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[TataBox]

I recently received a filed prov. with black and white photographs.  With the deadline looming in the next week.  If i cant find a draftsman to do a rush job to formal drawings, can I submit the photographs?  It will draw a objection, but at least I make the one year deadline. 

[DogDayPM 9er9er9er]

I recently received a filed prov. with black and white photographs.  With the deadline looming in the next week.  If i cant find a draftsman to do a rush job to formal drawings, can I submit the photographs?  It will draw a objection, but at least I make the one year deadline. 

Do you have the jpg files of the photos?  I've had a fair bit of luck lightening a sample of the b/w jpg, then importing it with Acrobat into a pdf, and getting a decent print that's been accepted at PTO, PCT, etc.

But to answer your question, I've also submitted photos intending there to be nothing but the photos (pay a petition fee to do so).

And I've also made copier paper copies of the photos where I had a bad time crunch and filed the copies (legibly showing the needed elements) and then had the formals done by the time the Notice to File Missing Parts hit with the required replacement sheets.

[Jonathan]

On the finding a draftsperson at the last minute with a short deadline, Patents Ink, in Baltimore (not that the location matters), will most likely bend over backwards to accommodate you, especially in today's economy. They might want to stick you with a rush fee but I bet you could negotiate that.

They have always done good work for me which means I have not had to go thru 2nd, 3rd.. etc drafts - that's annoying when it comes to figures.

[MYK]

Do you have photos, or are they already scanned into the computer?  You could use GIMP or Photoshop to sketch any necessary elements over the scanned images.  Knoppix 6.0.1 (free download at knoppix.net) has GIMP, as well as the needed tools to convert TIFF images into PDF;  just save them from the graphics editor in TIFF format, and then use the commands:
tiffcp img1.tif img2.tif img3.tif ... ingN.tif images_out.tif
tiff2pdf -o images_out.pdf images_out.tif

tiffcp copies the first N-1 args into a multi-image TIFF and saves the whole batch in the Nth arg.
tiff2pdf converts the multi-image TIFF into a multipage PDF.  The syntax is weird, since it requires that you specify the output filename with the -o option;  otherwise it dumps the output onto your screen.

[JimIvey]

I use gimp, too.  It's available for Windows. 

Here's my technique:
http://www.gimp.org/tutorials/Sketch_Effect/

You can play with things like blur size and the exact color controls to get the right details.  I've never had a complaint from the PTO from those converted images. 

In addition, I think you can get a filing date with informal drawings, but you'll need to fix them early (probably in response to Notice to File Missing Parts).

http://www.gimp.org/windows/
http://gimp-win.sourceforge.net/

Regards.

[klaviernista]

If you are in a bind, try Northern Virginia Graphics.  Unless the figures are very complex, they can usually turn around a request very quickly.

[TataBox]

Thanks for the responses.

[NJ Patent1]

WOW!  great information I never knew, and will file away.  If anybody is still following this old thread, back to TataBox's initial post.  I'm in a very similar (the same?) situation.  I recieved a (partial) Paris filing days before deadline, sans the one figure referred to in the spec.  received the figure on T minus one day, it was a photo (color no less).  I filed it.  Now what do I do?  The photo will of course be rejected / objected to.  Have I "blown" the filing date?

     1.  State that the figure is not necessary to understanding?  (I didn't understand until I looked at the figure).

     2.  File a "replacement figure" using a technique described in this string?  Filed 01 JUN 2011 and no "missing parts" yet.  Probability of my success?

     3.  Petition, but a a single figure could easily show the geometric/spatial relationship of elements (none referenced in spec or claims, one look at the photo and the claims are easily understandable (to me)). 

This is my first 371 for this German firm and I'd hate to screw it up. Help appreciated, NJP1 

[NJ Patent1]

Correct that, first Paris, not 371 -if it really matters.  It's the first app of any kind.