JW Note:  Our experience with the initial pilot program was positive, and we are pleased to see the USPTO further developing the program.  Any additional opportunity to reach agreement prior to filing costly appeals or requests for continued examination (RCE) is generally good for patent applicants.

After Final Consideration Pilot 2.0

Using information gathered from the After Final Consideration Pilot (AFCP), as well as input from stakeholders and examiners obtained through the RCE outreach initiative, the USPTO will launch the After Final Consideration Pilot 2.0 (AFCP 2.0) on May 19, 2013. Designed to be more efficient and effective than the AFCP, AFCP 2.0 will be part of the USPTO’s on-going efforts towards compact prosecution and increased collaboration between examiners and stakeholders.

“Compact prosecution remains one of our top goals,” said Teresa Stanek Rea, Acting Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Acting Director of the USPTO. “As with the original AFCP pilot, the new AFCP 2.0 pilot allows additional flexibility for applicants and examiners to work together and provides even greater opportunity for communication after final than the original pilot.”

Like AFCP, AFCP 2.0 authorizes additional time for examiners to search and/or consider responses after final rejection. Under AFCP 2.0, examiners will also use the additional time to schedule and conduct an interview to discuss the results of their search and/or consideration with you, if your response does not place the application in condition for allowance. In this way, you will benefit from the additional search and consideration afforded by the pilot, even when the results do not lead to allowance.

In addition, the procedure for obtaining consideration under AFCP 2.0 has been revised. The revised procedure focuses the pilot on review of proposed claim amendments and allows the USPTO to better evaluate the pilot.

To be eligible for consideration under AFCP 2.0, you must file a response under 37 CFR §1.116, which includes a request for consideration under the pilot and an amendment to at least one independent claim that does not broaden the scope of the independent claim in any aspect. Please see the notice published in the Federal Register at 78 Fed. Reg. 29117 for a complete description of how to request consideration under AFCP 2.0. As was the case with the AFCP, examiners will continue to use their professional judgment to decide whether the response can be fully considered under AFCP 2.0. This will include determining whether any additional search is required and can be completed within the allotted time, in order to determine whether the application can be allowed.

As always, the option to request an interview with the examiner, consistent with MPEP 713, is available to you irrespective of whether the submission was considered under AFCP 2.0.

If you are considering filing a response to a final rejection under 37 CFR 1.116 that you believe will lead to allowance of your application with only limited further searching and/or consideration by the examiner, you should consider requesting consideration of the response under AFCP 2.0.

AFCP 2.0 is scheduled to run through September 30, 2013, i.e., any request to consider a response after final rejection under AFCP 2.0 must be filed on or after May 19, 2013, and on or before September 30, 2013. AFCP, which began on March 25, 2012, will terminate on May 18, 2013.

Click here for guidance related to consideration of responses.

Most anyone who has been involved in the filing of a patent application at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will tell you this – the patenting process is complicated.  It is full of strange rules.  To make matters worse, these rules seem to be in a constant state of flux.  As a result, the patenting process presents many potential pitfalls for inventors, and especially for those who decide to prepare and file themselves as ”pro se” or without the advice of counsel.

Many patent practitioners can recall stories where pro se applicants have ultimately turned to them to fix their patent applications, or to otherwise complete prosecution from the inventors at the USPTO.  Some of these stories are quite famous, including the story of the Wright brothers’ patent attorney, Harry Toulmin, to whom the brothers turned after the patent application they had drafted themselves was rejected by the USPTO.  Unfortunately, depending on the state of the patent application filed, or the point in the process at which the patent practitioner is approached, the practitioner’s ability to help the inventor may be very limited.

For at least these reasons, the importance of using a registered patent attorney or agent for preparation and filing of a patent application cannot be over-emphasized.   Registered patent attorneys or agents are individuals who have been licensed and are regulated by USPTO.  Both patent attorneys and agents must pass a rigorous examination administered by the USPTO, and registered patent attorneys are also members of a state bar.  A list of registered patent practitioners is maintained at the USPTO website here, and may be searched to locate a registered practitioner near you.

Inventors should also beware using so-called “invention promoters”.  An invention promoter is defined by 35 USC 297 as being any “person, firm, partnership, corporation, or other entity who offers to perform or performs invention promotion services for, or on behalf of, a customer, and who holds itself out through advertising in any mass media as providing such services”. Invention promotion services are defined as being “the procurement or attempted procurement for a customer of a firm, corporation, or other entity to develop and market products or services that include the invention of the customer”.

The USPTO publishes complaints made against invention promoters, which may be found at the following website:

http://www.uspto.gov/inventors/scam_prevention/complaints/index.jsp

For more information from the USPTO about invention promoters and scam prevention, we encourage you to visit the USPTO Scam Prevention Website here and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Consumer Information on Invention Promotion Firms website here.  The USPTO also publishes a great pamphlet with information on how to avoid scams by invention promoters here.  Note especially the list of questions that invention promoters are required to answer by law (i.e., the American Inventors Protection Act of 1999).   Complaints against invention promoters may also be filed with both the USPTO and the FTC using the forms found here and here, respectively.

In sum, if you are inventor interested in obtaining a patent, we recommend that you search for and speak with an experienced registered practitioner before moving forward into the patenting process.  Likewise, if you have been the victim of a scam, it may also be in your best interest to speak with a registered practitioner sooner rather than later.

Should you wish to speak with the registered patent attorneys at my law firm, Fraser Clemens Martin & Miller LLC, I invite you to contact us by telephone at 419-874-1100, or by email to firm@fraser-ip.com.

What is claimed is:

1. A decorative penile wrap mountable about a human penis for stimulative, non-intercourse use comprising:
a sheath sized for encircling a human penis, the sheath having a cylindrical wall extending between opposed, first and second open ends, the cylindrical wall forming a hollow interior bore for receiving a human penis, the cylindrical wall disposed substantially in contact with the penis along the entire length of the wall;
means for securing the sheath about a human penis; and
decorative indicia formed on the exterior of the wall of the sheath;
the wall of the sheath and the decorative indicia forming a three dimensional, stimulative shape requiring removal of the sheath for intercourse.

2. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein: the decorative indicia is in the form of an applique attached to an exterior surface of the wall of the sheath.

3. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein: the decorative indicia is imprinted on the exterior exterior of the wall of the sheath.

4. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein: the decorative indicia is a predetermined shape formed in the wall of the sheath.

5. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein the securing means comprises: an elastic band fixedly mounted on at least one of the first and second ends of the sheath, the at least one of the first and second ends having a continuous periphery.

6. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein the securing means comprises: tie straps mounted on at least one of the first and second side edges of the sheath and joinable together.

7. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein: the first and second side edges of the sheath are disposed in proximity with each other, the securing means mounted on the first and second side edges.

8. The decorative penile wrap of claim 7 wherein the securing means comprises: at least one tie strap secured to each of the first and second side edges of the sheath.

9. The decorative penile wrap of claim 8 wherein the securing means comprises: interconnectible fastener elements, mounted on each of the first and second side edges of the sheet and joinable together.

10. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein: the sheath is formed of a flexible material.

11. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein: the sheath is formed of a semi-rigid material.

12. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein: the securing means is mounted on each of the first and second ends of the sheath.

13. The decorative penile wrap of claim 12 wherein the securing means comprises:  elastic formed in the sheath for allowing expansion of a diameter of the sheath.

14. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein: the sheath is formed with a continuous cylindrical shaped side wall.

15. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein: the securing means is mounted on at least one of the first and second ends of the sheath.

16. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 further comprising: means, mounted on the side wall of the sheath, for generating, when activated, a series of audible sounds stored in a memory.

17. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein: the decorative indicia defines a three dimensional shape over the entire exterior surface of the sheath.

18. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein: the securing means forms part of the decorative indicia.

19. The decorative penile wrap of claim 1 wherein the decorative indicia includes flexible straps loosely extending from the sheath.

I claim:

1. A face lift device comprising a flexible band of material adapted to be adhesively attached to a human scalp, said band being flat on a first surface, and having a plurality of loops provided on the opposing surface; a two-piece strap wherein the first strap piece has a first end that is adapted to be adhesively attached to one side of the wearer’s head or neck and the second and end of said first strap piece is shaped to permit it to pass through one of the loops on the said band, the second strap piece has a first end that is adapted to be adhesively attached to the other side of the head or neck of the wearer, and the second end of the second strap piece has a locking member through which the second end of said first strap piece enters after it has passed through said one of the loops, whereby the strap can slide relative to its loop as the head of the wearer moves.

2. A face lift device as claimed in claim 1 in which the first end of each of the said strap pieces which is adhesively attached to the wearer is provided with a tab which is adhesively attached to the skin of the wearer.

3. A face lift device as claimed in claim 1 which includes a plurality of straps spaced apart on said band whereby different portions of the face can be lifted by applying tension to the straps.

4. A face lift device as claimed in claim 2 which includes a plurality of straps spaced apart on said band whereby different portions of the face can be lifted by applying tension to the straps.

What is claimed to be new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent is set forth in the appended claims:

1. An apparatus for providing a pair of handles for use on the exterior of conventional trouser-like garments, comprising:
a) a pair of elongated handle members each having a first end and a second end sized for use on human trousers;
b) reinforcement means disposed in the interior of the trousers;
c) means for attaching said elongated members to said reinforcement means of the trousers, said first and second ends of said elongated handle members being flattened near the ends of said elongated members whereby said ends can be fastened to the trousers;
d) one of said pair of elongated handle members being disposed on a first side of said trousers and a second side of said trousers, in the area of the hips of the human; and
e) said flattened ends of said elongated handle members having a plurality of apertures therein for receiving fasteners for fastening said elongated handle members to said trousers.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said elongated handle members are made of rope.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said elongated handle members are made of leather.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said elongated handle members are made of metal.

5. An apparatus for providing a pair of handles for use on the exterior of conventional trouser-like garments, comprising:
a) a pair of elongated handle members sized for use on human trousers;
b) reinforcement means disposed in the interior of the trousers;
c) means for attaching said elongated members to said reinforcement means of the trousers;
d) said reinforcement means further comprising a metal support frame disposed on the inside of the waistband of the trousers, said support frame encircling the user; and
e) said support frame further comprising a pair of downwardly extending elongated appendages, said support frame and said elongated appendages providing means for securement of said elongated handle members to the interior of the trousers disposed on the outside of the legs of the trousers near the hips of the user.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, said means for securement further comprise a backing cloth member for being sewn onto the interior of the trouser legs, said backing cloth member forming a pocket about said support frame whereby said support frame is fixedly attached to the inside of the trousers.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein said support frame is made of fiberglass.

8. The apparatus of claim 5, said support frame further comprising exposed ends, said exposed ends having mating snap means thereon whereby said support means is fastened about the waist of the user.