Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
Um,
Greetings and welcome to PatentInsider Secrets, the podcast where
we deep dive into the hidden worldof intellectual property with
captivating stories and expert insights.
I'm your host, Tariq Najee-ullah,federally registered patent agent.
(00:22):
Veteran 10 year USPTO patent examiner,startup mentor, and IP strategist, and
over the next five episodes, we'll breakdown the five pillars of intellectual
property to help you protect, develop,and leverage your ideas like a pro.
Today's episode is all about pillarone, the IP asset mindset, and we're
(00:42):
kicking things off with a story that isas heartbreaking as it is eye opening.
We call it the machinist.
So early in my career, I receiveda call that changed the way I
approached intellectual property.
, this might've been my first, probablymy first or second year in my practice.
I got a phone call and it was a desperatevoice on the other end, belonging to a
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third generation machinist from Michigan.
He, his father and his grandfather hadspent their lives working with machines,
crafting solutions for manufacturing.
About a year prior.
This machinist is let's call him Mike.
He got a call from a buddy workingat a major auto manufacturer.
They were facing a technical issueon the factory floor and needed help.
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Mike, eager to assist,agreed to meet for lunch.
So let's picture this.
Mike is sitting at a diner with hisfriend, just two guys talking shop.
Between bites of his sandwich, hegrabs a napkin and sketches out a
solution right there at the table.
A real moment of genius.
An idea that could revolutionizetheir manufacturing process.
(01:44):
Man, we've got thisbottleneck on the floor, man.
The machines keep overheatingduring production runs, and
it's killing our output.
Man, we've been stuckon this issue for weeks.
The higher ups are getting nervous.
Any chance you've got a fix for us?
Smiling.
Overheating, huh?
Actually, yeah, I've been thinkingabout this on the drive over, Mike said.
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Sounds like it could be the coolantflow, or maybe just design flaw in how
the lines are feeding into the machines.
He pauses, thinking.
Here, pass me that napkin.
Mike grabs the napkinand starts sketching.
See if you can reconfigure this partof the machine to move like this.
More sketching.
If you reroute the coolant system likethis, see, you could control the flow more
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efficiently and it would keep the machinefrom reaching those critical temperatures.
He gestures to the napkin.
It'll even speed up the process andreduce the breakdowns you've been seeing.
More scribbling.
Wow.
Man, that might actually work.
You just came up with this right now?
Mike, yeah, it's not rocket science.
It's actually just aboutthinking practically.
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It should help the machinesrun smoother and longer.
His friend, looking over at the sketch.
That could actually work.
Man, you've always hada knack for this stuff.
Mike, you've still got it.
You might have just saved us.
We should really look into this.
You might be on to something big.
Mike, nodding confidently, said, Yeah, Ithink it'll solve your problem for good.
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Try it out and let me know how it goes.
I'm sure Mike walked out of thatdiner thinking this was his big break.
Big Michigan manufacturer.
The moment his hard workwould finally pay off.
But weeks went by, and he heard nothing.
No calls, no emails, nothing.
Almost a year later, thatsame buddy called Mike again.
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Only this time the conversationwas far more serious.
The company had tested asolution and guess what?
It worked.
It really worked.
So well, in fact, they started using itin their plant and they were planning
on replicating it in more plants andfor their international facilities.
Let's see how the conversation went.
Hey, Mike, it's me.
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I've got some news.
Finally, I've been wondering whathappened with that idea I gave you guys.
Did it work?
Yeah, it worked.
In fact, it worked betterthan we could have imagined.
They've already implementedacross several plants.
Oh, hold on.
You mean you tested it and it worked?
Yeah, man.
It worked like a charm.
They're already rollingit out in other plants.
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Management's loving it.
Wow.
That's incredible.
So what's the next step?
Should we talk contracts?
Hold on, Mike.
So that's the thing.
Did you get a patent on that design?
Did you patent thatsolution you did for us?
A patent?
No, I didn't think I needed one yet.
I figured we were justhaving a conversation.
Mike, look, this is serious, man.
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They're already using it.
You've got to lock this down, man.
If you don't, you could lose everything.
Hold on.
I didn't think I needed it yet.
We were talking.
Look, Mike.
Man, I'm sorry.
I didn't realize it either, butthey've moved on this thing.
Then they're using it now.
And I've talked to legal without a patent.
I'm going to try to bring you back in.
But there's no way they saidwithout a patent, you don't
have a claim to anything.
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So this is about the time that Mikecalled when he called the office and I
heard it in his voice, Mike was broken,it wasn't just a lost opportunity.
This was a stolen future.
This is a chance for everything thathis dad, his grandfather, for them
to make good, it could really setthe family up, set up the future.
And I heard all that in hisvoice and his plea to me.
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And so when I broke it down, I think Mikemight have had about three weeks before.
His deadline to file a patent.
, it was almost too late, , I tried tobreak down, , maybe payment plans,
creative solutions, trying to figureout how Mike could make this happen.
But Mike was broke and more thanthat, his spirit was shattered.
He felt defeated, cheated.
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So here's, that was my firstphone call with Mike and I'm sure
let's see what Mike did after that.
Cause I did have one morephone call with Mike.
Mike went out to his friendsand family to help , with costs
and try to get things together.
I talked to a patent agent today.
He said we've got, justunder three weeks to file.
And if we miss this window, it's over.
His wife.
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Mike's wife.
But how much is it going to cost?
Mike, things are tight.
Things have already beenreally tight on bills.
It's thousands.
I really don't know how we're goingto do it, but we've got to find a way.
I think I can ask aroundfriends and family.
I'm going to see what I can put together.
So Mike says, Hey, it's on the phone.
Start calling those people.
Hey Tom, it's Mike.
I need to ask a huge favor.
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That solution I came upwith for the factory.
You won't believe it.
It actually taken off, but here'sthe thing, I'm running out of
time to protect it legally.
I actually got to get a patent.
I've got three weeks to file a patent.
I don't have any money, man, Tom.
And it's rough.
How much are you short?
At least five grand, maybe more.
I hate to ask, but is there anythingyou can lend or, I'll make it up.
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But it would really help right now.
Tom,
Mike, I'd help if I could,but things are tight here too.
Things have been really tight.
Maybe ask around more and it's gotta besomeone who can help talk to his dad,
Mike's dad.
Oh, you need that much?
Back when your granddad and I startedthe shop, we didn't deal with patents,
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but I guess times are different now.
Looks like I got a little tucked away.
It's not much, but it might getyou started and help you get
closer to filing that patent.
I'll help you out however I can.
Thanks dad.
Every little bit counts.
I can't let it slip away.
Hey babe, you sure there'sno other way to file this?
It has to be like a cheaper option.
Can you do it yourself?
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Babe I've tried, but clock's ticking andthis guy, I think he'd really help us,
he's really trying to cut us a break.
He's just trying to, come up witha down payment and he'll work with
us just to file the paperwork.
You know how things have been at the shop.
They don't have that kindof money lying around.
Maybe you can ask your brother.
Maybe you could ask, some more peoplefrom the old days at the plant,
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Mike calls his brotherMike, how's it going?
Bro I'm all in a bit of a situation.
Remember that designercame up to the factory.
Yeah.
You were all fired up about that.
What's going on?
It worked, man.
It worked.
They're using it at their plants.
But, now they get all, legalwith me, and I didn't file a
patent and, running out of time.
It's tough, Mike.
What do you need?
What are you going to do?
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I need to raise money for the patent.
I wouldn't ask if that wasn'treally important, but I need a few,
a couple thousand, a couple of grand.
fast, can you help?
Mike that's a big ask, things areslow here with my business too, man.
Say this could be big.
I'll see what I can do.
Let me talk to the family andsee what we can put together.
Mike's going to lose through hisfriends, beating the bushes, Mike.
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I haven't seen you in ages, man.
What's going on?
Got myself in a bit of a bind.
That solution I came upwith for the factory.
Yeah.
I was telling you guysabout over beers last time.
Here's the thing.
I never filed a patent for it.
And it actually, it works.
My buddy called me andthey're using it everywhere.
So I'm trying to raise somemoney and trying to put together.
Yeah.
I need a few grand to to get it together.
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I only got three weeks.
I know it's a long shot, butI figured I've asked around.
I wouldn't really call you, man.
If it wasn't really serious, Heylook Mike, you've always been there
for me and you helped me and theboys out more than I can count.
We can put something together, we don'tkeep that kind of money around that.
I'll see what we can do.
Hey dad,
I've talked to everybody, man.
I've only got about a grand.
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I've been busting my tail for years.
Can you help Dad?
Hey son yeah I know you've beenbusting your hump for years
and I'm really proud of you.
When you went to that, talk toyour buddy in the factory, man.
I was so proud of you.
I really thought that wasgoing to be the payoff and if
I had it, I'd give it to you.
Yeah, I know dad.
I'm not asking for charity.
I just.
I feel like it's right there.
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It went a way, I justdon't know how to stop it.
How much do you need now?
Like I said, only got about a grand.
Um, for the whole thing, probably he'sgoing to be like, he told me it's like
maybe 10 grand for the whole thingright now to see, getting a two or
three grand just to get it started.
I can pull money from my savings, butit's only going to be about another grand,
Mike, we don't have money like that.
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Thanks pops.
I appreciate it.
I to make it work, but Igot to call this guy, man.
We're going to get a little bit, gave me aweek to get it together, see what happens.
So this is the time I gota second call from Mike.
And again, like I toldyou, Mike was defeated.
He was crushed.
I could hear him through the phone.
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I could hear the tears.
And honestly, therewas nothing I could do.
I had some buddies.
I told him about some probono attorneys in Michigan.
But he said he had tried some of these.
Places already and he's reaching outfor me He said all those years to
recall those years, all the hard work.
Just to go, I had it rightthere in front of me.
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I he didn't say anything about a patent.
Mike, look, don't be so hard on yourself.
You're not expecting to know these things.
You're the machinist, someonelike me is on your team to help
you with these legal issues.
But yeah, when you come up with thingslike that, you definitely, you want to
make sure that you're thinking aboutyour intellectual property assets.
You gotta put that first, but I justwant to see how you're holding up.
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Check out any of those pro bono firms
I said, they might beable to help you out.
The window of time was tight.
Usually like to have a fewmonths , so they can allocate
the necessary number of hours.
Yeah, Tariq, I checked on those.
No one's gonna be ableto meet the timeline.
I think I'm out of luck.
I tried to raise money.
I talked to everyone I could,but it's just not enough.
I those guys are usually,they're gonna get away with this.
They're using my idea and there'snothing I can do about it.
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I'm sitting here with nothing.
I'll see what I can do.
Is there anything?
Do you have a credit card?
Do you have anything, man?
I want to help you out.
After that, I wasn'table to reach Mike again.
Unfortunately, Mike did not file a patent.
I can only imagine the conversations,over beers he had with his buddies,
talking about what could havehappened, what could have been,
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What might have happened had heactually filed his paperwork, how
that would have changed his life,changed his business, going from a
napkin sketch to millions of dollars.
What's the lesson here?
What could Mike have done differently?
How did he find himself in sucha heart wrenching position?
Let's break it down.
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First off, Mike's biggest mistakewasn't in developing his solution.
He didn't have to make a prototypeand build it and machine it out.
Really, it all started for Mikeby not having the right mindset.
Mike's a genius, a oncein a lifetime machinist.
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over a conversation, potentially savingmillions, billions, we don't know how
much he would save that manufacturer.
But the one fatal flaw was not havingthe intellectual property asset mindset.
Because he's such a gifted andgenius machinist, he didn't
think of his ideas as an asset.
Had he understood the power ofintellectual property from the start,
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he could have protected himself fromthe moment the idea hit the napkin.
Because an IP asset mindset isabout thinking of every idea,
every solution as a valuable asset.
Just like you wouldn't leave apile of money on the sidewalk.
Why would you then leave yourintellectual property unprotected?
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Really, Mike's millionshe left on that napkin.
So this mindset encouragesinnovators, we have to be proactive.
To ask tough questionsright from the start.
How is this going to work?
Maybe I should have a conversation withthe legal, you have an NDA or contract.
I think this will work.
I'm pretty sure I have a solutionfor you, but let's make sure
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we have things buttoned up.
The question at the beginning,should I file a patent?
How do I secure my rights?
And most importantly, how do I makesure that I'm the one benefiting
from my hard earned ideas?
So had Mike filed at least even fora provisional patent, and that's
something that could have been.
Relatively inexpensive
Had he started the original patentprocess and then, had this three
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weeks, we could have converted hisefforts into actual patent application.
This could have been different.
That small step at the beginningcould have turned that napkin sketch
into a multimillion dollar asset.
But instead, Mike walked awayempty handed, watching someone
else profit from his genius.
And that's why the IP asset mindsetis the foundation of our first
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pillar of intellectual property.
It's the difference betweenowning your future and losing it.
So what did you learn from Mike's story?
So when I was taking my notes firstand foremost, always think ahead.
You have to know that yourideas are valuable and it's
up to you to protect them.
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No one is coming to saveyou or save your idea.
His buddy doesn't havepatents and doesn't know legal.
He's, middle management atthe machine shop or supervisor.
So your ideas are valuable andit's up to you to protect them.
Whether you're a machinist like Mike,whether you're a tech entrepreneur,
whether you're a creative professional,never underestimate the power
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of your intellectual property.
So an IP asset mindset is allabout thinking of every idea,
every solution as a valuable asset.
Your ideas are valuable and it's upto you to protect them, whether you're
a machinist, a tech entrepreneur.
Or creative a professional,never underestimate the power
of intellectual property.
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In our next episode, we'lldive into pillar two,
I'll share another story thistime about an inventor who took
steps to fortify IP assets and theincredible results that follow.
Your ideas are your greatest asset.
Protect it.
. In the next episode of Patent and InsiderSecrets, we'll follow the journey of an
inventor who wasn't just protecting hisidea, but fortifying it against all odds.
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It's called The Builder.
Tune in and learn how to turnyour intellectual property
into unbreakable fortress
This is looking at IP assetdevelopment and fortification.
With that, I want to say thank you so muchfor listening to Patent Insider Secrets.
Be sure to like and subscribe,leave us a review, and remember,
your ideas are your greatest asset.
Protect them.
I'm your host, Tariq Najee-ullah,and we'll see you next time.
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Um,