A new IP Awareness Assessment Tool

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) unveiled a new web-based IP Awareness Assessment Tool designed to help manufacturers, small businesses, entrepreneurs and independent inventors easily assess their knowledge of intellectual property (IP).


Intellectual property is a key concern of small businesses owners, who can secure significant competitive advantages by exercising the rights they hold to their innovations. However, many individuals are often unaware of their rights and miss the opportunities they can provide. USPTO and NIST MEP developed the IP Awareness Assessment Tool as a way to help educate innovators about these rights.

The tool enables users to measure and increase their awareness of IP issues, relevant to their creative projects and business goals. Users answer a comprehensive set of questions regarding IP, after which the tool provides a set of training resources tailored to specifically identified needs.


Interested? The tool is available on USPTO’s website at http://www.uspto.gov/inventors/assessment/.

A Council for Florida Inventors!

Today we would like to introduce you to another source of help. If you have an invention and you would like to gain knowledge about the experience of other inventors, associations are usually a good way to start. They can provide assistance and real live experience on the basis of non-profit organizational structures. These are always good for inventors who do not want to spend money on services provided by companies.

The Inventor’s Council of Central Florida is an organization to encourage creative people and give educational advice. It has been formed in the 1950’s and is continuously running since 1974 by entrepreneurs, teachers, engineers, moms and many others but most importantly inventors wishing to help other inventors. At their monthly meetings in Orlando, Florida, the council is aiming to create a comfortable, informal atmosphere where information, skills and ideas are exchanged. All under a non-disclosure agreement, of course.

The council invites guest speakers, such as patent attorneys and successful entrepreneurs but also venture capital group representatives. They also organize workshops for their members on a regular basis and provide judges in various national and international invention award competitions. So if you have an invention and you are looking for real life experience and help, this might be a good start.