Patent office takes 1,544 days to approve Itasca inventor’s patent in week ending Sep. 4

The longest time between a patent being filed and granted in the week ending Sep. 4 in Itasca was 1,544 days, according to the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

The patent application was filed by Knowles Electronics, LLC for a microphone with integrated gas sensor. It was filed on June 9, 2017 before being approved on Aug. 31, 2021.

It was the only patent approved in the week ending Sep. 4 from Itasca.

Though patents are required for inventions and products, the granting of a patent is not a guarantee for success. Dennis Crouch, co-director of the Center for Intellectual Property & Entrepreneurship said roughly 50 percent of patents expire prematurely due to costs.