PATENT AGENTS

James O. Ray, Jr. – Patent Agent

James O. Ray, Jr. is a Registered U.S. Patent Agent.  Mr. Ray has been registered to practice since 1975 in the U.S. and is also registered to practice in Canada.   He is a member of the Pittsburgh Intellectual Property Law Association (PIPLA) and the American Bar Association.

Mr. Ray started his career in the engineering department of  U.S. Steel Corporation and subsequently became a Patent Liaison between the Patent Law Department of U.S. Steel Corporation and the U.S. Steel Corporation plant in Gary, Indiana. In 1969 Mr. Ray was transferred to the research lab at U.S. Steel Corporation to handle patent work primarily in the mechanical, electrical, metallurgy, and chemical processes fields.

In 1976 Mr. Ray graduated from the University of Pittsburgh, in Pennsylvania, earning a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry. In 1982 Mr. Ray left U.S. Steel Corporation to work in the patent department of American Standard Company.  There he specialized in mechanical and pneumatic patents for railway cars and trucks. Mr. Ray left American Standard Company in 1990 to work for the law firm of Miller, Welsh and Kratz, which eventually became part of the law firm of Armstrong, Nikaido, Marmelstein, Kubovcik and Murray.  He became a partner that same year.

In December of 1990 Mr. Ray realized a lifelong dream and formed his own firm, James Ray & Associates, headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  The business quickly grew from a staff consisting of Mr. Ray and one secretary to an entire team of patent attorneys, patent agents, a technical support team, patent searchers, and administrative staff.  In 1999 James Ray & Associates moved to its current location in Monroeville, Pennsylvania and under Mr. Ray’s leadership continues to expand.

Alexander Pokot – Patent Agent

Alexander Pokot is a Registered U.S. Patent Agent.  Mr. Pokot handles patent preparation and patent prosecution specializing in mechanical, electrical and electronic arts.   Mr. Pokot works with corporate clients and individual inventors in obtaining broadest patent protection as well as assisting with various design matters.

Prior to joining James Ray &Associates, Mr. Pokot held various engineering management positions including positions at Vapor, a division of Wabtec. Prior to that, he held engineering positions in process and product development fields.

Mr. Pokot holds a Bachelor of Science Degree and a Master of Mechanical Engineering Degree from Illinois Institute of Technology.

John E. Aiken - Patent Agent-in-training & Technical Advisor

John E. Aiken is a patent agent-in-training and is a technical advisor at James Ray & Associates. Prior to joining James Ray & Associates, Mr. Aiken held numerous positions from Research Engineer to Division Manager. He also has extensive experience in process development, process design, pilot-plant design and operation, and troubleshooting. Mr. Aiken earned a Bachelor of Science & Master of Science in Chemical Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh. In addition, he is a registered Professional Engineer in Pennsylvania.

Mr. Aiken has over 32 years experience in Research & Development with U.S. Steel Corporation, Aristech Chemical, and Sunoco Chemicals. He has experience performing patent searches and assisting with writing provisional and utility patent applications. Mr. Aiken is a co-inventor or inventor on several U.S. Patents. 


Please click on the links below to view the biographies of our additional staff members:

Patent Attorneys

Patent Searching Specialists