General . . .

How much do you charge?
Our charges vary according to the job. Schematics cost less, complicated machines requiring development time cost more. Over the past 10 years, thanks to computer drawing, the cost for most patent drawings has gone down.

What’s your turn-around time?
We have no fixed turn-around time. We prefer that our clients tell us when they need the drawings. We have met same-day deadlines when necessary. We appreciate greater lead time when possible.

In what areas do you work?
We provide high quality patent drawings in all arts (i.e., mechanical, electrical, biological, etc.).

What are the qualifications of your staff?
Almost all of our employees have backgrounds in art or mechanical design, with many having attended local technical schools. Patent drafting, however, is a specific skill learned through on-the-job training under the supervision of skilled and experienced CAD drafting experts.

Who are your clientele?
We work for law firms of all sizes as well as for individual attorneys. We prepare patent drawings for companies ranging from Fortune 500 to small start-ups, and everything in between.

Why haven’t I ever heard of you?
We quietly grew our business by word of mouth for 25 years, without advertising. Over the years we have assembled and trained a core group of expert patent drafters.

What information is needed to prepare a set of patent drawings?
We use whatever is provided. We appreciate working from finished CAD drawings, but we realize this is not always possible. Often our questions can be cleared up with a phone call to the patent attorney. With the attorney’s permission, we will contact the inventor if further information is necessary.

How should I send disclosure materials to you?
Email, fax, US Postal Service, private carrier, courier, in person, or any other means you know of. If you prefer, we can pick up material from your location (Milwaukee area only).

What electronic file formats do you accept for imported drawing?
.DXF, .DWG, and .IGES.  (If possible .DXF files should use version 12.)   We accept CAD files via email, 3½" floppy, zip disk and CD.

What about PDF files?
We can receive and manipulate PDF files, but to develop a set of patent drawings we prefer the above-mentioned CAD formats. We email PDF files of the completed patent drawings to many of our clients.

I want to file electronically. Can you provide the drawings?
Yes. The US Patent and Trademark Office requires that drawings for electronic filing be in TIFF format. We provide such drawings, compressed as per USPTO guidelines.

If I want to file in a foreign country, should I have my drawings prepared by an agent in that country?
You certainly may use the services of a foreign agent. However, many of our clients use our foreign filing services to achieve a significant cost reduction. One of our clients recently compared our cost with that of their foreign agent, and found ours to be 75% less!

We file in numerous foreign countries and prefer to receive hard copies of the drawings.  Can you help us?
Yes. We routinely deliver hard copies to many of our clients.

I have a lot of foreign clients whose patent drawings are not up to USPTO standards.  Is there a way to avoid redrawing?
We have been successful enhancing foreign drawings manually without the need for redrawing, which results in cost savings to our clients. This is one of many reasons why we like to keep manual drawing skills in our arsenal, even though the majority of our work is done on CAD.

I know some companies do all their drawings by hand.  Which is better, CAD drawings or drawings by hand?
CAD, particularly with the advent of electronic filing.

In what situations is it best to use hand drawings?
Trademarks, foreigns filing in the U.S. and complex devices with weak disclosing materials.

I’ve used draftspersons that can trace an existing drawing but who don’t seem to understand what they are drawing.  Are you able to understand what you are drawing and make constructive suggestions about the invention and the drawings?
Sometimes our work simply involves tracing, but we will never just trace a drawing that we don’t understand. We are proud that we can figure out the workings of a device, explain the details to our client and create a set of drawings that show the invention clearly and efficiently.

If the inventor has already prepared CAD drawings why does a patent draftsman have to redraw them?
We don’t redraw them. We import CAD files and make changes to the original drawings to bring them up to patent office standards. Of course, the quality of the inventor’s drawings determines their usefulness in preparing the patent drawings. Usually the importation of inventors’ drawings results in reduced patent drawing fees.

I have an inventor who wants to do his own drawings.  Is this advisable?
While some inventors are capable of creating their own patent drawings, others don’t have the necessary skills.  We are willing to evaluate an inventor’s drawings for compliance with USPTO standards. We are also able to make suggestions that might help the inventor improve his or her drawings. We offer these services at no charge to our regular clients.

Patent drawing appear simple.  Why can't I draw them myself?
Creating complete patent drawings that are easily understood by, and acceptable to, the patent office is a specialized skill. Proceed at your own risk!

What if I’ve lost the drawings you prepared for me?
We archive both the CAD file and a hard copy of your drawings. We provide replacement drawings of either electronic or hard copy versions for a nominal fee.

Can you draw people?
Yes.