Hah!! Many times patents don't even help that much! You need a very strongly described one and not put your whole formula on paper for all to see (check pups patents such as Kinman's Bartolini, etc; they don't give out the # of windings, wire gauge, etc.) And as you rightly stated even then you have to have massive $$$ to enforce it. Remember the guy who sued Ford for the patent on the intermittent windshield wipers? He eventually won, but shelled out a few hundred thousand dollars to prove his point! Look at Fender and Gibson. You should be able to use the pegheads, designs, etc. as they've been in the public domain for more than 50 years!! Yet, they intimidate us all into not using their designs. Even Paul Reed Smith lost recently against Gibson! I wish the guys all the luck and hope they are successful, it's a pretty innovative gadget and they deserve the fruits of their labors.