Patent Search

A patent search determines whether the feature you intend to patent is “new”. Without conducting a patent search, you will likely waste time, money and effort trying to patent a feature that is inherently not patentable.

We are professionals at international online patent searching – conducting more than 250 patent searches per year. We have even developed our own patent search software that searches five of the main international online patent search databases simultaneously.

Unlike most patent attorneys, we strongly recommend conducting a patent search before filing a patent. For this reason, our clients’ patents have a much higher probability of being granted – see their feedback.

To begin a patent search:

• Call us / meet with us to discuss your invention.
• We will help you identify the most essential new feature of your invention. This will be the focus of the patent search.
• Within 3-4 days we will send you a patent search report including copies of relevant patents and our opinion as to what you should patent. Our patent search cost is fixed at R3,950.

There are other benefits to conducting a patent search:

• Since the search identifies similar patents, it may reveal patents that your invention would infringe.
• The search often exposes alternative ways to solve “your problem”. This will likely influence further development of your invention.

After the search, we can turn to patenting or prototyping your invention.

Also see our Tips on DIY patent searching.

STEP 1: CONTACT US to start a patent search: