Patents
Caps N Lock® is currently in Patent Pending status.
British Patent Application No. 2202000.2
Patenting Your Idea
The Caps N Lock® keyboard clip was created while researching methods of keeping a computer cpu active. We had a goal of solving the problem of simulating activity on a laptop by using only the existing keyboard.
We found a remarkably simple solution in what is now our Caps N Lock® keyboard clip. The journey, pricing and duration time to protect our invention using Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), specifically technical Patents in the UK, is shared below.
Eureka! It works!
Our Eureka moment : £0 | 5 minutes
Our Eureka moment came during the covid-19 lock down when we invented the Caps N Lock® privacy clip. A low cost keyboard clip that stops employers tracking workers activity as they work from home.
We have been involved in the product design, engineering and tech sector for over 20 years so the idea of taking a product and registering a Patent was not a completely foreign concept to us.
The key difference was that this was the first time that we were the one's starting on this journey to protect our own invention.
Taking this leap and telling your family that you will be spending next years family holiday fund on a "never been done before" idea was not much fun but it helped focus the mind.
Being Real. Ask people you dont know
MARKET RESEARCH : £350 | 1 Day
To justify starting this journey from our idea of the Caps N Lock® clip to reality and with an investment of money upfront for patents we chose to ask 100 people a series of questions about how they use Microsoft Teams.
We specifically wanted to know if any one else was rushing back to their computer just to wiggle the mouse!
In comes SurveyMonkey.com to the rescue and the results gave us the confidence to actually take our idea seriously.
Finding a Patent Agent
FINDING PATENT ATTORNEY : £0 | 12 Days
We searched on google and called up other people we knew that had explored patents in the past. a useful resource was the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys
We contacted 5 firms to get patent quotes and free thoughts on the process ahead. Getting different opinions over the phone from multiple exerienced patent attorneys who all wanted our business was a really useful experience.
You also get a feel for the type of service you will receive as you call their offices and speak with other members of staff. Some don't call back and some go out of their way to help.
We settled on a great firm that did a great job of sharing their fears about our invention and had the technical knowledge to handle engineering elements of our invention.
Draft & File Patent
£3,600 + £210 in IPO fees | 16 Days
This is where the hard work starts. A good agent will write up your patent with no problem but a great one considers the examiner and what the challenges ahead will be.
We considered which elements of our solution a competitor might try and copy and how best to mange this.
Technical drawings were created internally and we were guided by the agent when better imagery was needed.
The Search Results
£350 | 9 Months
It's taken over 9 months to get the initial patent search results back from an official reviewing our patent for Caps N Lock®. The wait was worthwhile when we learn that all of our Patent claims have gone through at this phase.
Substantive Search
£800
The optimism from the initial search is short lived as we progress to the next phase of the application for our Technical Patent of the Caps N Lock® invention.
What will happen next in our quest for a Caps N Lock® Patent? We will see.
£? | ? Months
As we await the decision from the examiners about our Patent Application we continue to develop our market research of Microsoft Teams users and of all employees working from home. Caps N Lock® sells regualrly on Amazon Prime with minimal marketing effort. Our marketing in the UK will officially ramp up significantly in early 2023.
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