USPTO Patent Application Initiatives
The USPTO has placed an Initiatives Timeline on its web site as graphic guidance to display how various initiatives affect patent applications during each phase of the application process, at this web address : https://www.uspto.gov/patents/init_events/patapp-initiatives-timeline.jsp I have had some good results from use of the After Final Consideration Pilot or AFCP 2.0. Perhaps readers can Read More »
Help prevent preventable deaths
I recently participated in a seminar on “Recognizing and Responding to Warning Signs of Suicide Risk in Clients and Colleagues” and felt what I learned was worth passing along: It always seems like a surprise and shock when a friend, colleague, or family member takes his or her own life, but there are warning signs Read More »
New York State – Third in Nation in Patents
New York state is third in the nation for residents obtaining patents, as of Fiscal Year 2012. California is at the top of the list, with as many patents issued to its residents as the next five states combined. Here are the top twelve states, and number of patents for residents of each: CA 33,866 Read More »
Patented Improvements in Perpetual Motion
The “magical” lifting power of buoyancy seems to have charmed and entranced both inventors and patent examiners confronted with physically impossible energy-creating machines. A surprising number of “buoyancy and gravity prime movers” have found their way into patents officially granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Apparently, buoyancy’s magic has charmed more than one Read More »
Penalizing Collaborative Product Development – a critical glance at the Federal Circuit’s recent decision, Hamilton Beach Products v. Sunbeam (Fed. Cir. Aug. 14, 2013)
Hamilton Beach invented and introduced a new “portable slow cooker” that became quite popular with its customers, and then Sunbeam came out with its own version. The key to success was a system that clamped the lid in place so that the slow cooker wouldn’t leak and spill food out when the item was being Read More »
Patent Quality – what is it?
There has been a lot of talk about improving the “quality” of the patents that the US Patent and Trademark Office issues, but not much about what the term “patent quality” really means. As with any product, quality should mean that the item is sufficiently strong and durable so that it does what the owner Read More »