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Most people have little experience with patents in their lives. They may need a patent attorney once in their life or maybe not at all. So it’s important to understand the different parts of a patent application in order to help your attorney draft the application. A patent application begins with a discussion of the prior art. The prior art is anything that anyone did before your invention came along. The next section explains the problems or shortcomings with the prior art and what improvements are needed in order to obtain the objects of your invention. The invention is then described in detail, usually with the aid of drawings. Finally, the application concludes with claims, which define the actual scope of protection afforded by the patent. In order to be patentable, a claim must contain at least one feature not found in the prior art, while not reciting more features than are necessary to distinguish from the prior art. An abstract Of the disclosure, which briefly describes the invention, mostly for searching purposes, is found after the claims, but is published on the first page of the patent. If you have more questions, I suggest consulting with an experienced intellectual property attorney.