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I have an idea for a piece of apparel both a design patent and a utility patent worn around various locations of the body. I have noticed patents filed for universal and off-earth claims.
I wish to do the same thing with my apparel. What style of language do I use? And, must I file separately for each?
Honestly, you want it waterproof? Contact the best patent attorney you can find and let them do it. There is no way you will not make many mistakes without having years of practice and learning. Just browse some questions or the internet to find out just how many mistakes can be amde in a patent that later invalidate it.
Actually, let me add an example:
Let's say I tell you, that you may sue me for some million dollars based on a document you may now design yourself, but if you step into any legal trap while designing that document, you will lose. Would you do it yourself? Or would you hire somebody who's job it is to know those traps?
Because that's what you want if you say water-tight. You want it to potentially win a multi-million-dollar lawsuit. And if you do it yourself, it won't. It just won't hold the moment it becomes important. If it doesn't, whatever, it might last 20 years without anyone caring. But the moment it might earn you money ... yours won't last. An attorneys might.
DonQuiKong's answer very good and you should heed his advice. I would say that no patent is absolutely watertight. While you really need to consult a patent attorney, there are steps you can take to make that process as efficient and cost effective as possible. First, you should, to the best of your ability, perform your own prior art search. This answer relates my general approach and this answer is also helpful. What you want to do is identify relevant prior art. They may not be the same as your invention, but are in some way similar or related. Finding relevant prior art will greatly improve the speed and accuracy of a paid search which lowers your cost.
Another thing you can do is try to draft a thorough description of your invention. You can read some similar patents to get an idea of the information needed. Don't bother trying to write claims. Include, where appropriate, how your invention differs from the most similar prior art you found. Don't assume a patent attorney will use your text directly, but doing this ground work again improves the efficiency of working with the lawyer.
Speaking as an inventor, doing this groundwork is important even if you have an employer paying for the legal work. The better you understand and can communicate your invention and prior art to the attorney, the stronger the resulting patent application will be.
