Creating Invention Evaluation Criteria for a Robust Patent Strategy – Steve Sponseller
On this episode, I’m continuing my discussion of the 7-Step system I created that’s helped many tech companies build robust patent strategies. I will be discussing the fourth step in that system, which is important to ensure that you create the best invention evaluation criteria for your business.
Two important things your Patent Strategy must do:
1. Protect your company’s critical inventions
2. Support your business goals
By creating Invention Evaluation Criteria that’s unique to your particular business, you satisfy both of those requirements. First, your Invention Evaluation Criteria ensures that you are protecting your most valuable inventions. And, your Invention Evaluation Criteria is customized for your specific business goals.
By creating invention evaluation criteria that’s unique to your company, you can be sure that you are spending your patent budget to protect the inventions that are critical to your company’s success.
With many of my clients, we create 12-15 different evaluation criteria that are applied to each invention. Based on applying the evaluation criteria to multiple inventions, those inventions can be prioritized based on their value to the company.
I will discuss some of the common evaluation criteria used by clients for many years.
· Feasibility of the invention. Is it commercially feasible to design and produce the invention? If the cost is too high or the development time is too long, the invention may not be a good choice for patenting.
· Does the invention cover a “must-have” feature? If this feature fills a desired gap in the marketplace, it may be a good candidate for a patent application if other criteria are confirmed.
· Does the invention satisfy short-term or long-term goals of the company? As I mentioned earlier, the inventions you patent should support company goals.
· Is the invention related to the company’s exit strategy? Will the invention support that exit strategy?
· Are there any potential patentability problems? Some inventions may be valuable, but difficult to protect with a patent.
· Can someone easily design around the invention? If the invention is patented, can a competitor avoid infringing the patent by easily designing around the patent?
· Should the invention be maintained as a trade secret instead of disclosing the invention details in a patent application?
· What’s the lifetime value of a patent covering the invention? If the invention is likely to be obsolete in a couple years, it may not be worth the time and expense to seek patent protection.
These are just some of the invention evaluation criteria that may be appropriate to your company. It’s important to define your own invention evaluation criteria that support your company goals and help build a portfolio of patents that are valuable to your organization.
Questions?
If you have any questions about building a robust patent strategy for your company, contact me to schedule a complimentary call.
Contact me via email: Steve@SteveSponseller.com
Thanks for listening!
Be sure to get your free copy of my latest book, Cracking the Patent Code, and discover my proven system for identifying and protecting your most valuable inventions. Get the book at https://stevesponseller.com/book.
