Patent Backlog Frustrates Inventors New Products Could Jumpstart an Economic Recovery but U.S. Patent Office Hampered by Inability to Adjust Fees

Entrepreneur Aldo DiBelardino started developing lightweight "Spekx" eyewear four years ago in an office above his garage in Virginia Beach, Va. He gave CBS News an exclusive sneak peek at his invention before they went on sale.

"They provide you goggle-like protection, but they provide you the style and convenience of sunglasses," DeBelardino says.

DiBelardino is preparing to start selling them this summer. But the trouble is, he does not have a patent to protect his invention. He applied for one in April.

"Until I get a patent, I have a very limited ability to defend myself in the marketplace against copy activity," he explained.

DiBelardino knows that from personal experience. His first commercial venture — the X-It Ladder — a compact fire escape ladder for the home was copied by Kidde, the biggest fire extinguisher maker in the United States. After DeBelardino refused to sell the company his idea, it produced a knockoff that ate into his market share. In 2002, DiBelardino sued Kidde for patent infringement and won a $17 million settlement, the bulk of which went to attorneys fees, and had to give up the exclusive rights to his invention.

by Phil Hirschkorn and Rebecca Jarvis

Full Story: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/08/08/eveningnews/main6755116.shtml

(Many thanks to Bob McGinnis for passing this along.)