anyone know of a "honest "place to get patents or help for patents?

[lightspeed]

I know this doesn't have anything to do with Hal but i have a few idea's and think they would sell and am wondering if anyone knows where their is honest place to go , (i have seen these get your idea's patented on tv , is their any others

[lightspeed]

I did later find this : How to Self-Patent With Free Help From the Federal Government

Read more: How to Self-Patent With Free Help From the Federal Government | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_7632698_selfpatent-federal-government.html#ixzz20ca32vOy
their may be more out their though .

i also ran across this : http://www.uspto.gov/
oh well others may be interested in this info . to ! 

[Art]

Yessir...Mr. Lightspeed... We're from the Government and we're here to help!!!

You'd better run...far and fast!!!


Do some research on patents first as there are many categories and certain criteria for each before a patent lawyer will even consider your project.

Prepare to have complete documentation along with photos, sketches, timelines, etc. - It is quite an involved process and can be rather costly so I
hope you have deep pockets (preferably with some money in them!).

My Nephew is a patent attorney.

[lightspeed]

Darned Art, had to ruin it and say "DEEP POCKETS!" Lol , that pretty much stops me right their ! I need a grant! (kicking tin can all the way down a street!)

[Art]

Lonnie,

Would you rather me NOT be honest with you and give you misleading information? Sorry my friend but sometimes we all get news that we'd rather not hear.

On the other side of the coin:
I do believe that some patent attorneys might be willing to listen and see your invention and if it has merit they might be willing to work on a contingency plan (if it goes to market and makes money then they receive a percentage of the profits in order to pay for their work [researching hundreds of similar inventions, design criteria, safety, proper / improper usage, inherent risks, etc.] ).

If you believe your item has a degree of worthiness then by all means seek out a "professional" patent attorney! They are not all crooks!!

Good luck!

[lightspeed]

LOL yes Art i would rather you be honest with me , i was only kidding while adding the tin can story , thanks for the info. i do appreciate it! (as always !) 
i have found out when checking businesses to also check consumer complaints on inventions places and it's very disheartening to say the least!

[sybershot]

I heard that a guy got ripped off by one of those tv ads for patents. Can't confirm though only have his word, he never showed me any proff.

[lightspeed]

Yes Sybershot that's exactly what i am talking about i checked many places on the internet of invention comapnies that was suppose to help people and then looked up a google search of the name and consumers reports and you would be surprised how many consumer complaints they have about service , deceiving etc. (try it yourself and you'll see) .
I once sent a business when i lived in ca. money to do a check on an idea for an invention and did a drawing of it and what it would do . a skateboard idea where the rider could basically keep it going without pushing his foot off the board . they even sent me a fancy book with my drawing in it , but then wanted a high price to go on with it . It is something i know would have worked with a skateboard as part of it was based on a working toy .
This was more complex then an idea i have now for something else , it's a simple monitor or tv cover , would be fairly easy to make . 

Anyway , that's life !

[cload]

Hi lightspeed,

I remember one time when my dad was talking to a friend of his about the same subject.
My dad advised my friend to do a blueprint of his invention and at the cost of $25 he could get a patent pending number.
This is probably one of the cheapest ways to put a copyright on something before you have the money to hire a lawyer to put a permanent copyright on it.
If I'm not mistaken I believe he said something about the patent pending number is only good for a certain length of time, but I'm not sure.
My personal opinion about copyrights are as simple as this because of the laws of copyright we are stuck in the steam engine days.
We have all of the components to be able to build a vehicle that will run off of water perpetually, but all of the utility companies own the copyrights to these components.
Yes you can build it for about $1 million but you can't sell it because they own the copyrights to it forcing us to have to continue to buy gasoline etc.
maybe one day we'll all get together and realize that it's better to have a more proficient operating system than squabble over money.
If it wasn't for copyrights we would have a computer that would be so blazing fast right now utilizing the best of all of the components of all of the different types of computers in one computer.
Oh wait a minute, I guess we would be living in Star Trek, that's a movie not reality my bad. LOL.

Sincerely, thank goodness pronouns and adjectives don't cost nothing or I would starve.

C load.

[lightspeed]

thanks Cload for the additional info. i did buy part of the material to make a prototype , even if i don't ever get a patent or copyright on it at least i can have the pleasure of owning it and using it ! if i like it well enough i may even make one for a flat panel tv sometime if i ever get one lol, my sanyo 25 inch tv still works like a charm and had digital satellite for a clear pic as good as led's look .