application. When you file for a patent, the patent application is “pending” with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Hence, it is “patent pending”.
I’d be happy to provide you with a more detailed answer if you require. Please do me a big favor and copy ‘n’ paste your question into my recently launched Web site — http://www.HowToPatent.pro — that encompasses all of the material on this site, plus will be my platform for information regarding a number of additional patent- and invention-related topics (such as invention marketing — which has been a very popular question).
If you to do a “copy ‘n’ paste” and post your question at http://www.HowToPatent.pro, that would be greatly appreciated. I will then respond to your question at the new Web site. Thank you, again!
– Eric