Put simply, a prior art search is a search of ‘everything out there’, in an attempt to find out if your idea or invention (or something close to it) has been publicly disclosed before.
Don’t get sued: Imagine spending time, energy and money pursuing your idea and launching your venture, only to then be sued for IP/patent infringement.
Don’t reinvent the wheel: Imagine spending time, energy and money developing something, only to find that it has already been done before, and so is unlikely to succeed commercially in its current form.
Don’t waste money on patent applications: Imagine spending significant money to file a patent application (provisional patent applications drafted by professional patent attorneys usually cost over $6000), only to have the application rejected because you attempted to patent something that was too close to things already out there.
Be smart: A prior art search can help you (or designers, developers or prototypers that you engage) develop your product in a way that is different to the things you found that are already out there. Doing this will reduce the risk of being sued for IP/patent infringement, and will also help increase the chance that you can obtain IP/patent protection of your own, and ultimately of being commercially successful.
The results of the prior art search can help you determine if it’s worth spending further time, energy and money proceeding with your concept, and what technical and strategic elements of your concept you may need to modify in order to improve your prospects of success.
Prior art searches conducted by skilled professionals usually cost between $3,000-$6,000 (depending on complexity). If you like, we can provide you with a fixed quote to conduct one for you.
As an alternative, we have developed a comprehensive ‘DIY guide’ for innovators. Our DIY guide teaches you how to do the bulk of the prior art search yourself, and recommends how to collate relevant information in an effort to help reduce the costs of additional work that may be done by other professionals in the future.
Our DIY guide costs a fraction of the cost of a prior art search conducted by us or other skilled professionals. Conducting the prior art search yourself based on the instructions in our DIY guide will save you thousands of dollars (both immediately, and also potentially in the long term).
As well as saving you money, conducting a prior art search yourself based on the instructions in our DIY guide will also allow you to immerse yourself in the technology landscape within which you propose to operate. This can help reap additional benefits in terms of subject-matter mastery, as well as by potentially stimulating creativity and further innovation.
Please email diy@saljar.com or call 1300 882 643 to discuss whether you need a prior art search at all (sometimes you may not need one) and whether our comprehensive DIY guide is right for you. We’re happy to discuss this at no cost to you, so don’t hesitate to get in touch.