Hey Linda

Is this a design patent or a utility patent ? Design patents can be worked around. When you say the patent is from 1980, have you looked at the list of other patents that link into that one that you are looking at ?? It says “referenced by” and there will be a list of patent numbers. Look at each of those patents and click on the image so you can see the drawings. You’d be surprised what comes up as prior art.

Design patents give 14 years of protection and cost less to file. Utility patents give 20 years of protection and are much harder to work around. When you go into that list of referenced by…you may find someone filed a patent for the same thing after 1980. In that case it would/should be a problem.

Hope this helps

Hum, went back to look at it and i cant find it. I searched under every combination of words, i’m getting nothing…..i’ll keep looking though.

I never found it. So i’m not sure what the stats are on it. I do remember just seeing the latest date on it was 80 or 81.
So, why would someone get something patented and do nothing with it. Its an amazing idea. I do remember seeing their drawings and thought they were way complicated for what it needed to be, the reason i think something similar can be patented because it could be made very very simple and serve another purpose. Maybe back then the time was wrong for it, but the time sure has been right for about 10 or so years. This should be on the market and quite honestly i’ll be very very surprised if i’m the first since 1980 who has thought it up.

Unfortunately many patents, if not most some say never make it to the shelves for purchase. If your idea serves another purpose other then an old idea you saw, focus on the patents first that are similar to your idea to see if you have something novel.

My idea is so, how’d ya say, obvious. I’m really not sure why these weren’t made years ago. Other less convenient things are made for this same purpose that don’t work. My only tweak of this invention is looks and simplicity, not only will it serve a very very green purpose, but you can make it look good and use it to enhance a room. If it ever comes to light, you guys are going to scratch your heads in disbelief at how, just now, someone came up with this idea.