How long does it takes to patent an idea?

Question

I have this grand idea and I’m trying to get it patent. It's going to cost me approximately $5,000 just to get it patent. After when i make this payment will it take years just to get it patent?

Answer 1

It can take 3 to10 years to get a patent in the U.S.. $5,000 is a low estimate of the cost.

Answer 2

It could take anything from 1 year up to 5 years. It depends on how long the patent examiner needs to go through it.

There is a new patent filing program called the "accelerated SPP" filing procedure. It is supposed to cut down the patent processing time significantly, by having applicants (1) file patent applications with very few claims, and (2) do a search to see if their claims are similar to existing patents.

Only after this is done, can you submit the patent application. And you'll need to submit details of the search that you used.

Have a look at http://www.patentengineers.com

It's got information on the patent process.