INtellectuall Pro0p0erty Assistance

Intellectual Property

With any science or technology based business the ownership, licencing and management of the intellectual property at the heart of the business is critical.

 

Intellectual property takes many forms and most businesses rely upon a range of types of intellectual property, from copyright for your website, apps or software, through design rights to patents depending upon the nature of your technology.

 

Before you start investing time and money into the development of what you think is a completely new product its worth just checking the various IP databases that are available free of charge to search for prior IP or conflicting technologies. Visit our patent searches page for some initial guidance and links to various databases. 

electronic and medical devices
chemical and biological processes
opto electronics and signalling

Protecting your Ideas

You have probably spent many hours developing everything from your website, the algorithms behind your app to the physical look and feel of your product and most importantly the novelty at the heart of your innovation.  That is an investment and like all investments it needs protecting if you are going to find a way of benefiting from it.

 

Protecting the ownership of any property is a specialist activity and requires the correct legal advice. A patent agent or patent attorney is one of the best places to start but be sure that the person who will be representing you has a good track record and really understands not just IP but also the specific field in which your innovation will be commercialised.

 

E-bbex has many years of experience of dealing with all forms of intellectual property and can give general advice and guidance but we would always recommend professional advice on planning, drafting and implementing your intellectual property protection. 

 

There are organisations that claim that they can train you to be able to draft your own patent.  It’s true the first draft will always be in your own hands but only a professional can truly develop a patent that covers all angles and can stand up to the scrutiny of the patent office examiners.

 

Wikihow.com has a good guide to the process of identifying and selecting a patent agent/attorney. Its aimed at the USA but the principles are just as valid anywhere but you will have to find the local patent lawyers association. https://www.wikihow.com/Search-for-Patent-Attorneys

 

Here are seven key lessons from www.entrepreneur.com about taking on and working with an IP attorney that we strongly recommend:

  1. Remember: Your attorney works for you. Like any other person you hire, you need to set specific boundaries and talk about expectations before you start working together.
  2. Use referrals. There's no better endorsement than a personal one. That said, there are a few other strategies to finding the right patent attorney for you.
  3. Don't constrain yourself by physical location. You rarely have to actually sat down face-to-face with your attorney.
  4. Understand the pros and cons of working with a large firm versus an independent practitioner.
  5. Patent attorneys are only as good as the information you provide them with. Never forget that you're the expert. Don't take a passive role and assume your attorney is going to do everything you want.
  6. Get everything in writing. Make sure you understand how your patent attorney bills clients.
  7. Educate yourself. Learn as much about the legal process as you can on your own and save only the important questions for your attorney.

To see the full article visit https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/229315

 

Other sources of information re IP include:

 

NEVER FORGET that the purpose of IP right is the protection of your invention so that it can be of use in industry – i.e. its commercialisation. Identifying and developing the most appropriate commercialisation strategy for a specific invention is often critical to the success or failure of that novel product or service. E-bbex is ideally placed to work with you and your patent agent to develop a commercialisation strategy and assist in the implementation of that strategy. For more information of our services visit our commercialisation page..

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