The AntsCanada Ant Forum's

I remember in one of AntsCanadas videos Mikey mentions getting the hybrid nests patented. Has this happened? I know patents can require extensive legal fees so I understand if little progress has been done.

I've search for US and CAN patents here but couldn't find anything.
http://www.ic.gc.ca/opic-cipo/cpd/eng/introduction.html
https://www.uspto.gov/patents-application-process/search-patents

Depends on what exactly he wants to patent. The design with the heating cable port and the hydration chamber below the nest is very well-thought and most likely patent-able but I doubt that the chamber patterns themselves are patent-able (at least not for Europe) because other people around the world are doing similar stuff already. Also I think AC would need to expand a bit more (-> CETA) for it to be worth the cost.

Btw, can anyone tell me if I still have to pay EU tolls when ordering AC products? (theoretically EU tolls should be gone already?)

Chewyrockafeller wrote:I remember in one of AntsCanadas videos Mikey mentions getting the hybrid nests patented. Has this happened? I know patents can require extensive legal fees so I understand if little progress has been done.

I've search for US and CAN patents here but couldn't find anything.
http://www.ic.gc.ca/opic-cipo/cpd/eng/introduction.html
https://www.uspto.gov/patents-application-process/search-patents

We have a "patent pending" status on several aspects of the Hybrid Nest.

Serafine wrote:Btw, can anyone tell me if I still have to pay EU tolls when ordering AC products? (theoretically EU tolls should be gone already?)

Not sure about "tolls", but there are customs duties/fees that the customer has to pay.

Shouldn't CETA have removed them by now? Everyone here in Europe is whining about but what it actually does right now? Nobody cares to tell you. I might actually have to call the customs department to get some useful answers...

Serafine wrote:Shouldn't CETA have removed them by now? Everyone here in Europe is whining about but what it actually does right now? Nobody cares to tell you. I might actually have to call the customs department to get some useful answers...

Please share whatever info you are able to gather with us here... thanks!

So apparently the EU parliament still needs to greenlight the thing before the parts that affect EU stuff ONLY (removal of EU custom fees) can provisionally come to effect. This should take place in the first half of 2017 and remove EU duty fees (so no Christmas AC products for me, but maybe for my birthday at the end of march).

I have no idea if this affects national duty fees (like "Umsatzeinfuhrsteuer" in Germany which is essentially VAT for imported products) as well but I'm going to find out. Would be awesome if these would go away with EU duty fees as well.



After the EU parliament greenlit the EU-only parts ALL EU states (national and regional parliaments) need to agree to everything that does NOT affect EU matters only which may take up to 5 years (and most likely another round of negotiations), but that shouldn't have any further effects on AC exports to Europe.