How to get a lock design from idea to product

[greyman]

Hypothetical question

Supposing I had what I thought was a good idea for a new lock design, and I believed that it was significantly different from previous designs and did not infringe on any existing patents. What suggestions would people have for getting from the initial concept to the stage of a potential product that might interest a lock manufacturing company? I have no experience in this, but I would think that a good first step would be to try to make a working model of it and apply for patent protection, before approaching any potential industrial partner. Suggestions welcome

[Kaotik]

Your on the right track. You will want to make a working model and/or a detailed description of the lock, including but not limited to to illistrations, how it will be used, list of parts and materials it will be made of.

Do some research in some patent archives and see if there is anything that comes close to what you are creating. If not, then try to get a patent for it.

[mfschantz]

This is a good question, as I too think I might be on to something original and worthy. From what I understand of the system, you'd want to patent it first like you said. Then you sell the patent to a lock manufacturer for a set amount or a percentage of sales. I think you can get a design patent which means you don't actually have to make anything, just submit a design schematic. I'm 80% sure that getting a patent involves a patent search which would be done by a patent attorney for a fee. At any rate, here's a link to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office:

http://www.uspto.gov/web/patents/howtopat.htm

Sorry I wasn't of more help. I'll definitely be keeping an eye on this thread though as it's something I've been wondering as well.

[Squelchtone]

Not sure what this might be called where you are, but here in the US we also have Notary Public, which is a person who you would go to to have them stamp a document with a date. That way, they stamp all of your plans and printouts and drawings with a date, and when someone says they came up with the idea first, you can show the 'notorized' document with the old dates on it proving it was something you were already working on. I'm about to Trademark something, and I'll be going to a Notary Public to get documents signed and stamped, I'll ask more questions.

Squelchtone

[Gordon Airporte]

Not sure what this might be called where you are, but here in the US we also have Notary Public, which is a person who you would go to to have them stamp a document with a date. Squelchtone

The old trick of sealing the documents in an envelope and sending them to yourself so the post office stamps/dates them (you would then unseal the documents if there is a challenge) actually doesn't work because sneaky people can send empty, unsealed envelopes through the system to get the stamps, then pack whatever they want in them after the fact.
I wonder if that was legally considered a reliable method for any time.

[jimb]

Not sure what this might be called where you are, but here in the US we also have Notary Public, which is a person who you would go to to have them stamp a document with a date. Squelchtone

The old trick of sealing the documents in an envelope and sending them to yourself so the post office stamps/dates them (you would then unseal the documents if there is a challenge) actually doesn't work because sneaky people can send empty, unsealed envelopes through the system to get the stamps, then pack whatever they want in them after the fact.
I wonder if that was legally considered a reliable method for any time.

I like the stamp idea but I can see where there might be problems with it, but a notary is something completely different.

A notary is someone who is legally licensed to basically put a legal stamp on a document which has a signature from a witness on an agreement between 2 or more parties, plus the signatures of all parties involved. I can see how this would help to protect the date of an idea.

Someone else may be able to explain this a little better than I just did.

[Schuyler]

hmmm...I TOO have a design I think is pretty unique

Hopefully none of the three of us will have to race to the patent office against each other.

[hurri]

nice topic..and useful...maybe I'll make the hurricane lock...

[JackNco]

you need cash and alot of it, you will need a world wide patent otherwise u will just have knock offs coming from china within weeks. get a small engineering company to make a working model and make sure they hand over all the plans.

Contact potential partners with ideas but don't go in to specifics till u have a contract

John

[unjust]

i spoke with a patent attorney i know recently about this (iv'e a few various things i'm pondering attempting to commercialize)

long story short, you need a patent before a company will speak to you (as they can get in trouble if they ever do somethign similar) at all.

a provisional patent (lasts a year, allows you to further research w/o risk) will usually run ~1k$ and a full on patent will run you 3~10K depending on it's complexity, and the research needed.

a simple patent research will run ~500$

those prices from a att who is well known for being -very- good at his job

[mfschantz]

...you will need a world wide patent otherwise u will just have knock offs coming from china within weeks...

As for that, this next quote comes from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (it's the very first paragraph from their website):

A U.S. patent for an invention is the grant of a property right to the inventor(s), issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The right conferred by the patent grant is, in the language of the statute and of the grant itself, "the right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling" the invention in the United States or "importing" the invention into the United States. To get a U.S. patent, an application must be filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

you need cash and alot of it...

I've heard that before. I believe the majority of the money goes toward a patent search. I've heard they cost anywhere from $300 to $600. Again, this is only what I've heard.

[greyman]

Thanks to all for responding

I think I have a lot of work ahead of me if I want to get serious about the idea I have had. I remeber someone (was it Einstein) saying that invention is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration...

A possible first cut might be to do some detailed drawings and perhaps some CAD modelling (which I know nothing about at all!). This might help me to understand the mechanics of the lock without actually building it. Then I might be able to produce a prototype myself (unlikely, since it will probably need proper workshop machinery) to test the practicality of the idea. The patent application could be based on either the drawings or the model. I have a hunch that getting to the patent stage is actually the easy part (although probably quite hard in itself). The later stage of generating commercial interest and getting some kind of a fair deal sounds really hard unless you have the right contacts.

The suggestions people have put in so far are really helpful. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one here who is thinking about this!

[JackNco]

...you will need a world wide patent otherwise u will just have knock offs coming from china within weeks...

As for that, this next quote comes from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (it's the very first paragraph from their website):

A U.S. patent for an invention is the grant of a property right to the inventor(s), issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The right conferred by the patent grant is, in the language of the statute and of the grant itself, "the right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling" the invention in the United States or "importing" the invention into the United States. To get a U.S. patent, an application must be filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

you need cash and alot of it...

I've heard that before. I believe the majority of the money goes toward a patent search. I've heard they cost anywhere from $300 to $600. Again, this is only what I've heard.

Just basing it on what ive been told in the uk, i guess it was foolish to assume it would be the same. here its about 3k for English and 10k for world from what ive been told

[mfschantz]

No John, looks like you're spot on according to what Unjust posted. He talked to an attorney, I was going off of something I heard two years ago. I'd go with what he said.

[JackNco]

fair enough, ide be interested to see what greymans up 2. im sure we have all sat there and come up with some weired and wonderful ideas oh how 2 make an unpickalbe lock. mine involved having to make the *plug* (or what ever its called on a door lock) in 3 pieces and involved 18 pins. but that all im saying in case i ever have the cash to actually make it.

John