The Problem-Solution Statement

• Author: Ronald D. Slusky
• Pages: 19-32

CHAPTER THREE

The Problem-Solution Statement

The centerpiece of problem-solution invention analysis is the problem-

solution statement.

The problem-solution statement is a one-sentence statement of the

invention. It states as broadly as possible, but without reading on the

prior art, (a) the problem the invention solves, and (b) the inventor’s

solution to that problem. The problem-solution statement can serve as a

foundation for the patent application’s broadest claims. It is a benchmark

against which the entire suite of claims in the patent application can be

measured. And it can serve as the backbone of an effective story-telling

patent specification.

The problem-solution statement is of the following form:

The problem(s) of ____________ is(are) solved by ____________.

Here, for example, are problem-solution statements for the ballpoint

pen and Konaclip inventions discussed in the previous chapters:

The problem of a pen being able to write on rough surfaces is solved

by the pen having a spheroidal marking-point.

The problem of securely fastening sheets of paper without dam-

aging the paper and while being able to unfasten the sheets easily is

solved by a wire clip bent into an elongated frame having a pair of

opposing rails and at least one inner portion within a single plane and

arranged such that a stack of paper inserted between the inner por-

tion and the opposing rails is urged substantially equally against both

of the opposing rails by the inner portion.

Appendix A presents more examples in a variety of technologies.

Some inventions can be broadly characterized in more than one way.

We saw this in the case of Loud’s ballpoint pen.1 If differing ways of

characterizing the invention surface as the analysis proceeds, we should

1. See p. 7.

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