1

Is there a government supplement that offsets the cost of obtaining a patent for low income families?

Improve this question
7
  • Could you please explain what "cheapest patient funding and is homered internationally" means? I'm assuming you mean "patent" instead of "patient", but still I'm not sure what you are asking.
    – Eric S
    Commented Apr 1, 2018 at 15:10
  • @EricShain I m not entirely sure how patients work but are they cheaper in other countries? I am removing that part and just asking about the obama patent.
    – Muze
    Commented Apr 1, 2018 at 16:57
  • Patents are national so they only protect in the single country they are issued in.
    – Eric S
    Commented Apr 1, 2018 at 19:28
  • 1
    I have made some small changes to your question which I think make it clearer. Please feel free to roll back if not however. In particular, I felt a bit uncomfortable providing an answer to whether you can get a cheaper "patient", since human trafficking is off-topic here I believe.
    – Maca
    Commented Apr 1, 2018 at 22:01
  • @Maca I invite you to make changes to any of my questions across SE and thanks
    – Muze
    Commented Apr 2, 2018 at 0:24

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
2

Sort of, but only in the US (as far as I know).

You can file an application with micro entity status, which means most of the official fees are 75% less than the usual rate. This has some pretty strict requirements:

  • No inventor/applicant is named on more than four previously filed applications.
  • No inventor/application has a gross income more than three times the median household income preceding the year in which the fee is paid.
  • No inventor/applicant has an obligation too assign a licence or ownership to someone who wouldn't meet the gross income test above.

If any of these change over time, you have to update your status. If you wrongly claim micro-entity status, your patent can be invalid. So it's a pretty big deal.

Improve this answer
4
  • Show me how to file? I meet the requirements.
    – Muze
    Commented Apr 2, 2018 at 18:27
  • 2
    @Muze Although they don’t come free (usually) I’d suggest consulting with a patent attorney or agent. Patent agents may be less expensive. A patent needs to be written and prosecuted. Although it is possible to do this by oneself, the likelihood of success is much lower. Even if you manage to get a patent, without expert help, it very well might be of low quality and not very useful.
    – Eric S
    Commented Apr 2, 2018 at 18:35
  • @EricShain do you think this SE site can increase the quality and success if I take all the advise?
    – Muze
    Commented Apr 2, 2018 at 18:40
  • 1
    @Muze How to file would need to be a separate question, since it's far too involved for a comment. The USPTO has some reasonable guides out about how to do so, I believe. But in any case Eric Shain is right, a patent attorney is the best option if you want a worthwhile patent.
    – Maca
    Commented Apr 2, 2018 at 19:58

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .