Organization-specific concept build · 06
ThornCrest — Patent First Steps
Independent legal-education concept · release-blocked
Help a young inventor understand the next decision before asking them to become an IP expert.
What I noticed
A child can leave an invention event inspired but still not know the difference between patent, trademark, copyright, and trade secret—or that public disclosure can affect rights before a family ever speaks with counsel.
What I researched
USPTO and Copyright Office primary sources, patentability requirements, first-inventor-to-file, provisional applications, current fee and entity rules, pro se and pro bono assistance, Hawaiʻi's Patent and Trademark Resource Center, and youth invention resources.
What I built
A one-page interactive legal-education guide with orientation, myth correction, IP distinctions, timing cautions, and links to official help. It is not intake, a calculator, saved progress, an actual PDF download, attorney booking, or legal service.
Who it serves
Young inventors, families, teachers, and first-time founders who need orientation before a professional legal conversation.
What it demonstrates
Legal research, risk-sensitive public education, guided service design, youth accessibility, and a pathway from public knowledge to appropriate professional help.
Verified build record
What is actually running, and what it is not.
LiveLive · built with ThornCrest Law for Hawaiʻi Tech Week 2026
The problem. Young inventors are told to protect the idea and left to work out what that means from sources written for people who already have counsel. The costly mistakes happen early and quietly — usually a disclosure made before anyone explained what disclosure does — and by the time someone can afford advice, the option they needed has often already closed.
What it does. Explains what a patent actually is, sets out four gates an idea has to clear to be patentable, walks the first steps, and shows how to run a free search without paying anyone. It spends a section killing the myths that cost inventors the most — chiefly about disclosure — and points at free Hawaiʻi help, including a number to call.
Built on. A static single-page site with an installable web manifest, served from Vercel.
What it does not establish. General information prepared with a law firm. Not legal advice and not an attorney-client relationship.
This record is generated from the same inventory as the complete build index: the production URL was checked at the last regeneration, and the status line above repeats what the build reports about itself rather than restating an intention.