Determining if patent has expired for older car part

[gfrump102]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Florida

I'm interested in making a generic cart part for an older car model. I'd like to ascertain that the patent has expired for that product, how can I find that out?

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Florida

I'm interested in making a generic cart part for an older car model. I'd like to ascertain that the patent has expired for that product, how can I find that out?

You will want to do a patent search.

There are Patent and Trademark Depository Libraries (PTDLs) throughout the US where you can conduct a search. For the locations of these depository libraries, you can go to the USPTO website: http://www.uspto.gov

You can also search online using the free USPTO database (same link as above) or you can use the free Google Patent Search (http://www.google.com/patents). Then there are fee-based patent search engines (Delphion, Pantros, Micropatent, to name a few).

There are also patent search firms and you can also have a patent agent or patent attorney do a search - but these are the more costly options to consider.

 

[FlyingRon]

Of course, if the part is older than 20 years there is no way there is an enforceable patent on it. The duration is 20 years from the filing date (which needed to be before they started selling it). (The law changed in 1995, but not in a way that matters in this situation).

 

[quincy]

Of course, if the part is older than 20 years there is no way there is an enforceable patent on it. The duration is 20 years from the filing date (which needed to be before they started selling it). (The law changed in 1995, but not in a way that matters in this situation).

35 US Code, Section 154, Contents and term of patent; provisional patent: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/35/154

Patents issued prior to June 8, 1995, or pending on that date, expire 20 years from the filing date of the regular patent application or 17 years from the issue date, whichever period is longer.

A search should be done to ascertain the patent has expired.

 

[FlyingRon]

I knew some pedantic person would bring that up, which is why I tried to head it off with my comment. In order for your little point of trivia to have any bearing on this situation would be for the patent to have taken more than six years after filing to be issued. Nearly impossible for that to have happened.

Of course, if the part is newer, then you'll have to search. If the item lists the patent number(s), it's trivial to look it up. You can even just enter the words patent number and the number into google.

 

[quincy]

I knew some pedantic person would bring that up, which is why I tried to head it off with my comment. In order for your little point of trivia to have any bearing on this situation would be for the patent to have taken more than six years after filing to be issued. Nearly impossible for that to have happened.

Of course, if the part is newer, then you'll have to search. If the item lists the patent number(s), it's trivial to look it up. You can even just enter the words patent number and the number into google.

Pedantic? Or a person who pays attention to details?

In law, the devil is in the details.


(along the same "detail" theme: Design patents last for 14 years from the date the patent issues)

 

[FlyingRon]

Pedantic? Or a person who pays attention to details?

In law, the devil is in the details.


(along the same "detail" theme: Design patents last for 14 years from the date the patent issues)

And what freaking detail do you think results in a patent issued before 1995 taking more than six years from filing to issuance? You're pointlessly flapping your gums with not bearing on the actual problem. I pointed out in my initial response that the law changed in 1995, but there is NO WAY that it applies to the original poster in 2016.

 

[quincy]

And what freaking detail do you think results in a patent issued before 1995 taking more than six years from filing to issuance? You're pointlessly flapping your gums with not bearing on the actual problem. I pointed out in my initial response that the law changed in 1995, but there is NO WAY that it applies to the original poster in 2016.

Not only did I provide in my first post a complete answer to the original question asked, I also provided additional legal information and a link to the section that explains patent duration, to go along with what you introduced in your post.

If that is what you call "flapping your gums," so be it. I call what I provided more helpful than your tossing of undeserved insults.

 

[gfrump102]

Thank you for the information. I tried searching for this patent but I haven't found exactly what I'm looking for. I tried searching for the patent with the OEM Part number but this seems to produce no result, and using more broad descriptors of the product end up producing similar patents but not exactly what I was looking for.

Most of the similar ones appear to be lapsed patents from the late 80's, though there are a few patents from a years newer than the year of the car part I intend to make generic (i.e. I found patents published in 2007, searching for a part for a 2001 model car).

Do you know if there's a way to search for this specific patent using the OEM part number?

 

[Zigner]

Have you considered that you may need to get governmental approval of some sort for your "generic part"?

 

[quincy]

Thank you for the information. I tried searching for this patent but I haven't found exactly what I'm looking for. I tried searching for the patent with the OEM Part number but this seems to produce no result, and using more broad descriptors of the product end up producing similar patents but not exactly what I was looking for.

Most of the similar ones appear to be lapsed patents from the late 80's, though there are a few patents from a years newer than the year of the car part I intend to make generic (i.e. I found patents published in 2007, searching for a part for a 2001 model car).

Do you know if there's a way to search for this specific patent using the OEM part number?

Have you tried the resources listed earlier? You appear to have enough information for the search.