A patent agent or patent attorney will assist you in preparing a patent application to protect the novel features of your invention. I do not recommend attempting to file your patent application without the assistance of a patent agent or patent attorney. It may cost more to fix an inadequate patent application than to do it right the first time. Where practical, the PTO will require drawings to aid in understanding an invention. A patent application may include either formal or informal drawings.
Formal drawings comply with all the rules and regulations regarding patent drawings.
The patent office will provide inventors with information regarding these rules and regulations, including paper size, margins, minimum letter height, shading, etc. Informal drawings may be submitted at the time of filing the patent application, and must be converted to formal drawings within the three months period for response upon receipt of a Notice of Allowance. Thus the expense of preparing formal drawings may be deferred until the inventor is assured to obtaining patent protection on their invention. The patent office allows up to three independent claims, and up to 20 total claims without an extra charge. I advise preparing at least three independent claims, a broad independent claim, followed by an intermediate independent claim, and then a narrowly drawn independent claim.