Patenting
This is just an opinion. Do your own research.
Nothing New
Especially when relating to inventions in this field, the usefulness of patents can be in question. The more you look at the wide variety of designs that are documented in papers, magazines and those commercial products over the past decades it becomes apparent that most of the early work created the basic designs that have been repatented many times since.
Different Descriptions
Most if not all recent patents are rehashes of existing prior art. One of the problems in this field in particular (and probably many others) is the number of ways you can describe exactly the same design or physical principle. So writing a new patent based entirely on previous designs is actually quite easy and a patent office is not going to be able to find prior art. Diagrams can be obscured, wording completely changed. For example it is interesting how few patents even mention the word loudspeaker when that is exactly what the design is. Instead they are "acoustic transducers" or "sound generators" or many alternatives and that is just the simplest of words. When it comes to plasma or ions there are multitudes of ways (many totally valid) to descibe the exact same thing.
If you can't describe your design in a new way the next option is to patent the application of it. Take a previous known design and just patent it in a specific application, that works well.
Reveal Your Design to the World
For the small inventor, the most common applicant in this area, the patent is now almost useless. It costs a huge amount to get one, in one country. Your design is then public knowledge for the world to see. A worldwide patent is required in the modern internet world, costing an enormous amount and taking a long time during which period your design is public. Once you gain the patent it offers no protection in itself. You have to be aware of someone copying and creating a product you think is based on your design, take them to court at huge expense and with a high likelyhood of not winning as the prior art can be used against you. Even a minor change in a design can mean your patent is not infringed.
One Use
One minor thing a patent may give a small inventor is some sort of proof that your design is original. So if someone decides you are infringing their patents and takes you to court you may be able to use it as some sort of proof your design is different. You can use expired patents in this way. But it is hard to imagine that this would be something reliable to use and no more use than other less costly types of prior art.
Not Proof of Anything
It seems to be a common perception that a patent proves your design is unique and marketable. It is a long time since that has been the case if it ever was. Venture capital and funding circles tend to treat a patent in this way. Their main interest is that it can be treated as part of a company's intellectual property portfolio that can go towards increasing the value of their investment when it comes time to sell. It can only benefit the small inventor if used when selling a design to a company.
Patents are for Larger Companies
For a larger company they have the larger amounts of money required to patent and defend practically anything. They can use patents as a weapon to stifle any similar design and innovation by using money to drive a legal case. Patents are essential for big business and they have the power to use them.
Prior Art
Because this field of work is small, those who are actually aware of it are low in number and those aware of how it works even fewer. Having a new patent granted is quite likely. One hope for this website is that it contains references to all the work that has been done and can therefore be used to help the smaller inventor by showing the prior art behind their own design. It is very likely that a version your "new" idea is already out there and out of patent so it may at least save money trying to get a patent on a design that exists or help to identify what is new about your design.
Keep it to Yourself
The smaller inventor or company is much better off keeping any unique element of their design as secret as possible and using the prior art information here as part of a defence should they be taken to court for infringing anothers patent. Most patents that are still active can be invalidated with this prior art. The money saved from getting and maintaining your own patent can be put towards the defence. In theory the money will be much more available if the product is successful than during the startup phase and if the product is unsuccessful then no money has been made to be worth defending.
Defensive Publication
The smaller inventor may mainly be afraid of larger companies suggesting that they have copied the company. Defensive publication may be the better way of protecting yourself by making public (and easily accessible) all the aspects of your design you want to, especially those parts that could already be based on prior art.
Of course patents, especially earlier ones, are a huge resource of information when researching, very helpful.
In Short
Patents:
Do not prove your invention is unique
Do not mean your product is marketable
Broadcast your intellectual property to the world
Offer no active protection
Cost a huge amount to get
Cost a lot to keep
Cost a huge amount to defend
Compared to other IP protection like trademarks or design rights which are cheap, useful and defendable - patents have lost their way.
