Defense to patent infringement based on prior commercial use under AIA
Choice between patents or trade secrets Inventions may be protected either through trade secret or patent. Inventions that are accessible to the public and can be reversed engineered cannot be protected through trade secrets. Trade secret protection requires that the information remain a secret. In these cases, the invention must be protected through patents. However, [...]
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...
Print This Post
- Posted in: defense to patent infringement
- Continue Reading →
Large, small and micro-entity patent Fees
Most governmental patent fees are based on whether the applicant is a large entity or a small entity. Small entities are entitled to a 50% discount of the large entity fee. Under the America Invents Act, Congress created an additional category of entities identified as micro-entities which are entitled to a 75% discount of the [...]
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ... Print This Post
- Posted in: patent fees
- Continue Reading →
America Invents Act
The America Invents Act (AIA) which changes major sections of the current Patent Laws became law on September 16, 2011. Under the AIA, the first inventor to file, not the first to invent is awarded the patent. Other sections changes the law on false marking, attacks on best mode, and many more.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ... Print This Post
Season’s Greetings
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ... Print This Post
- Posted in: Uncategorized
- Continue Reading →
Recordation of assignment resolves ownership issue
Patent attorneys and employment lawyers are becoming creative when crafting invention assignment agreements. When I worked as an engineer, my employer’s invention assignment agreement was straight forward. I aassigned all inventions created on the job to my employer. Back then, this was a typical invention assignment clause. In the following case, an employer had its [...]
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ... Print This Post
- Posted in: Uncategorized
- Continue Reading →
What types of inventions are LA and OC inventors patenting?
Los Angeles companies have been transitioning from communications to bio-tech. In contrast, Irvine has consistently been inventing in the areas of surgery, bio-tech and prosthesis. As the chart below shows, Los Angeles companies were inventing and patenting inventions in the field of communications. However, over the past decade, they have transitioned to bio-tech inventions. In [...]
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ... Print This Post
- Posted in: Irvine patent, patent statistics
- Continue Reading →
USPTO Performance and Accountability Report for 2011
The United States Patent and Trademark Office has published its yearly Performance and Accountability Report. I’ve cut out some of the tables and provided a brief commentary below. Some of the graphics are barely legible. This is the way it was published on the USPTO website.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ... Print This Post
- Posted in: patent statistics
- Continue Reading →
No patent misuse for patent pools that license competing technologies
After receiving a patent, a significant number of patentees license their invention to others. Sometimes, patentees attempt to extract more and more out of the licensee. However, when the patentee attempts to expand the scope of the patent too far then the licensee can assert the defense of patent misuse which can render the license [...]
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ... Print This Post
Definitions of the 1952 Patent Act are expected to flow through to AIA but be cautious
General rule The America Invents Act (Patent Act) transitions the United States from a first to invent system to a first to file system. Under the new first to file system, the general rule to obtain a patent on an invention is that absolute novelty is required and the first inventor to file or win [...]
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ... Print This Post
- Posted in: america invents act
- Continue Reading →
Google phone functions accessible even when locked
On November 17, 2011, Google’s patent application relating to Touch Gesture Actions from a Device’s Lock Screen published as US Pub. No. 2011/0283241. The invention disclosed in the patent application solves the problem of having to perform multiple gestures on a phone in order to accomplish a simple task such as increasing volume of music being played. To do so, there is a set of predefined or user defined gestures which can bypass the lock screen on the phone and perform the desired step. For example, if you want to view your calendar, you can preprogram a gesture which launches the calendar even when the phone is locked. Brilliant!
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ... Print This Post
- Posted in: Cool Ideas
- Continue Reading →
