In my previous post, I expressed surprise at how thorough provisional patent applications have to be. After reading extensively about the process and learning what should be included, I discovered that provisional applications require everything that non-provisional applications require aside from the claims and prior art sections, although some law firms recommend writing claims into the provisional application. Because my and my co-inventors’ idea was fairly simple, we decided to write the application ourselves to save the money on the legal fees, but excluded a claims section due to the legal complications of including claims in a provisional application. There are some excellent templates available online and after a few revisions I think we will be comfortable submitting our provisional application to the patent office, and, if this business succeeds, hiring counsel to help with the non-provisional application within a year.

For anyone else considering writing a provisional patent application, my takeaway from all the research I’ve done is as follows:

1) A provisional application can serve as nice candy for investors or customers because, once filed, the invention can be referred to as “Patent Pending.”

2) A provisional application is only $130 and adds an extra year of protection so there is really no reason not to file.

3) Filing a good provisional application is essential. A bad provisional application can ruin the patentability of an otherwise great idea. I took a risk here by writing it myself, but it was an excellent learning opportunity.