A patent search tells you whether pursuing a patent on your invention is a wise step. If you discover that a similar invention has already been patented, you can shelve your plan and explore another path. Perhaps you can add features that will improve your product and make it unique, hence increasing its patentability.
You can always hire a patent search professional to take care of this job for you, but know that this option tends to be pricey. On the other hand, there are several tools available that can help you run a search yourself.
Patent search tools help you do a patent search more effectively and can even offer insights about what your competitors are developing. This software is made specifically for searching not only current patents but also applications and inventions which are yet unpatented at the moment.
Free vs. Paid Software
There are many kinds of patent search tools today but you can mainly categorize them as free and paid.
The free ones are a good way to get started, but the problem is you won’t have someone to contact in case you run into issues. A lot of these free tools are also not up-to-date, so that diminishes the accuracy of your results as well. If you can’t take chances with accuracy, paid tools will be a good investment.
Searching Patents on Google
The best thing about using Google to search for patents is that your results will come very fast. But as you might expect, the search features will not be as advanced as what paid tools can offer. Another disadvantage is that the Google database may miss some patents, especially the latest ones. But you can still depend on for getting information that goes further back in time.
Tips for Doing Patent Searches
> Don’t be happy with basic keyword searches. Explore the advanced options and use the specification field.
> Start searching using general search terms then narrow them down as you proceed.
> Play with various keywords. Identical inventions can be described in so many ways in their patents.
> Go through search results very patiently. You will find a combination of relevant and not so relevant items.
> Take down notes. Have a file and mark those things that are of interest.
> If you must hire a professional patent searcher, do it after you’ve done your preliminary search. If they don’t have to work as much, they won’t have to charge as much either.
Searching patents is not very hard to do, but it can be time-consuming, especially for beginners. But by using the right tools, you can achieve your objective more efficiently. Read more now...
Learn more at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patent
