Patent It Yourself: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Filing at the U.S. Patent Office

Protect and profit from your invention

For over 35 years, Patent It Yourself  has guided hundreds of thousands of inventors through the process of getting a patent, from start to finish. Patent attorney David E. Blau and Patent Agent David Pressman provide the latest information, forms, and clear instructions to help you:

• conduct a patent search the right way
• evaluate your idea’s commercial potential
• file a provisional patent application to get “patent pending” status
• prepare a patent application
• focus on your patent application’s claims
• respond to patent examiners
• get your drawings done right
• protect your rights in foreign countries
• deal with infringers, and
• market and license your invention.

The 22nd edition covers the latest court decisions and patent filing rule changes, including USPTO guidance on using AI in patent applications.

David E. Blau is a patent attorney at Daly, Crowley, Mofford & Durkee in Canton, Massachusetts, and is a member of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and Massachusetts bars. He received his B.S. from the California Institute of Technology, with majors in both Mathematics and Engineering & Applied Science. Prior to law school, he worked for the government as a mathematician, for a number of private companies writing software to perform scalable content storage and distribution and back-office online commerce functions, and co-founded a web design business. He received his J.D. from the Chicago-Kent College of Law with a certificate in Intellectual Property, and has practiced patent law in the Boston area ever since. Outside the practice of law, Dave is a scuba diver and a licensed private pilot who hopes to get his instrument rating someday.

San Francisco Patent Agent David Pressmanis a graduate of Penn State University (BSEE) and George Washington University Law School (JD) where he was on the Law Review. He has over 40 years of experience in the patent profession — as a patent examiner for the U.S. Patent Office, a patent attorney in corporate and private practice, a university instructor, a columnist, and as author of the Patent and Trademark entries to the World Book Encyclopedia. His books have charted the path for over 300,000 inventors. He is also co-author of Patent Pending In 24 Hours (with Rich Stim), and Nolo's Patents For Beginners (with Glen Secor).