Welcome to the world of inventing and patenting! You are about to embark on one of the most exciting journeys in your life!

This manual will provide you with a "road map" to guide you on your journey. It will help you make the choices that are right for you. Whether you plan to go into business or license your invention, From Patent to Profit will teach you how to be successful.

Both novice and experienced inventors will find the invention development system used in this manual invaluable. It is based upon my eleven years of inventing and patenting experience and also incorporates the advice and strategies of many other experts.

About This Manual

This manual reveals the secrets of successful inventing and patenting. It reveals for the very first time that successful inventing consists of four, overlapping, interrelated processes, that together form the From Patent to Profit(TM) system. From Patent to Profit divides the four processes into several easy-to-follow steps. Each step is outlined in the From Patent to Profit Strategic Guide.

How to Use This Manual

This manual is both a training aid and a reference guide. When used as a training aid, it will teach you how to turn your ideas into patents and make money from them. When used as a reference guide, it becomes a handy information source of invention management options to refer to again and again.

If you are a novice inventor with an idea you want to develop, read the manual from beginning to end to learn how to protect it, evaluate it, patent it and get it producing profit for you. If you are an experienced inventor, you too would be wise to start at the beginning--to learn many new and exciting strategies to help propel your current efforts. Experienced inventors may find that the From Patent to Profit system saves them months, even years, of development time.

The From Patent to Profit system shows you how to be the team leader who guides the four invention related processes. They are:

1. Inventing
2. Patenting
3. Manufacturing
4. Marketing

To lead you in these four processes, this manual is divided into four main sections. The first two sections relate directly to the first two processes (Inventing and Patenting); the third section relates to the last two processes (Manufacturing and Marketing). Because licensing is a key to your success, it requires a separate section.

The Table of Contents includes a heading for each section followed by headings for all chapters and topics. It should be a handy way for you to locate material about the various issues you may want to review.

About The Author

About 11 years ago Bob DeMatteis had an idea he wanted to pursue. He pursued that dream, patented it, and today is a successful inventor-marketer with 14 U.S. Patents and 6 pending. Sales of his inventions exceed $25 million a year and are used by national giants such as Sears, WalMart and Kroger. You have most likely used some of Bob's innovations at one time or another -- when you carry your merchandise in one of the stores' printed plastic bags.

What is interesting is that Bob's inventions and patents do not focus on engineering or scientific advances, but on making products "people friendly". He quickly became an innovative leader in the packaging industry by developing packaging systems in niche markets.

Bob has a passion and a commitment to getting his inventions developed and producing income. He focuses on people's true needs. He enjoys tackling potentially insurmountable problems and always strives to continuously improve. A secret to his success has been the ability to get a new invention marketed quickly and producing profit during the patent pending phase.

Bob had another dream about two years ago -- teaching others how they too can realize their dreams. He enjoys teaching just as much as patenting and inventing. Bob developed a seminar series called From Patent to Profit(TM). These seminars help inventors, innovators and entrepreneurs patent their ideas and make money at little or no cost.

Bob has authored other books and contributes to magazines, such as Inventor's Digest. He is the founder of the American Innovation Workshops, a certified Seminar Leader of the American Seminar Leaders Association and Advisor to several small company development organizations.

Some Comments From Others...

"Bob DeMatteis has created and written what may be the single-most important work on an orderly path to innovation ever written! Bob's tremendous success in licensing his own inventions is well documented and apparent in every page. It is a must read for all inventors. ... invaluable!"
-- Jim Harris, former WalMart Executive, international marketer, American Innovation Workshops Director.

"The information in this book is rock solid and the best foundation that an inventor can get anywhere in one book. It's absolutely a must read for inventors, innovators or anyone in the intellectual property field. From Patent to Profit is destined to become the handbook and bible for inventors."
-- Stephen Gnass, founder of the Invention Convention(TM), Chairman of the WCIO.

"To make a contribution to the welfare of mankind through an invention is certainly a commendable deed. However, to teach the next generation about how to patent and profit from an invention is an even greater accomplishment. The author of this book, Bob DeMatteis, is a brilliant inventor. His achievement of making this knowledge available to the public deserves recognition. It will shine a light of guidance on all of them, so that they too can contribute to the future welfare of mankind."
-- Yugiro Yamamoto, Ph.D., internationally renowned inventor, creator of the cordless telephone, telephone answering machine and holder of more than 45 patents.

'This is a book written by a successful inventor who not only knows how to invent and take products to market, but but knows how to teach!"
-- George Margolin, inventor, holder of 25+ patents and nationally known inventor advocate.

A Few Quotes From The Book...

A Common Mistake -- Rushing to File

All too often inventors who have rushed to file regular patent applications have found that by the time the invention was developed to a marketable state, they have "designed around" the original subject matter in the patent application!

We often set our sights immediately on national or worldwide sales. But remember, you need to walk before you can run. It is much easier to start with a microcosm as a test market, a local city or region -- then expand to the next level, all the while building credibility and contacts as sales grow.

Royalty Incentives

Think about this. If you receive a 3% royalty and you have to pay your R&D costs, attorney's fees, etc., you would be much better off accepting a lower rate and having your licensee pay those costs instead. Your licensee will most likely have a budget to pay for some of those expenses. With lower royalties, they can be much more competitive in the marketplace and really propel sales to some high volumes. The outcome of this approach is obvious... it is a win-win situation for you both.

Take Time To Celebrate

Hard charging innovator-inventors need time for leisure and relaxation. After all, inducing a birth is a lot of work! Take time to enjoy yourself in the process, whenever you can. Inducing the birth of new inventions will take you to many new places and you will meet many new people. Enjoy them and enjoy the scenery. Besides, during rest and relaxation many new, exciting ideas and discoveries are made!

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION

PART ONE: INVENTING

1. ALL ABOUT INVENTING

Got a Good Idea?
Do You Want to Pursue Your Idea?
Today's Business Climate Is Perfect
Laws, Court Cases and New Legislation
The Best and Worst First Steps
The First Secret to Successful Inventing
The Second Secret Is The From Patent to Profit System. . . Four Key
Processes, Not One
The Third Secret to Success: It's a Team Effort
Your Invention - Innovation Objectives
Evaluating an Idea... Knowing it Is Worth Pursuing

The First, Most Important Evaluation Criteria: Money
The Second Evaluation Criteria: Security
The Third Evaluation Criteria: Knowledge
The Fourth Evaluation Criteria: Fun

Thinking Like a Successful Innovator-Inventor-Entrepreneur
One More Thought on Positioning Yourself
Thinking Ahead. What to Do With Your Inventions and Patents
Are You Ready to Take Action?

2. YOUR INVENTION STRATEGY

The Seven Strategic Steps to Profit
Strategic Step #1: Protect Your Idea
Maintain Logs and Other Records
Strategic Step #2: Evaluate the Marketability of Your Idea
Doing a Quick Preliminary Evaluation Yourself
A Good Guiding Principle to Evaluate Innovations
Breakthrough Opportunities Usually Take Time to Be Accepted
Competitive Responses
Compare Your Invention to the Present State of the Art and the Industry
Looking for Those Unique Attributes that Sell!
Strategic Step #3: Conduct and Evaluate an Accurate Patent Search
Strategic Step #4: Develop the Invention to a Functional State
The Five Phases of Prototyping
Creative Prototyping Methods
How to Get Prototypes Made at Little or No Cost to You

Industrial and Commercial Applications
Retail Applications
The Key to Free Prototyping

Making Successful Presentations With Prototypes
What If You Can't Get a Commitment?
Strategic Step #5: Write and File Patent Applications
Filing for Patents and Your Invention Development Strategy
Strategic Step #6: Follow Through on Your Marketing and Manufacturing Plan
Strategic Step #7: Improve Your Invention

3. DEVELOPING YOUR INVENTION

What Makes a Good Invention Anyway?
The Customer-Driven Philosophy
Focus on Niche Products
Generic Vs. Value Added
Where is Your Mindset and Where is Your Invention Positioned?
Eight Ways to Make CDI Work For You

1. Think of Your Invention in Terms of Customer Benefits
2. Make Your Personal Philosophy 'Flexible"
3. Get Everyone Involved and Communicating
4. Get Super Close to Your Customers
5. Think Small
6. Use Intuition (or Instincts) to Guide Your Innovations
7. Find the Champions to Your Cause and Let Them Lead!
8. Zero in on Your Target Market

   Focusing Your Efforts on CDI
   Rating Your Invention
   CDI Benefit #1: Inventions Should Be Good For Mankind
   CDI Benefit #2: Saving Time, Money and Space
   CDI Benefit #3: Safety
   CDI Benefit #4: Convenience
   CDI Benefit #5: Comfort
   CDI Benefit #6: Entertainment
   CDI Benefit #7: Easy to Learn
   CDI Benefit #8: Appeal to the Senses
   CDI Benefit #9: Appeal to Vanity
   CDI Benefit #10: Improved Productivity
   CDI Benefit #11: The Systems Approach
   CDI Benefit #12: People Friendly--The Greatest Innovation Opportunity of All
   How to Make Your Inventions "People Friendly"

9. Capitalize on the Users' Natural Tendencies

• Instant Recognition
• Natural Mapping
• Save Steps, Save Time, Reduce Confusion
• Monkey See, Monkey Do--Minimum Training Required

  An Inside Secret to Developing Great Inventions
  Designing to Elicit Emotion
  Other Attributes and Secrets
  About CDI and QM
  CDI and Patenting
  CDI As a Modus Operandi
  The Best News About Continual CDI and Inventing
  
  4. INVENTING AND PROBLEM SOLVING
  
  Invention-Innovation Usually Begins as the Creative Process of a Single Person
  The Importance of Teamwork in Inventing and Innovating
  Testing an Innovation
  Problem-Solving Basics
  Be Sensitive to Red Flags
  Work Quietly and Confidentially
  
  PART TWO: PATENTING
  
  5. ALL ABOUT PATENTS
  
  Your Patent May Become Your Most Valuable Asset
  What Is a Patent?

  Utility Patents
  Plant Patents
  Design Patents

  What Rights Do Patents Give You?
  Who Can File a U.S. Patent Application?
  Is it Difficult to Get a Patent?
  What Is Needed to Have an Invention Patented?
  What Cannot Be Patented?
  What Is Not a Patent?

  Trademarks
  Service Marks
  Trade Dress
  Copyrights
  Domain Names

  Misconceptions about Patents
  How Much Does it Cost to Get a Patent?
  What Exactly Does "Patent Pending" Mean?
  Filing a Patent Application
  Provisional Patent Applications. . . a Great Opportunity
  First to Invent
  Interference
  The All-Important One-Year Rule
  Protecting Your Rights to File Worldwide
  Prosecuting an Application and How Long it Takes to Issue _
  When a Patent Is Granted
  When a Patent Application Is Finally Rejected
  Your Patent Is Property
  Inventorship, Ownership and Patent Assignment
  How Can You Learn More about Patenting?
  About Invention Assistance Companies
  
  6. YOUR PATENTING STRATEGY
  
  The Big Picture First
  Specifically, What Patent Protection Can You Get?
  Product or Apparatus Patents
  Process Patents
  Systems (or Method) Patent
  Machine Patents
  Composition of Matter (Chemical Compositions)
  Software Patents
  Improvement Patents
  Filing for Multiple Inventions and Coverages
  More About Design Patents
  More About Plant Patents
  What You Do Not Want to Patent

  Trade Secrets
  Fads
  Low Sales Volume
  Inventions of Insufficient Improvement

  Invention Disclosures
  Validating an Invention Disclosure Document
  Disclosures Help You Understand Your Invention Better
  Patent Searches
  About Doing Your Own Preliminary Patent Search
  How to Read a Patent Search
  What If there is Prior Art or Your Invention Infringes Another Patent?
  Doctrine of Equivalence... Literal Versus Figurative Interpretation
  Using A Patent Search to Your Advantage
  When is a Search Not Necessary?
  When Do You Start Writing a Patent Application?
  When Is the Best Time to File a Provisional?
  When to File the Regular Patent Application
  Strategy, Worldwide Patent Rights and PCT's
  Consideration for International Filing of Patents
  Who Should Write the Patent Application?
  Is it Best to Use a Patent Attorney to File or Is it Best to File "Pro Per"? _
  When and How to Hire an Attorney Without Spending Money
  About Patent Infringement Protection
  Having a Patent Attorney Work for Free
  Who Contacts the Patent Office to Follow up on the Application?
  Prosecuting the Application
  A Second Rejection
  During Prosecution Your Attorney Earns His Money
  Patent Strategy, Licensing and Venture Capital
  The Most Important Strategy--Keep Inventing
  
  7. WRITING PATENT APPLICATIONS
  
  Utility Patent Writing Strategy
  Modeling after Another Patent
  Drafting Your Application on a Computer Saves Time and Money
  Writing and Filing a Provisional Patent Application
  Patent Writing Simplified
  The Standard Format For Writing a Regular Patent Application
  Storytelling
  Writing a Regular Patent Application
  Drawings--Artistic or Not
  Writing Claims

  Broad Claims
  Narrow Claims
  Independent Claims
  Dependent Claims

  Abstract
  Oath of Inventorship - Power of Attorney
  Small Entity Declaration
  
  8. PROTECTING YOUR RIGHTS
  
  Knock-Offs, Patent Infringement, and the Chess Game Begins
  Handling Negative Comments
  Positioning Your Responses
  Your Patent Infringement Strategy
  When infringement occurs
  Deciding on a Plan of Attack
  What If You Are In an Expanding, Start-up Industry?
  Be Nice or Fight?
  The Role of Your Attorney
  What to Do If Someone Says Your Patent Infringes Theirs
  What if Your Patent Infringes Another?
  Problems Become Opportunities
  
  PART THREE: MANUFACTURING AND MARKETING
  
  9. INVENTION MARKETING BASICS
  
  The Right Invention Marketing Philosophy
  CDI, Market Creation and Establishing Your Niche
  The CDI Philosophy Is Tailored to Smaller, Flexible Entities
  Choosing the Right Sized Marketing and Manufacturing Partners
  Make Your Manufacturing and Marketing Philosophy "Small"
  Fast, Flexible Niche Companies
  Your Marketing Expert Becomes Your R&D Liaison
  Identify Your Target Markets. . Which One Are You Going to Capture First?
  Categorizing Your Specific Niche
  How to Determine a Wholesale and Retail Price

  Industrial/Commercial Price Scenarios
  Retail Pricing Scenario

  Establish a Trademark
  How to Develop a Catchy Trademark
  Packaging Your Invention

  Packaging in Plastic Bags
  Packaging in Boxes

  UPC Codes and Labeling
  
  10. YOUR MARKETING AND MANUFACTURING STRATEGY
  
  Why Separate Your Manufacturing and Marketing Strategies?
  Five Strategic Approaches to Making Money From Your Invention
  It's a Team Effort
  Who Will Be on the Team?
  When Do You Start Building The Team?
  The Role of Your Attorney
  Positioning Your Invention and Your Desires
  If You Have Filed For Patents or Already Have One
  In General, Masked Terms, talk About Your Invention and its Sales Potential _
  Talk About Customer Benefits and Test Results
  Invention Summaries
  Finding and Interviewing Your Manufacturing and Marketing Candidates
  Searching by Phone
  Using Letters of Inquiry
  Next: Interviews with Confidentiality Agreements
  Broad-Based Confidentiality Agreements
  Basic Rules of Using Confidentiality Agreements
  Asking Others to Sign Your Confidentiality Agreements
  Tailoring a (Broad-Based) Confidentiality Agreement to Your Needs
  Visitor's Non-Disclosure
  Employee Patent Program (And Agreement)
  Invention Prospectus
  A Model Prospectus
  Formalizing Your Prospectus
  
  11. YOUR MANUFACTURING EXPERT
  
  Your Manufacturing Objectives
  How Many Manufacturers Will You Need?

  Non-exclusive Licensing Relationships
  Exclusive Licensing Relationships

  How Do You Find Manufacturing Partners?
  Evaluating a Manufacturer
  
  12. YOUR MARKETING EXPERT
  
  Your Sales-Marketing Objectives Can They Really Sell Your Product? Two Types of Salespeople One of the Best Kept Sales Secrets on the Planet Locating the Right Sales and Marketing Expert For Your Invention The Attributes of a Winning Sales Organization Confirmation of Appointment of a Sales Expert
  
  13. INDUCING A BIRTH
  
  Introducing a New Product
  Inducing a Birth and Sustaining it Is a Five-Phase Process
  Steps l and 2: Building Prototypes and Testing
  Step 3: Hands-On Trials
  Striving to "Make It Right"
  How Do You Know When it is Not Right? ("Red Flags")
  Watch Carefully for "Red Flags" Unrelated to the Invention
  Step 4. Expand Sales
  Step 5. Continuous Improvement
  Keep the Sales Force "Selling Into the Future"
  A Birth Is Induced, and Strong Growth is Predicted
  The Use of Importers to Supplement Supply
  Take Time to Celebrate

  PART FOUR: LICENSING
  
  14. ALL ABOUT LICENSING
  What Is A License?
  What Rights Do Licenses Grant?
  Why Are Licenses Needed?
  Four Types of Licenses and Two Approaches to Licensing
  Exclusive Licenses
  Non-Exclusive Licenses
  
  15. YOUR LICENSING STRATEGY
  
  The Right Licensing Approach for You
  Exclusive Licenses

  Non-exclusive Licenses
  Your Licensing Focus

  The Seven Point Checklist to an Exclusive License
  When Is the Best Time to License Your Invention?
  Who Negotiates a License Agreement?
  How to Introduce a License to a Potential Candidate
  Licensing Incentives
  Tailoring a Standard License to Your Needs
  A Creative Approach to Licensing (A Sweetheart Agreement)
  A Simplified License Agreement
  Modifying Agreements
  What If a Potential Licensor Is not Ready to License?
  Human Nature and Licensing
  
  APPENDIX - INVENTOR RESOURCES
  Inventor Education and Resources / Inventor Organizations / Tradeshows / Licensing and Marketing Contacts / Trade Magazines / Prototyping and Manufacturing / Packaging / Patent Attorneys and Agents / Patent Searches / Government Assistance / Internet Sites / Internet Newsgroups / Inventor Advocate Groups
  
  WORD AND PHRASE INDEX