A POOR MAN'S PATENT
Several times a year I encounter an inventor who claims to have protected himself by obtaining a "poor man's patent". Essentially, the inventor wrote a description of the invention and then mailed the description to himself. I am unsure where this got started, but the inventor is usually convinced that the invention is then protected.
Mailing an invention to yourself provides usually little protection. Often the description sent by the inventor will lack details necessary for a third party to understand the invention. Additionally, the post mark will not provide conclusive proof of the invention date as the envelope could have been mailed unsealed and then sealed years later. Furthermore, the mailing of the envelope may lead the inventor into a false sense of security and cause the inventor to delay filing a patent application. He may even wait too long to file a patent and the "poor man's patent" may suggest that the inventor was not diligent in reducing the invention to practice.
A far better approach is to keep an engineering notebook and record progress with the invention. Periodically a trusted friend, relative or coworker should sign and date to indicate an understanding of the invention described. Thus, the dates of improvements are recorded and there is a witness who can testify as to the validity of the dates.
While filing a "poor man's patent" is better than not having any evidence of when the invention was conceived, simply relying on a poor man's patent may keep you poor man and it usually won't get you a patent.
Mailing an invention to yourself provides usually little protection. Often the description sent by the inventor will lack details necessary for a third party to understand the invention. Additionally, the post mark will not provide conclusive proof of the invention date as the envelope could have been mailed unsealed and then sealed years later. Furthermore, the mailing of the envelope may lead the inventor into a false sense of security and cause the inventor to delay filing a patent application. He may even wait too long to file a patent and the "poor man's patent" may suggest that the inventor was not diligent in reducing the invention to practice.
A far better approach is to keep an engineering notebook and record progress with the invention. Periodically a trusted friend, relative or coworker should sign and date to indicate an understanding of the invention described. Thus, the dates of improvements are recorded and there is a witness who can testify as to the validity of the dates.
While filing a "poor man's patent" is better than not having any evidence of when the invention was conceived, simply relying on a poor man's patent may keep you poor man and it usually won't get you a patent.
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