Patent

an exclusive right to make, use, or sell an invention. The governments of enlightened countries take the view that an invention is as much the property of the inventor as a house is the property of the builder. American patents running seventeen years may be had on making proper application to the United States Patent Office, Washington, D. C. The details may be learned by writing the department for a pamphlet of directions. Any person may make application for a patent regardless of age, nationality, or sex. An inventor should send a notion of his idea to a patent attorney in Washington, who will investigate the files of the office to ascertain whether the invention is already covered by a patent. The records of the patent office are open, but the officials will not make a preliminary search. The next step is to file a claim which gives the inventor a year to perfect his invention. Final application must be accompanied by specifications and a drawing executed in a prescribed manner in India ink on bristol paper, and by affidavit that the applicant believes himself to be the original inventor. Unless the applicant is familiar with such matters, it is best to apply through a patent attorney. The cost of an ordinary patent, including attorney's fees, is $65. The cost of registering a patent in a foreign country is from $60 to $75. See Inventions