Provisional patent applications offer a relatively inexpensive way for applicants to secure an early filing date for potentially patentable subject matter. They also provide a one-year window during ...

Filing a provisional patent application was introduced into U.S. patent law in 1994. The ability to file a provisional application was widely applauded at the time and filing provisional applications ...

I am a big fan of inventors using provisional applications as a first step toward obtaining a utility patent. Indeed, provisional patent applications provide many benefits. Provisional applications ...

Jeffrey Proehl is a registered patent attorney with Woods, Fuller, Shultz & Smith P.C. in Sioux Falls. Inventors often have questions about the difference between filing a “provisional” and a ...

I am a big fan of provisional patent applications, and they can be a very useful tool, but only when they are done right. When provisional patent applications are done poorly you not only don’t get ...