I want to design a product but part of the design is similar to another product on the market. A company website claims they own a patent on that product but they didn't provide any patent information on their website. If they claim they own the patent, do they need to show the patent information, i.e., patent number? What happen if they lie about the patent? Is it illegal?
Disclaiming anything above or beyond what little of Patent law we covered in law schools (only engineers or rather those with BS degrees are eligible to sit for the patent bar), but nonetheless as an IP attorney, I can offer you the following response:
-Does it behoove any company whose obtained a patent to conspicuously display and portray that very fact in as many different areas, media - anywhere the company is presented to the public (this could be on a box of a product), TO INCLUDE THE PATENT NUMBER (esp if they are claiming patent rights to the innovation/invention at issue? YES
-Would be odd or perhaps suspicious were a company to boast about a patent that either (1) doesn't exist on the USPTO database (which would be a bald-faced misrepresentation), or (2) has NOT actually achieved the VERY tough threshold of PROVING eligibility, good cause (novelty, innovation, helpful, non-obvious, etc.) - prerequisites to any patent actually being granted and registered/issued by the USPTO.
-On the other hand, the reason you hear "patent pending" so often is just that - because it is very tough and patent attorneys run very expensive, so everyone and their brother, so long as they have an "application" or "petition" for patent protection pending before the USPTO, whether true or not , tend to overuse and abuse the "patent pending" term - which is to say that this term is a term of art and law, and is self-explanatory - BUT potentially misleading as one needn't satisfy a very tough threshold to earn the right to represent that they have a patent application "pending".
-IS IT ACTIONABLE AT LAW OR ILLEGAL TO HAVE A PATENT BUT NOT DISCLOSE THE PATENT REGISTRATION NUMBER? NO!!! (I defer to the patent IP guys here), and finally
-ONCE OBTAINED, MOST COMPANIES (AND RIGHTLY SO) PROUDLY AND PROMINENTLY TOUT THEIR FEDERALLY REGISTERED PATENT, AND TYPICALLY TEND TO DON IT AS A MARKETING TECHNIQUE SINCE IT DOES ADD CERTAIN VALUE TO THE BUSINESS.
Hope this delirius bullet point response is of some use to you.
Best,
Matthew A. Pek
Norton Russell TownsleyPatent Application AttorneyLos Angeles, CA ·
If a product is patented and you produce something similar you could be sued for patent infringement. You will need to hire a patent attorney to figure out if your product will actually infringe.
By "patent protected" do you mean "patented" or "patent pending"? It is illegal to claim a product is patented or patent pending when it is not. Once a patent issued, the law says that products should be marked with the patent number.
If the other product is patented they should put the patent number on their web site as well a other places. You could call the company and ask them what their patent number is. If they are reluctant to provide it to you it it may signal an issue.
If, on the other hand it is only patent pending, they will not provide you the application number.
In either case a search on the USPTO web site may provide you their patent and/or their patent application and its status.
This is much more complicated than it looks. You need to hire a patent attorney to figure this all out. I am a patent attorney. Patent attorneys can be found on this web site and on the USPTO Roster. Click on link below.
There is no requirement for a patent owner to mark its products with the patent (or pending patent application) number. However, failure to mark with the patent number can inhibit the patent owner's ability to recover damages for infringement, so it always behooves a patent owner to mark its products. There are antitrust, false advertising, and other legal implications if a company is falsely claiming patent protection. However, if you have knowledge that this company may have a patent and you act despite that knowledge, you run the risk of not just an infringement claim but a willful infringement claim. If you are serious about launching a similar/competing product, you should hire a patent attorney to help you research this company and, if necessary, perform a non-infringement analysis in view of the company's patent. Good luck.
