Does a patent mean 20 years of exclusive sales? | Different designs had different outcomes [OK Prostate Chip]

This page is based on entries from "ok-lab's diary" (https://ok-lab.hatenablog.com/), the Japanese development diary written by Mr. Okada, founder of OK Lab (Okada Comfortable Life Laboratory). Only the entries about "20-year patent exclusivity" are summarized here, in order of publication. Past prices and sizes are as written at the time. Current prices come from the official product list (retrieved September 4, 2026). Quotations are translated from Japanese.

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Note: This page is a personal reading log by someone with no connection to the maker or the seller. It reflects the source entries as of their publication dates and makes no guarantee of accuracy or safety. The product is not a medical device; talk to a doctor about any health decision. Check the official site for current information. This page contains advertising.

In short

• OK Lab, a small company in Japan, reported different patent outcomes behind its statements about exclusive sales.
• Mr. Okada revised applications and withheld an easily copied prototype while seeking protection.
• The latest entry, published in April 2024, describes an application, without confirming the hoped-for 20-year right.

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About this product

The OK Prostate Chip is a small device that is placed in the urethra (the urine passage) so that it acts on the prostate; the maker sells it in several shapes, sizes and materials. It is made and sold by OK Lab (Okada Comfortable Life Laboratory), a small company in Japan, through its own online store, and prices are in Japanese yen (JPY). The maker's development diary, "ok-lab's diary", is written in Japanese. This page is an English summary of it, and every quotation is translated. OK Lab ships internationally, so readers outside Japan can order (see "Buying from outside Japan" below). Product names on this page are plain-English descriptions. The official Japanese product name is shown once in the product table so you can find the same item in the store.

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Before you read: key terms

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What happens: 20-year patent protection

The OK Prostate Chip is a small device intended to remain in the urethra near the prostate. Patent protection here means the rights Mr. Okada associated with exclusive sales or manufacture of particular designs. The entries concern different locations: the groin, the urethra and, for separate devices, the rectum. His statements about exclusivity refer to those structures and the application decisions reported at the time.

The garment's connector patent protection was separate from its older design

In an entry published in February 2018, Mr. Okada reported patent approval for the 2017 penis-support garment's arrangement of one cord and 4 connectors. He said the original garment had been developed 10 years earlier, with about 10 years of protection remaining. He associated the newly approved connection technology with almost 20 years of further exclusive sales.

The drawings showed Z-shaped connectors (fittings joining the parts), but he said protection did not depend on that particular connector type. His explanation concerned the connection arrangement even when different connecting parts were used. Mr. Okada directed readers to Japan's public patent-search service to find his published applications.

(Source: ok-lab's diary, published February 2018)
https://ok-lab.hatenablog.com/entry/20180221/1519195742

Mr. Okada linked the 2038 patent expiry to cheaper future products

In an entry published in October 2018, Mr. Okada identified 2038 as the expiry year for the company's patent concerning bowel-assistance devices. He expected less expensive products to become available after that protection ended, encouraging wider use. He attributed limited adoption at the time partly to the absence of inexpensive competing products while the patent remained active.

He compared this expectation with conveyor-belt sushi, which he said had spread rapidly after patent protection expired. These were his predictions about future competition and availability; the entry did not report a price reduction that had already happened.

(Source: ok-lab's diary, published October 2018)
https://ok-lab.hatenablog.com/entry/20181005/1538740535

Basic chip patent protection remained conditional after the November 2021 refusal notice

In an entry published in November 2021, Mr. Okada reported a refusal notice for the basic chip patent application filed in 2017. He said revising the rejected portions should allow the remaining patent claims (wording describing the requested protection) to receive approval. If approved, he expected roughly 95% of the products sold at that time to fall within its scope.

He anticipated 16 years of protection for electrode and vibrating chips, but excluded the cylindrical-motor vibrating design and stainless-steel rings. For the cylindrical-motor design, no matching product can be confirmed on the current list. The diary does not record whether the basic application subsequently received the approval he expected.

(Source: ok-lab's diary, published November 2021)
https://ok-lab.hatenablog.com/entry/2021/11/27/124314

Mr. Okada reported patent protection for a strip returning through at least 100°

In an entry published in September 2022, Mr. Okada reported August 2022 approval for a rectal prostate massager. He said the application, filed in 2018, had succeeded without an earlier refusal notice and had 16 years of protection remaining. Claim 1 described a long, flat strip whose tip bent back toward its base through at least 100°, creating outward and returning sections.

The application described a problem with cylindrical massagers: greater thickness could improve prostate contact while making passage through the anus more difficult. Its proposed answer was the folded-strip structure, intended to serve both purposes through a different shape. Mr. Okada credited his patent professional with wording that he believed gave this structure broad protection.

(Source: ok-lab's diary, published September 2022)
https://ok-lab.hatenablog.com/entry/2022/09/03/122644

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The maker's answer to 20-year patent protection

Mr. Okada describes withholding a prototype, revising rejected wording and broadening a later application around its connection wire.

Patent protection preceded disclosure of the aluminum rectal prototype

In an entry published in September 2022, Mr. Okada described an aluminum rectal prototype with two raised sections and a U-shaped return. He said he had withheld this easily copied design until the patent decision, although he already considered its manufacturing method practical. He believed the material and method allowed flexible sizing without the strength concerns of an earlier spiral device measuring 8cm in diameter.

No matching product can be confirmed on the current list. The diary does not record whether this aluminum prototype completed testing or reached sale. Mr. Okada said he planned personal use tests before release because aluminum was a new material for this design.

(Source: ok-lab's diary, published September 2022)
https://ok-lab.hatenablog.com/entry/2022/09/03/122644

Adding a flat-strip requirement changed the spiral device's patent claims

In an entry published in October 2022, Mr. Okada reported approval for a spiral bowel-assistance device after an earlier refusal notice. He said an existing application meant that a spiral shape alone lacked novelty (a new distinguishing feature). The revised wording added a long, flat-strip requirement; claim 1 described that strip forming a spiral at the tip, with a handle near the base.

Mr. Okada reported asking his patent professional whether the protection also covered the same shape made with a 3D printer. According to the reply he recorded, that manufacturing method would still fall within the claimed protection. He reported the professional's view that competitors would have no right to make the covered shape for another 16 years.

(Source: ok-lab's diary, published October 2022)
https://ok-lab.hatenablog.com/entry/2022/10/01/122944

Curved-wire patent protection remained conditional, with the three-part device price undecided

In an entry published in April 2024, Mr. Okada described broadening an application originally planned around a three-part device to cover curved connecting wires. He hoped shape-memory wire (wire given a remembered curve) of about 90° would support 20 years of exclusive sales if approved. His application included arrangements with or without a bladder chip, plus a mesh stopper that could connect to the wire.

No matching product can be confirmed on the current list. For the three-part device (Prostate Alien), Mr. Okada said the selling price and order conditions were still undecided. He asked interested readers to wait for those details.

(Source: ok-lab's diary, published April 2024)
https://ok-lab.hatenablog.com/entry/2024/04/20/122856

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How 20-year patent protection changed over time

The diary does not say what the current state is.

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OK Prostate Chip products related to 20-year patent protection

No current product is directly tied to this topic.

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Common worries about 20-year patent protection

(The material contains no questions from readers.)

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Buying from outside Japan

OK Lab ships internationally to countries covered by Japan Post's EMS courier service. Overseas orders are paid in advance by PayPal. Each order carries a ¥400 (about $3 at ¥156 = $1, rate as of 2026-09-04) handling fee, and EMS shipping is charged on top. These terms come from OK Lab's official sales-terms page (written here as plain text, not a link: ok-lab.net/docs/law), checked on September 7, 2026; confirm them on the official store before you order, because they can change.

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Summary of this article

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Source: ok-lab's diary (Okada Comfortable Life Laboratory). The original entries are in Japanese; quotations on this page are translated. Photos and videos are on the original entries.