5 3 1 the patent process (social studies)

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The Patent Process
by Donna Latham

Genre

Expository
nonfiction

Comprehension
Skills and Strategy

• Author’s Purpose
• Generalize
• Text Structure

Text Features

•
•
•
•

Heads
Charts
Diagrams
Glossary

Scott Foresman Reading Street 5.3.1

ISBN 0-328-13534-8

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Reader Response

The Patent Process

1. Why did the author put the information on page 5
into a chart, instead of using paragraph form?
2. The author structured the text in chronological
Donna
Latham
order. Using a by
graphic
organizer,
such as the one
below, write down inventors from the eighteenth,
nineteenth, and twentieth centuries who were
mentioned in this book. Include their inventions.
Eighteenth-century Inventors

Nineteenth-century Inventors

Twentieth-century Inventors
3. Why do you think creative ideas are called intellectual
property?

4. This book contains images of many different
inventions. Which one of the images did you find the
most interesting? Why?

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Patents and Inventions: A Great Combination
Are you wearing jeans today? Are your sneakers
fastened with Velcro®? Have you placed a call on a
telephone? If you answered “yes” to any of these
questions, then you have used a consumer product
that was patented years ago as an invention.
Throughout history, inventions have solved
problems, simplified work, cured diseases, and
improved communications worldwide. Inventions
have affected every area of our lives!
Inventors work hard to turn their ideas into
reality and deserve recognition for what they have
achieved. In order for inventors to be recognized for
their innovations and discoveries, they must first go
through the process of obtaining a patent.

Did You Know?
Every effort has been made to secure permission and provide appropriate credit for
photographic material. The publisher deeply regrets any omission and pledges to
correct errors called to its attention in subsequent editions.

Long associated with inventors, the interjection
“Eureka!” expresses excitement over a discovery.

Unless otherwise acknowledged, all photographs are the property of Scott Foresman,
a division of Pearson Education.
Photo locators denoted as follows: Top (T), Center (C), Bottom (B), Left (L), Right (R),
Background (Bkgd)
Opener: Corbis; 1 Corbis; 3 PhotoEdit, Inc.; 6 Getty Images; 7 Getty Images; 8 Corbis;
9 Corbis; 11 Corbis; 13 Corbis; 14 Corbis, The Granger Collection; 15 Corbis, AP/Wide
World; 16 Corbis; 17 ©DK Images; 21 ©DK Images, NASA; 22 NASA
ISBN: 0-328-13534-8
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2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 V0G1 14 13 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05

3


To help you understand why patents are
necessary, pretend for a moment that you are an
inventor and that your invention—after years of
research, planning, and long hours of trial and
error—is now complete. It’s your pride and joy, and
you believe it will revolutionize the way people live.
You can’t wait to show your invention to the

world, because you know everyone will want to
purchase it! But how can you be sure that your
invention is yours alone, and that you haven’t
inadvertently replicated someone
else’s idea? And even if
you can verify that your
idea isn’t a copy of
someone else’s, how
can you safeguard
your brilliant notion
in order to prevent
someone from taking
advantage of it
before you do? Before
you do anything with
your invention, you need
to patent it. Keep reading
to find out everything you
need to know about the
patent process!

During the California gold rush,
Levi Strauss realized that miners
needed rugged pants that
would not wear out as they dug
for gold. He made a fortune on
the jeans he invented!

4

The World of Patents
A patent is a special document granted to
inventors by the government of a country. Patents
award their inventors special protections and
privileges, also known as exclusive rights. These
exclusive rights state that other people cannot make,
use, or sell the invention in that country for a certain
period of time. When an inventor receives a patent,
his or her intellectual property, or idea, is protected.
There are three types of patents, and each type of
patent permits its inventor to profit, or earn money
from, his or her invention. The chart below describes
the three different patent types. Study it carefully,
and see if you can think of any other product
examples in addition to the ones mentioned.

United States Patent and Trademark Office
Type

Description

Product
Examples

Length of
Patent

Utility
Patent

Protects the
way a new
product is
built and the
way it works

Computer
hardware,
medicines

20 years

Design
Patent

Protects the
new, original,
or ornamental
appearance of
a product

Athletic shoes;
action figures
based on movie
characters

20 years

Plant
Patent

Protects a new
variety of plant

Thornless hybrid
tea roses; purple
ruffled basil

20 years

5


In order for an invention to be eligible to receive
a patent, it must be new, original, useful, and
something that is not easy to discover or produce.
Both machine-made and human-made articles are
eligible to receive patents, as are brand-new uses for
previously patented items.
The evolution of rubber-soled shoes offers a great
example of brand-new uses deriving from earlier
patents and inventions. In 1844, Charles Goodyear
patented the vulcanization process, which allowed
shoemakers to manufacture reliable rubber-soled
shoes. Rubber-soled athletic shoes first appeared in
1868, but they failed to gain widespread popularity.
Then, in the 1980s, millions of American
consumers developed a taste for rubber-soled
athletic shoes. Shoemakers
responded by inventing a

whole new range of rubbersoled athletic shoes, including
types that inflated, named
“pump-ups,” and types
that glowed in the dark,
called “light-ups.” Pumpup and light-up athletic
shoes involved new uses
and designs, making them
eligible for brand-new
patents.

6

Not Everything Can Be Patented
What does not qualify for a patent? A product
that involves a simple switch in materials, such as
the change from a metal piece to a plastic one, does
not qualify for a patent. Neither does a change in
size, such as when a television screen is reduced from
twelve inches to ten inches in width.
In addition, to be eligible for a patent, an invention
must not be obvious. That means that it shouldn’t be
something that could easily be developed by many
people. For example, an ice-cream cone filled with
peanut butter does not produce new or unexpected
results. Just because two inventions are combined (in
this case, peanut butter and an ice-cream cone) does
not mean that the new “invention” that results is
worthy of being patented.
Finally, an invention that is not useful is not
eligible for a patent. The United States Patent and

Trademark Office (USPTO) decides whether or not an
item submitted for patent is or is not useful.

7


Getting a Patent

Did You Know?

We’ve established that inventors need patents to
protect their inventions, but how do they go about
obtaining them?
Often, after an idea comes to mind, an inventor
notes the date of the idea. Then he or she writes
an explanation of the idea and draws a sketch to
go along with it. Once the explanation and sketch
are complete, the inventor usually takes them to a
notary, who acts as a witness to the inventor’s idea.
The sketches and explanations associated with an
invention can sometimes be quite simple. The image
on page 9 shows the sketch and explanation that
Alexander Graham Bell wrote down while he was in
the process of inventing the telephone. From that
slip of paper came everything that you see below!

The United States Patent and Trademark Office
is located in Alexandria, Virginia, just south of
Washington, D.C.

On March 7,
1876, Alexander
Graham Bell
received the first
patent for his
telephone.

In 1975, nearly a
century later, Dr.
Martin Cooper helped
Motorola patent the
first portable handheld cellular phone.
Cell phones have transformed
rapidly in recent years in response
to changes in technology.

8

Bell’s simple sketch would transform society forever.

9


Provisional Patents
If inventors don’t at first have the time or money
to go through the process of filing for a formal
patent, but are convinced they have an idea that’s
worthy of eventually being patented, they can apply
for a provisional patent. A provisional patent, which
is only temporary, acts to protect the inventor’s idea

until he or she can follow through and complete
their regular patent application.
Provisional patents, which were first offered by
the USPTO in 1995, apply only to utility and plant
patents, and not design patents. They must include
the inventor’s name, the title of their invention,
a written description of the invention, and any
sketches or drawings that are necessary to explain
the invention. Provisional patents are designed to
make sure that the original inventor receives the
credit and profits from his or her invention, even if
others have come up with the same idea. Once the
provisional patent is obtained, the inventor is given a
year to file a regular patent application.

Did You Know?
There is no age restriction for receiving a patent.
Sydney Dittman, of Houston, Texas, received a
patent in 1993, when she was only four years old!

Shown at right is the official sketch that
accompanies Sydney Dittman’s patent for
a device that helps people grasp round
door knobs. Sydney was issued patent
number 5,231,733 on August 3, 1993.

10

11

Patent Attorneys
Applying for patents can be tricky! Because of
this, an inventor will often hire a patent attorney to
help with the process. Patent attorneys are experts at
helping their clients obtain patents.
The patent attorneys start by studying the patents
that already exist. If they find that their client’s
invention isn’t already patented, they send a patent
application to the USPTO.
At the USPTO, an examiner confirms whether
or not a patent has already been issued for the
invention. If the examiner finds that there was an
earlier patent issued, the USPTO rejects the patent
application. But if the examiner finds no prior
record of a patent having already been issued, and
patent officials agree that the invention is worthy
of receiving a patent,
then the USPTO sends
the inventor a notice
that their application
has been accepted,
and tells them what
fees they have to pay.
Once the fees are
paid, the inventor
Inv
receives the patent
ent
ion

and becomes known
as the patentee, or
holder of the patent.

12

Following an Inventor Through the Patent Process

1

Pat has a great idea for an invention.

2

Pat hires a patent attorney to help her obtain a patent.

3

The patent attorney searches the government’s patent files to
make sure that a patent doesn’t already exist for the invention.

4

The patent attorney sends an application for a patent to the
United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

5

A USPTO agent confirms that a patent doesn’t already exist.

6

The USPTO decides that Pat’s invention is useful and original.

7

The USPTO sends a notice to Pat saying no one holds a patent
for her invention and that it is useful and original.

8

Pat pays all necessary fees to the USPTO.

9

Pat receives her patent!

ent
Pat

13


Presidents and Patents

Franklin and Carver: Two Great Inventors

On July 31, 1790,
President George
Washington signed

the first United States
patent. It went to Samuel
Hopkins of Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, who had
devised a method of
mixing potash and pearl
ash to be used for making
soap.
George Washington
isn’t the only U.S.
president linked to the
first patents. Thomas
Jefferson, who became
president in 1801,
examined the very first
patent applications
while serving on the
original three-person
patent board, which also
consisted of Henry Knox
and Edmund Randolph.
According to the USPTO,
it now takes about sixtyfive hundred people to do
the job that three people
once did!

Known for his experiments with electricity and
for cowriting the Declaration of Independence, Ben
Franklin was also an inventor. In 1784, he invented
bifocals, a special type of glasses. Bifocals, which

have lenses divided into two parts, help people see
things that are close-up and things that are far away.
Do you like peanut butter? The Incas used
peanut butter thousands of years ago, but inventor
George Washington Carver is credited with having
popularized it here in the United States. Carver
created hundreds of products from peanuts,
although he only received three patents during
his lifetime. He also found many new uses for
peas, sweet potatoes, soy, and pecans. Among his
inventions were food products, such as chili sauce,
and pigments, such as wood stains.

President George
Washington signed the
first patent granted in
the United States.

Thomas Jefferson
examined the first
patent applications.

14

George Washington Carver
developed dozens of ingenious
uses for peanut butter.

Benjamin Franklin’s invention
of bifocals has made reading

easier for millions of people.

15


The Nineteenth Century’s Invention Boom
By the 1860s, there had been a huge growth
in industry in the United States. Work that people
had once done at home was being done in huge
factories, where machines and different methods of
production were required. With people leaving their
homes to work, better methods of transportation
were also needed. And with an increase in leisure
time, there was a demand for new types of
recreation. Soon, a new group of inventors arose and
developed inventions to satisfy these needs.
Among these inventors, Thomas Edison stood
out for his brilliance and achievements. Edison, who
is most famous for having developed the lightbulb
in 1879, worked hard to encourage the building
of power plants that could generate electricity. As
a result of his efforts, many cities had both power
plants and electricity by the 1890s. Edison went on to
earn 1,093 patents, more than any other American.

Around the time that Edison was giving the
world electric light, others were creating inventions
that would give people more fun and enjoyment.
In 1888, John Dunlop invented air-filled tires for
bicycles. Up until then, bicycles were known as “bone

shakers,” due to the rough rides
caused by their wooden tires.
In 1893, the Ferris wheel,
named for its inventor,
George Ferris, debuted
in Chicago at the World’s
Columbian Exposition.
And speaking of bicycles,
the Wright brothers, who
owned a bicycle shop,
invented the first working
airplane in 1903.

Orville and Wilbur Wright

The Wright
brothers’ Flyer

Thomas Alva Edison

Edison’s 1879
lightbulb
Ferris wheel

16

17


The Recent Boom in Inventions

New technological advances have caused the
United States to experience another boom in
inventions, which has led to an increase in the
number of patents being issued. The chart on the
opposite page breaks down the number of patents
that were issued in the United States in 2003, on a
state-by-state basis.
As you can see, a massive number of patents are
issued each year. Heavily populated states, such as
California, New York, and Texas, obtain hundreds of
patents per week, while even the least-populated
states, such as Alaska, receive approximately one
patent per week.
With all these patents being issued, an even
greater number of patent applications are being
filed. In the year 2003, there were about 360,000
patent applications filed, or almost one thousand per
day! This huge number of applications has created a
backlog at the USPTO.

18

United States Patents Granted, 2003
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas

459

Montana

125

43

Nebraska

240

Nevada

455

New Hampshire

730

1,714
176

California

22,075

New Jersey

Colorado

2,301

New Mexico

Connecticut

1,844

New York

6,921

372

North Carolina

2,174

50

North Dakota

Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida

3,119

Ohio

Georgia

1,535

Oklahoma

Hawaii

96

3,920
404

62
3,892
563

Oregon

1,867

Idaho

1,850

Pennsylvania

3,555

Illinois

3,964

Rhode Island

325

Indiana

1,676

South Carolina

649
89

Iowa

711

South Dakota

Kansas

491

Tennessee

Kentucky

494

Texas

6,376

Louisiana

438

Utah

724

Maine

165

Vermont

465

973

Maryland

1,577

Virginia

1,249

Massachusetts

4,191

Washington

2,516

Michigan

4,218

West Virginia

Minnesota

3,260

Wisconsin

2,082

Mississippi

184

Wyoming

84

Missouri

945

141

19


Inventions All Around Us
The following stories describe a few of today’s
inventors and the inventions they have developed
that have changed how people live.
Chemist Arthur Fry developed his self-attaching
notes in 1974 for the 3M company by mistake!
A coworker had been trying to develop a sturdy
adhesive. When the coworker accidentally created
an adhesive that didn’t stick permanently, it gave Fry
the great idea of inventing removable notes, which
have now been patented as Post-It® notes.
By the late 1990s, the use of the Internet had
become widespread, but when the World Wide Web
first became available to the public, it had a much
different look. It was all text. In 1993, twenty-oneyear-old Marc Andreessen created Mosaic®, a Web
browser that allows graphics to be viewed.
Not only is Ellen Ochoa the world’s first Hispanic
female astronaut, she is also an inventor. Among
her three patents is a system that can be used with
robotic guiding systems.

Have you ever ridden in a car with a Global
Positioning System (GPS)? This worldwide system is
based on satellites. The inventors of GPS, Bradford
Parkinson and Ivan Getting, began working on their
idea in the 1970s.

Ideas for many new inventions are brewing
right now—in inventors’ minds! Future inventors,
like inventors of the past, will follow the patent
process to patent inventions that will change our
lives in ways we can scarcely imagine. Just think of
how Franklin’s bifocals, Edison’s lightbulb, Bell’s
telephone, and the other inventions discussed in this
book changed the world. Thanks to our country’s
creative thinkers, there will always be interesting
new inventions to learn about!

Ivan Getting

Bradford Parkinson

20

21


Now Try This
Inventor for a Day
Now that you know how inventors apply for
patents, you can give the process a try! The following

page lists the steps necessary to take an idea for an
invention and transform it into a reality. Read the
instructions carefully, and don’t be afraid to reread
anything if you are confused. Remember that there
are no age restrictions on being an inventor (think
back to four-year-old inventor Sydney Dittman), so
anyone can come up with an invention!

22

to Do It!
w
o
H
s
’
e
r
He
The first thing you need is an idea for an
invention. Once you have your idea, write a
description of it. Explain how it will be used to solve
a problem or fill a need. Describe what it looks like.
Does the invention make a certain sound or feel a
certain way? Include those details.
Next, draw a sketch of the invention. Include
labels that help identify its parts.
Finally, give your invention a catchy name, one
that others won’t forget. Remember, you’re going
to sell your completed creation someday. You’ll want

people to ask for it by name!

23


Glossary
clients n. people who hire
professionals to do work
for them.
eligible adj. properly
qualified.
exclusive rights n.
ownership rights limited
to a particular person or
group.
intellectual property n.
someone’s creative idea
that can be protected with
a patent.
notary n. a public officer
authorized to attend to
certain legal matters.

Reader Response
patent n. a government
document that protects
an invention and grants
exclusive rights to its
owner.
patent attorney n. a

lawyer who is an expert in
patent law.
patentee n. someone who
has received a patent.
provisional patent n. a
temporary patent that
protects an invention for
up to one year prior to
the inventor obtaining a
regular patent.

1. Why did the author put the information on page 5
into a chart, instead of using paragraph form?
2. The author structured the text in chronological
order. Using a graphic organizer, such as the one
below, write down inventors from the eighteenth,
nineteenth, and twentieth centuries who were
mentioned in this book. Include their inventions.
Eighteenth-century Inventors

Nineteenth-century Inventors

Twentieth-century Inventors
3. Why do you think creative ideas are called intellectual
property?
4. This book contains images of many different
inventions. Which one of the images did you find the
most interesting? Why?

24