What Are Patent Claims?

The idea behind this is to establish "first" or "primary" claim on the idea. Market potential. If the answer is "YES" then it's worth the effort to obtain a patent. A patent establishes your position as owner.

Once a patent is approved and issued, you have established ownership rights to your idea or product.

Do I Need Patent Protection To Establish My Rights To A Great Idea Or Design

A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers….5. A multiple dependent claim shall not serve as a basis for any other multiple dependent claim. Ideally you won't need very many dependent claims. Dependent claims "narrow" the scope of the independent claim. Try to keep the number of dependent claims below 20 unless the invention is very complex and actually needs that many dependent claims.Since an infringing invention needs to have all the elements of a claim to infringe it, the shorter the claim and the fewer features claimed in a claim the broader the coverage. Words like "means", "said", "whereby", and "thereof".Independent claims are claims that do not refer to a preceding claim and can stand alone. Dependent claims incorporate all of the elements and restrictions of the independent or dependent claim they are dependent on. It cites a narrower version of the preceding claim by either adding elements or describing the claim more narrowly.In short, your patent claims should be clear, unambiguous, and all of the elements have to be shown in the patent drawings.