Wouter,

On Wed, 21 Sep 2005 23:10:59 +0200, Wouter van Ooijen wrote:

>...<
> Now for something completely different: I think I have a realy original
> idea (about reading a matrix keyboard with very few pins). I have
> browsed a patent database and found some 20 patents in roughly the same
> area, but nothing like my idea. What would be the next step to prove to
> myself that it has been cooked up before, in other words: which other
> reservoirs of knowledge should I check?

Sadly, the thing that would be useful - telling us all on here about it - would prevent you getting a patent 
under European law.  Otherwise we could all tell you what an excellent idea it is and/or how we all already 
thought of it at primary school...   :-)

If you've looked everywhere you can think of, the next step is to file the initial patent application (in the 
UK that doesn't cost much)  which gives you time to do more research, while "keeping your place", before you 
go for the whole thing.

Cheers,


Howard Winter
St.Albans, England


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