The Inventor's Notebook

If you are an inventor wishing to patent your invention, you need to keep meticulous records and evidence of your work. For this purpose, you should use an inventor’s notebook. Here is some information on this topic from The University of Maine - Department of Industrial Co-Operation -  www.umaine.edu/dic/Invent/notebook.htm (accessed 6th May 2002)

Why keep a Notebook?

A well kept notebook of conception and subsequent development will add considerable strength to an inventor's case in filing for a patent. The inventor's notebook is one of the best ways of establishing intellectual property ownership. Since the United States grants the right to patent to the first to invent, it is extremely important to establish the date conception and due diligence in reducing the idea to practice. If you are a new inventor and have yet to start an inventors notebook, you must start one today!?

How should the notebook be setup?

Use a book with stitch-bound numbered pages to record all information pertaining to the invention.  All entries must be recorded in ink, in a continuous fashion, leaving no blank pages. The entries should also be dated and signed by the inventor, individually, and the book as a whole, should be read and signed by a credible witness at regular intervals. You must be very diligent about making entries in a timely fashion, since this document may be the only concrete proof that an inventor has to claim an idea.

What information should be recorded?

Record all work previous to the starting date in the book as a summary of activity to date. Record the date of conception, names of people with whom you have discussed the idea, experiments or tests that you have performed, and any other evidence you have to support your past activities, such as receipts for supplies, materials, or services. Dated receipts should be glued to a blank page of the notebook.

How do I go about certifying the notebook?

Once the summary information has been entered, have a credible witness read and sign at the bottom of the last entry with the current date. Never backdate a notebook entry. The courts look for errors and any backdating may be cause for the whole book to be discarded as evidence. A credible, reliable, and trustworthy witness should be chosen based on their knowledge and their ability to readily understand the concepts and principles you have presented.  In general witnesses should not be co-inventors, family members or a notary republic.

Key Points To Remember

• Use ink when recording all entries.
• Do Not Erase! Cross out mistakes with a single line drawn through the entry.
• Write from one edge of the page to the other. Fill in any empty space at the end of a line or complete empty lines with a wavy line.
• Date and sign each new entry on the day it is made. Do not back date. Make only one written entry per page and cross out any blank space. Record only one invention per page. X out any blank pages to prevent later alteration.
• Keep all activities in chronological order. Glue in all drawings, sketches, photographs, receipts, and other materials, which have been witnessed and dated.
• Record conception and reduction to practice. Show diligence. Include:
• Description of concept, sketches and supporting calculations.
• Progress by means of continuous and regular entries.
• All reductions to practice, including results of experiments and failures.
• Have notebook witnessed on a regular basis.

.	Inventors Notebooks can be obtained from the Book Factory

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