Q: I have an aluminum foil idea but is it already patented? Or am I allowed to find a manufacturer with my new addition..
A:
It sounds like you need to do some searching to see if your new idea is already the subject of an issued patent or a pending application that has been published but not yet allowed. If I am right, then you may want to look at my slide set on patent searching. http://bit.ly/Patent_Searching
You may want to follow up with having a professional search done but it is a good idea to do some initial searching for low hanging fruit so you do not pay for a search when it would be easy to find that the idea is patented.
Once you find relevant patents, then you may want to consult with a patent attorney to sort out whether the claims cover what you want to do.
Note, it is quite common for people to make improvements to old ideas. As long as the new version is outside the claims of any unexpired patent claim, you can do that. People continue to make improved telephones more than 100 years after the Bell patent was filed.
I hope that this helps.
Kevin E Flynn
Peter D. Mlynek agrees with this answer
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