CoreGuard — Patent Plan (Intent-to-Execution Proof)
Status: PLANNED — not filed. CoreGuard does not currently hold or claim any patent. This is the filing plan.
What we want to protect
"Fail-closed, verifiable intent-to-execution pipeline anchored on a public ledger" (CGEP/1).
- A user or AI agent states an intent (e.g. "swap 4 XLM to USDC, max 1% of market depth").
- A policy gate (DEX-GATE/1 / STELLAR-AGENT/1) checks it before signing — any failed check = transaction is never sent (fail-closed).
- A cryptographic commitment of the intent + policy result is anchored on a Soroban contract (
commit(proofId, commitment)). - After execution, a receipt is read back from the ledger (amounts, fee to the stroop) and matched to the commitment.
- Anyone can replay-verify the whole chain offline (
--verify → PASS).
Evidence of reduction to practice (Stellar Mainnet)
| Step | Proof |
|---|---|
| Soroban contract | CCKA2GYVILX7YZVSXGVIHOPNLTRBBF2SSWKBTQBIE7M67N5N2QMMXPSP |
| First commit CALL | tx 69044807…9fec · ledger 65,337,373 |
| First funded gated swap | tx ac2a7990…9097 · ledger 65,338,112 · 4.0598146 XLM → 0.6306239 USDC |
| Evidence digest | sha256:837d0639…ac2c |
These public records document transaction events, not a patent filing date, inventorship or novelty. Public disclosure may affect US and foreign patent rights; have counsel review the earliest disclosure dates promptly.
Filing steps
- Week 1: Invention disclosure (this document + INTENT-TO-EXECUTION-PROOF.md) — free.
- Week 2: Prior-art search (Google Patents, Espacenet) — free.
- Preparation estimate: 2–4 weeks, depending on complete inventor details and professional review. USPTO filing fees checked 8 Nov 2026: $325 large / $130 small / $65 micro entity; discounts require eligibility. Attorney, drawings, translation and extra-page charges are separate. No professional-fee total is verified.
- Within 12 months of provisional filing: arrange the appropriate nonprovisional or PCT follow-up with counsel to claim benefit. A provisional is not examined for patentability and does not itself grant a patent. Foreign filing rules and disclosure consequences require separate advice.
- Open-source code does not establish patent ownership or patentability. Defensive licensing is a proposed strategy only if rights are obtained.
US registration preparation
- Read the English preparation template.
- Official USPTO cover sheet PTO/SB/16 (PDF). The cover sheet alone is not sufficient: include an enabling written description and necessary drawings.
- Official fee schedule.
- USPTO requirements and Patent Center filing portal.
- No application has been filed, no payment made and no application number assigned by this project. Use “patent pending” only after a qualifying filing; never imply a grant.
How it links to funding
- SCF $150K request: patent filing is a roadmap goal, not a deliverable funded by SCF (no legal costs claimed in the budget unless SCF allows it).
- Investors/incubators: "Patent Pending" after the provisional is a real asset to cite — only after filing.
Honest rules
- Never write "patented" or "patent pending" before the provisional is actually filed.
- Consult a patent attorney about eligibility, disclosure deadlines, inventorship and drafting. Any incubator legal support must be confirmed directly; free services are not assumed.