Do you have an invention but not sure if someone else has already filed a patent for it? The NKY Center for Intellectual Property Awareness Center can help you find out and it’s free!
Mr. John Schlipp, Intellectual Property Librarian and Associate Professor of Library Science works in an unknown resource in Northern KY which be found at the NKU Intellectual Property Awareness Center housed in the W. Frank Steely Library.
The center works with the students, faculty, staff and community with questions regarding patents, trademarks and numerous other areas. The Center has recently been designated as patent/trademark resource center by the Patent Trademark Office in Washington, D.C. There are only 84 of these centers across the country.
There is an IPAC website www.ipac.nku.edu to begin the search. What is Intellectual Property? Intellectual Property includes copyrights, trademarks, patents, trade secrets, licensing and open source. The US Constitution in 1791 gave Congress the power to promote the progress of science and useful art by securing during a limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive rights to the respective writings and discoveries.
Trademarks are branding such as logos or business names. Patents are an invention or an idea which an inventor has created. Copyrights are the expression of art, music or books or any type of intellectual work expressions. Patentability is when an invention is new or novel, useful, nonobvious and accompanied by a written description of how to make and use that invention.
There is a seven step process involved in a thorough search. There are two databases available to the public, but the Center has access to a much more advanced database which the examiners with the Patent Trademark Office in Washington, D.C use. The Center can assist with a competitive analysis patent searches as well.
The Center can help the business if their concept has been registered with the trademark office. If not, they can connect you with local resources to help you register your Intellectual Property. There are not only US Patent but World Wide patents and the Center can assist individuals and businesses with those searches.
Mr. Schlipp walked members of the Florence Rotary through an example of the Patent Search Process.
