File your own patents

I have written many patent applications myself, and had patent agent write many others for me. Do NOT write your own patent application to save money, unless you are unemployed. If you account for the time you spend writing your own, it costs FAR more than a good patent agent. The main reason for an inventor to write a patent application is that you never understand something so well as when you try to explain it to someone else, in this case a hypothetical person with lots of knowledge and no imagination. Writing a patent application brings one face-to-face with scores of details, and thinking these through often leads to improvements in the invention. The main reason to use a professional is to save time. But pick a patent professional with expertise in the field of the invention, or you will end up spending just as much time fixing up the mess as you would have spent avoiding it!

The idea to convert existing $400 into a dream $2000 looks nice when the there is no time estimate. However, even one full busy day is not enough to generate a modest quality or better say acceptable patent draft. So, you are all right, gentlemen:). As a rule, it is a professional business, unless the idea is real gold for yourself. Once I have made such a case for myself and managed to get an international patent protection for a very promising and simple thing. However, I have no time for any promotion being busy, therefore, I am only paying patent fees in several countries. It is a real price, which is measured not by thousands but by ten-thousand units of bucks.

I agree with Bruce's comment. There are always the few who can convert the invention idea into IP, however this 'unproductive' (as some engineers put it) area of work does not apply for the majority. The engineers should continue inventing while the IP folks find ways to enhance the IP fortpolio