Patent Attorney, Inventor

I am a patent attorney, and a member of the Maryland and USPTO bars. I am also an inventor.
What is your patent attorney elevator speech?
Bachelor of Arts in Physics. Science writer, then technical writer, documenting advanced electronics and software for companies big and small. I entered the patent field in 2005 as a licensed patent agent. I am a later-life law school grad (American University/Washington College of Law 2015). I passed the Maryland bar on my first try in 2017.

I have worked on staff and/or extended contract basis (Of Counsel) for three different established patent law firms. I am currently Of Counsel with WoodIP Law in Gaithersburg, MD. My focus throughout has been on patent drafting and patent prosecution.

Oh, and could you press "5" for me please?
Can you say more about your education?
I attended Cornell University from 1977 to 1982. I was a "College Scholar", which is an independent study major, but effectively completed a B.A. in physics.

Following college I engaged in continuing studies in computer programming, applied maths, and electronics. I also earned an M.A. in Western Studies from St. Johns College in 2001. I earned my J.D. Cum Laude from American University Washington College of Law in 2015.

I continue to pursue self-studies in the sciences, math, and engineering (with a special interest in EE) at the advanced undergraduate/first-year graduate levels.
What have you invented?
Multiple inventions in the smart-item space:

U.S. 9,224,096, U.S. 9,786,145, U.S. 10,354,505 - System and Method for Item Self-assessment as Being Extant or Displaced

U.S. 10,373,462 - Intelligent Personal Item Transport Containers for Owner-customized Monitoring of Owner-Selected Portable Items

U.S. 10,916,113 - Portable Item Reporting Device

U.S. 11,195,396 - Anticipation and Warning of Potential Loss/Theft for Portable Personal Items

European (British, French, German) counterparts have issued for several of the above as well.
Why should we hire you to draft patent applications?
Attention to depth and breadth in patent drafting.

Excellent rapport with inventors for effective information gathering.

Skilled with Visio and photoshopping tools. I do my own illustrations for optimum drawings and for time savings - no "back and forth" with an illustrator.

Carefully crafted claims with nuanced use of both plain English and technical terms.

Artful use of language for clarity of exposition.

I am a curious person in general, and fascinated by technology in particular. I am continually impressed at how inventors find innovative ways to improve on technologies that already have decades of development behind them.
What is your approach to patent prosecution, and to replying to Office Actions in particular?
►  Be prepared to argue the claims before leaping to amending. The big challenge is the 103 rejections.

The USPTO sometimes presents combinations that are not reasonably motivated, and in some cases barely even operational. While KSR diminished the role of TSM requirements for rejections, it did not eliminate them. It is often worth arguing the combination presented by the USPTO is non-operable or is essentially hindsight analysis. 

►  Amend the claims, but only if really necessary. However, and regarding 101, if an application has been at all well written, 101 can often be overcome with relatively minor, formal amendments.

►  When an application really is anticipated or fairly rendered as obvious, recommend either: (i) Seeing if there is really another invention to be claimed in the application - which can work if the application was sufficiently thorough, or (ii) recommend abandonment. There is no reason to throw good money after bad.
Are you a law firm? On what basis do you offer your services?
I am not currently set up as an independent law firm. I prefer to provide my patent services under the auspices of an established law firm.

Currently I am Of Counsel with Wood IP Law, a minority-owned, veteran-run patent law firm in Gaithersburg, MD. In addition to myself, Wood IP Law has roughly one dozen highly skilled, very dedicated patent attorneys and patent agents on its team.

If you have questions about my skills and background, and how I might help you with your IP needs, you are welcome to reach me directly via the contact information below. You are also welcome to reach out to Ted Wood, Managing Partner at Wood IP Law.
What is your technology space?
Over the years I have drafted patent applications, and prosecuted the same, for such major corporations as General Electric, American Express, and Honeywell. I've also worked applications for many lesser known companies with diverse technologies.

I have drafted patents and/or prosecuted applications (drafted by others) for electronics at both the modular and component (circuit levels). I've also done power electronics. I know enough math to more than hold my own in the signal processing arena. I've worked all kinds of mechanical systems - both strictly mechanical, and mixes of hardware and electronics (for example, aircraft engines).

Biotech (heart monitoring solutions), I've done that. Optical systems. Distributed internet systems. Data security and encryption. Business methods. Software, internet, Wifi, spectrum management.
Are you a cat person or a dog person?
As it happens, I am very much a Star Trek fan and not so much enamored of Star Wars.

Ooops, my bad. So many memes, only 100,000,000,000 neurons. (And so many of them preoccupied with food!)

I meant to say: Cat person. But dogs are cool, too.
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PAST RESULTS IN PATENT PROSECUTION, INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MATTERS, and/or LITIGATION ARE NOT INDICATIVE OF WHAT AN ATTORNEY CAN DO FOR YOU WITH RESPECT TO YOUR PARTICULAR CASE, INVENTION, PATENT APPLICATION, or SUBJECT MATTER. THE RESULTS IN ANY CASE DEPEND UPON A VARIETY OF FACTORS UNIQUE TO EACH MATTER or CASE, AND PRIOR RESULTS DO NOT GUARANTEE OR PREDICT A SIMILAR OUTCOME IN ANY FUTURE MATTER or CASE.

Oppenheimer Patents is a sole proprietorship owned and run solely by Steven C. Oppenheimer, a Maryland attorney and a Registered Patent Agent (USPTO Reg. # 57,418).  Oppenheimer Patents is based in the state of Maryland, United States of America.  Mr. Oppenheimer currently limits his services to: Patent drafting, patent prosecution, and other patent-related services before the USPTO.

No legal advice is offered by this web site, and no legal advice is intended to be offered via this web site. Use of this web site does not establish any attorney-client relationship between the user or viewer of this web site and Steven Oppenheimer or Oppenheimer Patents.