Category: Patent Filing
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PDF Requirements for USPTO E-Filing: DPI, Fonts, and File Size
Filing a patent should not fail because of a PDF. Yet this happens more often than founders expect. You can have a strong invention, clean claims, and solid drawings, and still get blocked because your file did not meet basic USPTO rules. That is frustrating, slow, and avoidable. This guide is here to fix that.…
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DOCX Filing in Patent Center: Safe Settings and Gotchas
If you are filing a patent today, you are almost certainly uploading a DOCX file into Patent Center. The USPTO wants it that way. Most founders accept that and move on. That is where trouble starts. DOCX filing looks simple. You write your patent in Word. You upload it. You click submit. But under the…
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Linking Applications to Your Account: Access, Permissions, Pitfalls
Linking an application to your account sounds small. It feels like a quick click. A box you check. A thing you rush through so you can get back to building. But that one click decides who can see your work, who can change it, and who owns the trail you leave behind. For founders and…
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Customer Numbers & Practitioner Accounts: Step-by-Step Setup
Getting your patent filed should feel clear, calm, and under your control. Not confusing. Not slow. And definitely not scary. This guide is written to walk you through one of the most misunderstood parts of the patent process: customer numbers and practitioner accounts. These sound complex, but they are not. Once you understand them, you…
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Setting Up Your Patent Center Account: Login.gov, 2FA, and Sponsorship
If you are serious about protecting what you are building, this is a step you cannot skip. The USPTO now runs on something called Patent Center, and if you want to file, manage, or even touch a patent application, you need to get this set up the right way from day one. No shortcuts. No…
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Patent Center vs. Old PAIR/EFS: What Changed and Why It Matters
If you have ever tried to file or manage a patent with the USPTO, you know the pain. The tools were old. The screens were confusing. Simple actions took hours. Mistakes were easy to make and hard to fix. For founders and engineers moving fast, the system felt like it was built to slow you…
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Final QC: A 20-Point §112 Audit Before You File
Before you file a patent, there is one final check that matters more than formatting, deadlines, or paperwork, and that is whether your patent truly explains what you built in a way that holds up in the real world. Section 112 is where most patents quietly fail, not because the idea was weak, but because…
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Claim Strategy: Layered Independent + Dependent Claims for 112 Safety
Most patents do not fail because the idea is weak; they fail because the claims were written without a clear plan. This article is about one specific plan that helps your patent survive real scrutiny: using layered independent and dependent claims to protect against Section 112 problems. We will explain this in very simple words,…
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File-History Tips: Statements That Help (and Hurt) §112
Patents are not lost at trial. They are usually lost much earlier, quietly, during filing. Not because the idea was weak, but because of words that should never have been written. Section 112 is where this happens most often. This part of patent law is about clarity. It asks a simple question: did you clearly…
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CIP, Continuations, and §112: Add Detail Without Losing Priority
If you are building real tech, you are changing things fast. Your product improves. Your code gets cleaner. Your model gets smarter. But your patent filing does not automatically grow with you. That gap is where founders quietly lose protection, priority, and leverage. This article is about how to add detail to your patent the…
