In 1790, three patents were issued by the Federal Government. The first being potash—an ingredient used in fertilizer—followed by a candle manufacturing aide and an automated flour mill. To file for a patent, one would simply submit their idea to the Secretary of State, at the time, Thomas Jefferson, who sat as one of three Patent Board members. He, along with the other Board members, would examine the patent application to determine whether or not it met the criteria needed for the patent to be issued. Fast forward to April 2015, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) issued patent number 9,000,000.
The United States Patent Act of 1790 was formed on April 10, and was signed by President George Washington. It gave inventors rights to their creations and encouraged innovation by protecting them as private property. The Act also revealed a new examination process that hadn’t been used before. Patentable inventions would be judged against set standards by a panel of board members, and would be evaluated on merit and originality. The desire of Congress (and acquiescence of Jefferson who believed a patent an embarrassment to be suffered in exchange for the teaching of something sufficiently valuable) was to encourage inventors to step out from working in secrecy, and to share their inventions without losing their ownership interests (for a limited time). The Act defined a US patent as “any useful art, manufacture, engine, machine, or device, or any improvement thereon not before known or used.”
To encourage innovation and unique thinkers, Thomas Jefferson demanded a revision of the Act that allowed inventions to include those that went beyond “sufficiently useful and important.” This revision came in 1793, and helped to reduce the significant examination process. Today, filing a patent application with the USPTO involves 13 steps (see: http://www.uspto.gov/patents-getting-started/patent-basics/types-patent-applications/utility-patent/patent-process-0), and covers three types of patents: utility patents, design patents, and plant patents. The USPTO has over 12,000 employees, of whom about three quarters are examiners and others with technical and legal training. Patent applications are received at the rate of over 500,000 per year.
Today, with over 9,000,000 Patents issued, a large chunk of them having been issued over the past 20 years, it is clear we are not only still living in a nation of innovation, but the number of inventions is growing rapidly. Some are being created that improve humanity, but also include developments like virtual reality, robotics, and aerial vehicles. Our technological progress is impressive, and we have come a long way from potash. Jefferson would be pleased (or perhaps at least, not embarrassed).
