Patent It Yourself - PDF Archive

200 | Patent it YOURSELF
numbers. (See the list in the sample specification at the end
of the chapter.)
j. Detailed Description PPA —First
Embodiment—Figs. 1–xx
Here you should describe in great detail the static physical
structure of the first embodiment of your invention (not
how it operates or what its function is). If this embodiment
is a process, describe the procedures or machinery involved
in it. Begin by first stating what the figure under discussion
shows generally—for example, “Fig. 1 shows a perspective
view of one version of my widget.” Then get specific by
describing the main parts and how they’re connected.
(These main parts can form the basis for your claims, as
we’ll see in Chapter 9.) Then get more specific: Describe
each main part in detail and all of the sub- or component
parts in detail.
Start with the base, frame, bottom, input, or some other
logical starting place of the embodiment. Then work up,
out, or forward in a logical manner, numbering and naming
the parts in your drawing as you proceed. Use the part
names that you previously wrote on your sketches.
To number the parts, write a number near each part and
extend a lead line from the reference number to the part
to which it refers. Don’t circle your reference numerals,
since a PTO rule prohibits this. The lead lines should not
have arrowheads—for example, a bicycle grip might be
designated “22———.” However, to refer to a group of
parts as a whole—for example, a bicycle, use an arrowhead
on the lead line, thus, “ 10———>.” If you have several
closely related or similar parts, you can give them the same
reference number with different letter suffixes or primes to
differentiate, such as “arms 12a and 12b,” “arms 12L (left)
and 12R (right),” or “arms 12 and 12'.” You should not use a
reference numeral to designate the embodiment of a whole
figure; instead just say “ … the widget of Fig. 1.”
Although you may think that the patent examiner won’t
need to have parts that are clearly shown in the drawing
separately described in detail, all patent attorneys provide
such a description. This is part of a repetition technique that
is used to familiarize the examiner with the invention and
set the stage for the operational description and the claims
(Chapter 9). When you mention each part twice, once in the
description and again in the operation discussion, the first
mention will initially program your reader to relate to the
part so that the reader will really understand it the second
time around, when it counts. This is the same technique as
is used in the lyrics of blues songs, where the first two lines
are always restated to enhance communication. Another
reason to describe and name each part and each detail is to
form a basis for the claims: All terms used in the claims are
supposed to be first used in the specification.
Another good technique is to use several different
equivalent names for a part the first time you refer to it
in order to provide one with which your reader will be
familiar—for example, “connected to base 10 is a strut,
pylon, or support 12.” Then pick one name and use it
consistently thereafter.
As stated, before you begin a description of any figure,
refer to it by its figure number—for example, “Fig. 1 shows
an overall view of the can opener of the first embodiment.”
Then as you come to each part or element, give it a separate
reference number—for example, “The can opener comprises
two handle arms 10 and 12 (Fig. 1) that are pivotally
attached at a hinge 14.” It is essential always to keep your
reader apprised of which figure you are discussing.
Also, always try as much as possible to discuss one figure
at a time. However, where several figures show different
views of an embodiment, you can refer to several figures
at once—such as “Figs. 1 and 2 show plan and elevational
(front) views of a scissors according to one embodiment.
The scissors comprises first and second legs 12 and 14, the
second leg being best shown in Fig. 2.” However, again don’t
refer to too many figures at once, and always keep your
reader advised as to which figure is under discussion.
Discuss every part shown in your drawings in detail and
be sure to use consistent terminology and nomenclature for
the parts in the drawing. For example, if gear 44 is shown
in Fig. 8 and also in Fig. 11, label it with the same reference
numeral “44” in both figures. However, if the gear is even
slightly different in Fig. 11, it must have a different reference
numeral, such as, “44a,” “44π,” or “44bis.” Fill out the
Drawing Reference Numerals Worksheet (Form 8-1) as you
write, to keep your numerals and nomenclature consistent.
If you use a word processor, I suggest you refer to each part
by a number only and then, consistent part names—such
as, you can write “44 is connected to 36” and later change
“44” to “widget 44” and “36” to “base 36” throughout your
specification.
Lastly, be sure to detail all the interconnections or
mountings between parts—for example, “Arm 14 is joined
to base 12 by a flange 16.”
Tip
Dem Bones. To understand the technique
commonly used to describe the parts and their interconnections,
think of the song, “Dem Bones.” The song details
virtually every bone-to-bone connection in the body in logical
order—for example, “The knee bone’s connected to the thigh
bone, the thigh bone’s connected to the hip bone.” In a similar