Hello, I have an idea and prototype that I think could be very useful and profitable and I can't find it anywhere in the current market place. I am pretty skeptical of the patentability of the product. I find that it already exists but has never been used for this type of application. How do I protect my idea and ability to sell if it is unpatentable yet has never been used on or for this purpose.

Sorry to be vague about the nature of the product, but I hope you understand. What are the steps to get something like this off the ground? I suppose there are a few questions here. The goal would be to sell the rights to another company to sell, not start my own widget company.

Where do I start the patent process?

What is the strategy if it is unpatentable? Is it just clever positioning and marketing?

Is this the right section to ask this question?

Hello z:

If it already exists, then you're not going to get a patent... Besides, it's the USE of your widget that makes it viable, not the product itself.

Plus, I don't think you're going to find anybody willing to pay you for an "idea" for a new use for an existing product.

I did the very same thing you're contemplating... I took off the shelf hardware and put it together in such a way that it hadn't been used before. Because it was a NEW application, I'm the one who had to pave the way in the marketplace...

And, I did. Eventually, Circle K, the convenience store chain, bought me out.

excon