Patent
U.S. District Court Invalidates Computer Aided Method of Managing a Credit Application under Bilski
Dealertrack, Inc. v. Huber, et al., Doc. No. 06-2335 (C.D. Cal. 2009) [PDF] Summary. The court granted summary judgment finding the asserted claims directed to a computer aided method of managing a credit application were invalid as failing the machine-or-transformation test from Bilski. The court found the process claims were not tied to a particular [...]
Pay for a Software Patent Application or a Software Engineer?
Software companies and entruepunurs are faced with the question of whether to spend $8K to 15K to file a non-provisional patent application covering a software invention or whether the money is better spent to keep to the lights on or hire engineer to futher develop the product. Here are the factors you should consider when [...]
Drafting Tips for Overcoming Obviousness Rejections and Officially Noticed Facts
In a patent application, it is important to describe the benefits and advantages that the invention provides over the prior art. This gives the invention context and provides reasons for the Examiner to find the unique features of the invention novel and non-obvious. Defensive Uses. You may also use the benefits and advantages provided in [...]
Use GIMP to Create Informal Patent Drawings from Photos
There are times when you need to create informal patent drawings from color photos to file with an initial application. Using the free image manipulation software called GIMP and these directions you can convert a color photo to a black and white line drawing that may work as an informal patent drawing.
Federal Circuit on Tour
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit will hold oral argument in Silicon Valley in November: The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit will hold hearings in several locations in Silicon Valley, California during the week of November 3, 2008. Santa Clara University School of Law, Stanford University School of Law and [...]
AIPLA Suggests Improvements at the USPTO
I previously reported on the patent prosecution costs disclosed by Alan Kasper’s testimony [PDF] to Congress as the First Vice-President of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA). In that testimony, Alan suggested the following improvements at the USPTO: Develop a culture within the USPTO to encourage Examiners to propose claim amendments that would, at [...]
“End Software Patents” Group Lanches and Sparks Debate
The group “End Software Patents” was born recently and asserted that (1) software patent lawsuits result in $11.26 billion in costs; (2) non-software companies are increasingly targeted for software patent infringement suits; and (3) the USPTO and the US Supreme Court [link] do not support software patentability. [Report] Joff Wild of IAM questions the 11.26 [...]
Patent Prosection Costs
Peter Zura’s 271 Patent Blog reports on the Congressional testimony [PDF] of the First Vice-President of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) concerning the average cost to prosecute and obtain a patent. The Average Cost of Preparing a Patent Application: To prepare and file an original application of minimal complexity (10 page specification, 10 [...]
GAO: USPTO Hiring Won’t Reduce Backlog
Wednesday the Government Accountability Office released a report [Summary] [Full Report] that found “it is unlikely that the [Patent Office] will be able to reduce the growing backlog simply through its hiring efforts.” The report provided, “The agency has also estimated that if it were able to hire 2,000 patent examiners per year in fiscal [...]
Software and Information Industry Association Questions State Immunity
The Software and Information Industry Association (SIIA) filed an amici curiae brief asking U.S. Supreme Court to hear a case where State sovereign immunity for patent infringement is at issue. The issue is whether a State waives its Eleventh Amendment immunity in patent infringement actions by regularly and voluntarily nvoking federal jurisdiction to enforce its [...]