A provisional patent application (PPA) is an effective, fast, and cheap way to safeguard your place in line at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) while you decide whether to file a regular patent application. A PPA preserves your invention rights for up to one year — without the toil and expense involved in filing a regular patent application.
A PPA consists of several pages of text (called the “specification”) and drawings, both of which describe how to make and use your invention. You do not need to hire a draftsperson to prepare formal drawings as long as they — in conjunction with the specification — show how to make and use your invention.
Nolo Now will help you create the specification, allow you to upload and review your drawings, and create the cover sheet required by the USPTO. We then submit your application electronically and send you the proof of filing with other helpful materials.
A provisional patent application will not by itself get you a patent. In order to patent your invention, you must file a regular patent application — a more complex document — and the patent must be approved by the USPTO. To receive the benefit of the earlier provisional patent application date, a regular patent application would have to be filed within one year.
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