The Dallas Public Library (DPL) in downtown Dallas is just a five-minute drive from the USPTO Texas Regional Office, a 15-minute walk if you are ambitious. Here at DPL we are constantly working on customer service and outreach as part of our strategic plan. This is included in the Patent and Trademark Resource Center goals, and we are striving to help the pro se inventors achieve their goals.
With new staff and a new manager on the 6th floor, currently called the Government Information Center, the staff offers one-on-one help for inventors who visit us with just an idea and need more information about patenting. Robert Wise, a patent attorney, volunteers his time to have 20 minute sessions with pro se inventors who have more complex questions.
This past year workshops came in all sizes and languages. “Learn How to Search for Prior Art and Patents,” an all-Spanish workshop for Spanish speaking individuals, sponsored by the Dallas Hispanic Bar Association and the USPTO Texas Regional Office, and “Learn How to Search for Patents” with 4th graders from the Episcopal Lower School of Dallas were just a few workshops we had. In the coming months, we will have inventors in to help would-be inventors with tips and advice on staying the course, but “know when to fold ‘em, (as Kenny Rogers would say).”
We have Dallas Makerspace in with 3-D printing which helps to promote our intellectual property talks. The Texas Inventors Association is still a big inspiration for gathering resources during the patenting process.
Hopefully, within the next 12 months, our floor will be ready to remodel and we will be adding to the floor plan a classroom environment where we will hold webinars and classes.