LURCH said:
Yes it still applies. When you send the design to yourself, put your own address and the postage stamp on the wrong side of the envelope. The stamp(s) should be across the seal of the flap. This will function like the old-fasshioned "seals" that used to be placed on confidential documents (like "sealed orders"). When the envelope passes through the post office, it will be postmarked, and the postmark will be over the stamp.
Now, because the stamp is placed in such a location that the envelope could not have been opened after the stamp was in place without ripping the stamp, and the postmark is over the stamp, you now have proof that whatever is in the envelope must have been there before the date on the postmark. Anyone trying to patent your same design after that date will be proved as a fraud.
Some added thoughts. The 'sealed envelope" procedure holds very litle weight in a court of law.
Let's say "Bob" has an idea, and makes excellent engineering drawings of the device. Let's further say that "Bob" understands the general idea of a "patent", and goes so far as to even accurately write "claims" of his device that is accompanied with the drawings. Let's go one step further and say that Bob has the documents witnessed and notorized!
Bob, not having the money for a patent, decided to place the documents in an envelope and seal as described.
Let's say that Bob did all of this in June, 2000.
Now, "Jim", across the country and having absolutely no personal or professional relationship with Bob, comes up with the same idea in September, 2001. Jim decides to follow formal procedure, and scraps up the money to submit a patent. In 2003 the patent is granted to Jim.
In 2004, Bob finds out about it and challenges Jim's patent in court.
Who prevails?
Jim does, not Bob.
Why? Because the U.S. Government established the Patent and Trademark Office to be the procedure one MUST follow to be granted idea ownership, and Jim followed that procedure.
There are exceptions.
If both Bob and Jim filed on the same date, and Bob had a notorized document he kept that pre-dated Jim's, then the court will consider it. But, in this case, Bob STILL needed to file a formal patent, not just have notarized documents of ideas collecting in a drawer.
The other exception is if Bob and Jim were professionaly related, and Bob came up with the idea but could not patent it, yet had notorized documents, and Jim secretly stole the idea and patented it. Again, in this case as well, the court will consider it. This aspect is probably closer to what you are wondering about.
In the PF arena, participants could be considered "related" in a court of law, the same as if we were all physically meeting right now at the Holiday Inn, but it's up to the court to determine that.
In ANY case, pre-patent idea exchange with others is risky. The law does provide safegaurds, however.
The MOST IMPORTANT safegaurd is that a non-disclosure/non-use document be written up and signed by all interested parties, dated, witnessed and notorized. Such a document carries CONSIDERABLE legal weight in a court of law; far beyond a personal sealed envelope situation.
This procedure allows for one to get help from others as they develop the idea and still be fully protected. You don't even need a lawyer to do it!
A word of caution: Statements or descriptions of potentially patentable ideas in this or any other public forum is the same as publishing it in a magazine. Under the law, an "idea" that is so published and yet no patent filing occurs with 1 year of publication, the design is remanded to "public domain" and no patent is allowed by anyone.
In short, if you really believe your PMM idea is patentable, follow the above.
In all probability it is not patentable, however, and you likely are misunderstanding certain aspects of physics, and so you should feel free to expound on your idea here.