Draft Provisional

Draft Provisional Patent Application

Generate a complete, high-quality USPTO provisional patent application from an existing technical disclosure or IP analysis document.

Usage

/draft-provisional 

Where `` is one of:

• A Notion page URL containing a technical disclosure or IP analysis
• A local file path to a markdown or text document describing the invention
• A URL to any web-accessible document describing the invention (the skill will fetch it)

What This Skill Does

1. Reads the source document — fetches the Notion page, web URL, or local file
2. Extracts the invention — identifies the core claims, prior art gaps, and technical details
3. Searches prior art — uses a Google Patents skill and/or patent MCP server to validate novelty
4. Drafts all 9 patent sections — following USPTO provisional application format
5. Generates the output — a single Markdown file in docs/patents/ ready for review

Instructions for Claude

When this skill is invoked:

Step 1: Load Source Material

• If the source is a Notion URL, fetch it using a Notion MCP tool (e.g., mcp__plugin_Notion_notion__notion-fetch or equivalent in your environment)
• If the source is a generic web URL, use WebFetch
• If the source is a local file, read it directly
• If the source document references a related technical disclosure, fetch that as well to enrich the technical depth

Step 2: Gather Inventor Information

Ask the user for:

• Inventor name(s) — full legal names of all inventors
• Inventor address(es) — street, city, state/province, postal code, country
• Entity type — Micro Entity, Small Entity, or Large Entity (default: Micro Entity)
• Assignee — company name if assigned (e.g., "Acme Corp.")

Step 3: Prior Art Validation

Before drafting, run a quick prior art check to strengthen the application:

• Use a google-patents-search skill (or equivalent) to search for the closest prior art terms from the source doc
• Note the 3-5 closest prior art references found. These will be cited in the Background section
• Confirm the novelty gap identified in the IP analysis still holds

Step 4: Draft the Application

Write the complete provisional application with these sections:

Cover Page

PROVISIONAL PATENT APPLICATION

Title: [Descriptive technical title, 10-15 words]
Inventor(s): [Names]
Assignee: [Company if applicable]
Filing Date: [Today's date]
Entity Status: [Micro/Small/Large]

1. Title of Invention

• Descriptive, technical, 10-15 words
• Should capture the core innovation without marketing language
• Example: "Method and System for Adaptive Bandwidth Allocation in Distributed Networks"

2. Cross-Reference to Related Applications

• "This application claims priority to no prior applications." (for first filing)
• Or reference any related provisionals if they exist

3. Field of the Invention

• 2-3 sentences identifying the technical field
• Use CPC classification terms where possible (e.g., G06F21/56 for AI security, H04L for networking)

4. Background of the Invention

• Problem statement — what technical problem exists (3-5 paragraphs)
• Prior art limitations — cite the specific prior art from the IP analysis doc and the prior art search, explaining what each fails to address
• Do NOT say "the prior art is deficient" — instead describe what is missing factually
• Keep under 500 words

5. Summary of the Invention

• Core invention — 1-2 paragraphs describing the solution at a high level
• Key advantages — bullet list of 3-5 technical advantages over prior art
• Embodiments preview — "In one embodiment..." for 2-3 variations
• Keep under 400 words

6. Brief Description of the Drawings

• List 3-7 figures that SHOULD accompany the application
• Format: "FIG. 1 is a [diagram type] illustrating [what it shows]."
• Common figures: system architecture, method flowchart, data flow, sequence diagram, component detail
• Note: actual figures can be added later before non-provisional conversion. The provisional just needs the descriptions.

7. Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments

• This is the most important section — it must be comprehensive enough to support all claims
• Minimum 2,500 words, target 4,000-6,000 words
• Structure:
• Overall system architecture description (reference FIG. 1)
• Detailed description of each novel component
• Method steps (reference flowchart FIG.)
• Data structures and formats where relevant
• At least 2 alternative embodiments ("In another embodiment...")
• Implementation details: protocols, algorithms, data flows
• Performance characteristics where known (latency, throughput, accuracy)
• Use reference numerals — assign numbers to components (e.g., "controller 102", "policy engine 104") and use them consistently
• Enable reproduction — a skilled practitioner must be able to build it from this description (35 USC 112 requirement)
• Avoid vague language — replace "may" with "in one embodiment", replace "etc." with specific examples

8. Claims

Draft 15-25 claims organized as:

Independent Claims (3-4):

• Claim 1: Method claim. "A method for [core innovation], comprising: [steps]"
• Claim N: System claim. "A system for [core innovation], comprising: [components]"
• Claim M: Computer-readable medium claim. "A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed, cause a processor to: [steps]"

Dependent Claims (12-20):

• Each narrows an independent claim with specific details
• Cover: specific implementations, parameters, thresholds, alternatives, components
• Use "The method of claim 1, further comprising..." or "The method of claim 1, wherein..."

Claims drafting rules:

• Each claim is ONE sentence (use semicolons and "wherein" to connect)
• Use consistent terminology matching the Detailed Description
• Independent claims should be broad enough to be hard to design around
• Dependent claims should add specific implementation details that strengthen enforceability
• Include at least one claim covering the specific prior art gap identified in the IP analysis

9. Abstract

• Exactly 150 words or fewer
• Single paragraph summarizing the invention
• Must match the broadest independent claim
• No legal language, no "the present invention"

Step 5: Save Output

Save the complete application as:

docs/patents/provisional_patent__.md

Example: docs/patents/provisional_patent_bandwidth_allocation_20260329.md

Step 6: Quality Check

After drafting, self-evaluate against this checklist:

• [ ] Title is descriptive and technical (not marketing)
• [ ] Background cites specific prior art with factual gap descriptions
• [ ] Detailed Description is 2,500+ words with reference numerals
• [ ] At least 2 alternative embodiments described
• [ ] 15+ claims with 3+ independent claims (method, system, CRM)
• [ ] Claims use consistent terminology from Detailed Description
• [ ] Abstract is under 150 words
• [ ] No use of "the present invention" anywhere
• [ ] No vague terms: "etc.", "and the like", "such as" without specific examples
• [ ] A skilled practitioner could build it from the description alone

Report the checklist results and any items that need attention.

Patent Sections Generated

| # | Section | Target Length | Priority | |---|---------|--------------|----------| | 1 | Title | 10-15 words | Required | | 2 | Cross-Reference | 1 sentence | Required | | 3 | Field of Invention | 2-3 sentences | Required | | 4 | Background | 300-500 words | Required | | 5 | Summary | 200-400 words | Required | | 6 | Brief Description of Drawings | 3-7 figure descriptions | Required | | 7 | Detailed Description | 2,500-6,000 words | Critical | | 8 | Claims | 15-25 claims | Critical | | 9 | Abstract | Max 150 words | Required |

Quality Targets

• Detailed Description must enable reproduction by a skilled practitioner (35 USC 112)
• Claims must be supported by the Detailed Description. Every claim element must appear in the description.
• Prior art must be cited factually in the Background. No disparaging language.
• Terminology must be consistent throughout. Create a glossary if needed.
• Reference numerals must be used in Detailed Description and match figure descriptions.

Notes

• This generates a provisional application. It establishes a priority date but does not require formal claims or drawings.
• However, including well-drafted claims and figure descriptions NOW makes the non-provisional conversion (within 12 months) much easier and cheaper.
• The provisional must contain enough detail to support all claims in the eventual non-provisional.
• After drafting, run a patent-filing QC skill (e.g., Claude-Skill-for-Patent-Filing-Quality-Control) to run quality checks before filing.

Recommended Companion Skills

• Prior-art search: Google-Patents-Natural-Language-API-Search — full-text claims and description search across 166M+ patents in 17+ jurisdictions, backed by Google's BigQuery patents dataset.
• Filing QC: Claude-Skill-for-Patent-Filing-Quality-Control — 70+ automated checks across the spec, ADS, declaration, and drawings before submission.
• Diagrams: drawio MCP server — generate the figures referenced in the Brief Description of Drawings.

Disclaimer

This skill helps you produce a provisional patent application that meets USPTO formal requirements. It does not replace patent counsel. For high-stakes filings, novel art areas, or when claim scope is critical, have an IP attorney review before submission.

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: bradthebeeble
• Source: bradthebeeble/Claude-Skill-Draft-Provisional
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.