The Shvoong

Patents for landscaping and gas sations on the Moon

2010-07-05T10:53:00.000-04:00

Here are couple of odd patent involving the moon. First, there is a startup raising money to fly robots to the moon, in order to rearrange surface sand on the moon to create large advertisements seen from space. The company is at: www.moonpublicity.com, and their ads tout their patent application.

Second, an utterly obvious claim being sought by Space Adventures in their U.S. patent application 20070128582, "Method, apparatus and system for private lunar exploration", with claim 1 , the obvious (i.e., ridiculous) content added afterward, in square brackets:

1. A method of registering for private space travel to the moon [or
travel on a yacht], comprising: providing a first spacecraft [yacht]
adapted to carry at least one private individual; receiving payment
from the private individual for registration for a flight [cruise]
on the first spacecraft [yacht]; providing launching of the first
spacecraft from the earth [yacht from the harbor] carrying the
private individual; and providing travel into lunar orbit [offshore
routes] for the private individual in the first spacecraft [yacht].

The inventors of the following issued patent must be extremely optimistic
with regards to how soon man will be spending a lot of time in outer space:

Propellant depot in space
U.S. Patent 7,559,508: Depots imply a lot of traffic, and I just don't see a lot of vehicular traffic in outer space in the next twenty years when their patent expires.

all about the big O

2010-06-06T11:19:00.003-04:00

Via: Medical Insurance

A patent: a time wasted or not

2009-10-26T11:42:00.011-04:00

A comment from an inventor questioning whether or not to waste his time and money filing a patent (and disclosing his innovation), if he is going to get screwed by the PTO:

Personally I have been pausing in the wings before I submit several
patent applications, so that I am reasonably assured that it is
worth the time and effort to do so. It may very well be that I am
better off not filing anything at all, if the applications can be
construed as just revealing what I have invented, with very few
options if it costs too much to respond to the PTO, and thus very
little value conferred by doing so.

A great issue for the AIPLA, IPO, or ABA, if any of these groups actually
cared about everyone's interest in a healthy patent system.

If the Patent Reform efforts succeed, we are all just dog meat,
after all, and all of my efforts and my money spent trying to
acquire a US patent will be for naught. Somewhat frustrating, when
I sincerely believe that I have much to contribute in the alternative
energy field.

How PTO management incompetence is destroying small companies

2009-10-16T09:40:00.000-04:00

Someone sent in the following ancedote, which is heard way too
often:

I was at an open house for a small IP law firm about a month ago and
was talking to the IP/research VP of a small biotech. They are a
start-up who have been waiting just over 2 years and still haven't
got a First Action on the Merits on their lead invention. They have
had to let almost everyone go and they are just holding on waiting
for that critical patent. It is so sad.

I am hearing this lament more and more, from biotech startups, software
startups, alternative energy startups. Because of PTO delays, they are
having to abandon patent applications, cripple their companies, and delay
hitting the markets with their products. Patent quality? It's suffering,
as everyone inside and outside the PTO is cutting back on searches (well,
that's more crap to bust in the future for me, though there is already
enough such crap).

If you have more such stories, please send them my way. Congress and the
Obama Administration need to hear this suffering, otherwise it is a waste
of billions of taxpayers' dollars to fund new energy/IT technologies, if
the startups, where much of the innovation will come from, can't protect
their breakthroughs in a timely matter. Otherwise, it is another signal
that the Obama Administration is pursuing an industrial policy that
favors large companies.

How John swapped steel plates

2009-05-30T11:52:00.001-04:00

John was working for a utility company. One day they were burying a cable, and needed to temporarily cover an excavated pit. To cover they used what you might have seen and probably driven over - a large steel plate. John was a foreman at the site, and told his backhoe operator to start lowering the plate into place.

Except John was a diligent foreman. He liked to do things perfectly. He wanted to be sure that the steel plate would sit well over the outline of the excavation, not wobble, and not crumble asphalt and rock onto the half-finished cable interface. Just as the plate was being lowered, he decided to sneak one last peek under the plate. Except the backhoe operator was not so experienced at fine controlling the lowering function, and lowered the plate by too jerky of a motion, which squashed John the Foreman's skull. As John recollected, after almost a year in a wheel chair, and partial memory loss, the split second he felt the weight of the plate was like the worst headache, except being inside his skull bones. John is 80% normal now. He cannot drive, concentrate, remember complicated information, and has a high-tech, combination stainless steel-titanium plate replacing most of his skull dome. The upshot of it, he has not needed any psychological counseling. He doesn't remember the details of his stupid decision to regret the whole episode.

Luna Innovations cheats trade secrets, fined more than its worth

2009-05-25T00:13:00.001-04:00

In a lawsuit similar to Tesla Motors vs. Fisker, Virginia-based Luna Innovations has to pay $36 million to Bay Area company Hansen Medical. The jury found that Luna had broken its agreement to help Hansen develop a robotic catheter and illegally used trade secrets to obtain a contract with Hansen's competitor instead. Hansen was represented by Morrison & Foerster. The jury awarded this large amount, despite audits attesting to the fact that Luna only had a market capitalization of $20 million, and would probably cease to exist after complying with the court's decision. National Law Journal, 27 April, 2009, page 13

Also Christians come out against patent reform

2009-05-21T03:56:00.004-04:00

A group of generally conservative Christians have written to Congress, opposing this year's patent reform bill:

- "To put the matter plainly, this bill is written to devalue patents" - "We cannot afford to jeopardize what is in effect America's balance sheet with an ill-advised, special-interest bill, particularly in the midst of a severe economic crisis." - "The proposed system [post-grant review] would expose patent holders to a perpetual threat of abusive, serial attacks, and, as a result, undermine the benefits of patent ownership for patent-holders and their financial backers." - "In effect, the bill invites an infringe-now-and-(maybe)-pay-later business strategy [the effect of apportioned damages], which destroys the "exclusive use" given to the patent ..."

(From Opposition Mounts to Patent Reform Act of 2009, Kevin L. Kearns, March 18, 2009) http://americaneconomicalert.org/view_art.asp?Prod_ID=3199 Dear Senators Reid and McConnell, Speaker Pelosi and Congressman Boehner: We are writing to ask you to strongly oppose the passage of The Patent Reform Act of 2009, S. 515 and HR. 1260, legislation sponsored by Senator Leahy and Rep. Conyers, respectively. These bills, under the mantle of "reform", will actually severely damage U.S. international competitiveness and threaten most American businesses - along with the jobs they create - by undermining America's historically strong intellectual property rights. This legislation will threaten America's smaller inventors, large and small domestic manufacturers, venture capitalists, agricultural entities, biotech and pharmaceutical firms, non-profit research consortia, and research universities, among others. Downgrading patent rights - which are fundamentally property rights - will seriously constrict innovation and the ability of domestic manufacturers to turn good ideas into products consumer want, and thus good jobs for working Americans. A series of U.S. Supreme Court and Federal Circuit decisions have already shifted the legal balance of power to favor patent users, tightening standards of patentability and narrowing patent rights and remedies. These judicial reforms eliminate any need for sweeping legislative changes to the patent system. Foreign interests, who for years have been trying to slow America's innovation engine through measures to weaken and devalue patent rights, are very happy with the proposed changes. In fact, commentary by patent experts in the Chinese and Indian press indicates they believe that intellectual property theft will be much easier under the proposed bill. Unfortunately, these foreign experts are correct in their assessment. Yongshun Chen, former Senior Judge and Deputy Director of the Intellectual Property Division of Beijing High People's Court China, said this about the patent bill: "This bill will give companies from developing countries more freedom and flexibility to challenge the relative U.S. patent for doing business in the U.S. and make it less costly to infringe.... The bill will weaken the rights of patentees greatly, increase their burden, and reduce the remedies for infringement" (Intellectual Property News, November 2007). This bill will lead to many additional American factories and jobs, even entire industries, being lost to overseas competitors. During this economic recession, more market uncertainty is the last thing that our economy needs. To put the matter plainly, this bill is written to devalue patents - to the detriment of almost every industrial, service, and financial sector of the economy. Certain high-tech companies who are pushing this bill want to make it cheaper and easier to infringe others' patents. But Congress should safeguard innovation as the backbone of our economy and reject this legislation. The patent system is rooted in the Constitution. Congress is charged with "securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective discoveries". The Founders understood that protection of intellectual property was vital to innovation and progress. James Madison wrote in the Federalist Papers, "The utility of this power will scarcely be questioned." Yet, today it is being threatened in the Congress. Small enterprises often drive innovation. About one-third of all patent applications are made by independent inventors, small companies, universities, and nonprofit research groups. Small businesses produce more patents per employee than larger businesses, and small-firm patents are more "innovative" and technologically important than large firm patents. Because small firms must work with others to commercialize and manufacture their innovations, they need strong patents to realize a return on investment. American manufacturers do about 65 percent of the R&D in this country and hold 60 percent of the patents. Over the last 40 years, we have witnessed a startling transformation of our economy. Whereas previously about two-thirds of a company's wealth was in physical assets, such as land, buildings, and machinery, now the opposite is true. The vast majority of a company's worth is in its intellectual property, not its physical assets. We cannot afford to jeopardize what is in effect America's balance sheet with an ill-advised, special-interest bill, particularly in the midst of a severe economic crisis. The legislation creates a new, expensive quasi-judicial system within the USPTO to challenge the validity of a patent throughout its entire life. The proposed system would expose patent holders to a perpetual threat of abusive, serial attacks, and, as a result, undermine the benefits of patent ownership for patent-holders and their financial backers. In addition, it would create even greater operational challenges within the USPTO. Incentives to seek patents would be weakened, and venture capitalists, who supply the life blood of the patent system with their investment monies, would face far higher risks when backing new ideas. The Leahy bill raises multiple barriers to independent innovation. The pending legislation would also make it harder for patent-holders to enforce their rights or win just compensation from those who steal their ideas. Under the bill, it would be harder to prove "willful" infringement, which serves as an important deterrent to deliberate theft. Perhaps, most significantly, the bill strikes at the very core of the patent system by changing the way infringement and resulting damages are treated. Instead of restoring the pre-infringement parity between the patent holder and the potential licensee, the bill calculates damages in an after-the-fact manner that lessens the value assigned to patents in most products. It throws out the window the venerable Georgia Pacific case and with its time-tested factors in determining a patent's value. In effect, the bill invites an infringe-now-and-(maybe)-pay-later business strategy, which destroys the "exclusive use" given to the patentee by the Constitution and the risk/reward ratio that has so successfully driven American innovation for over two centuries. According to a recent study, the proposed damages amendment would reduce the value of U.S. patents by as much as $85.3 billion; reduce R&D expenditures by up to $66 billion per year; and potentially cost the U.S. economy 298,000 manufacturing jobs. This bill is bad for American businesses; it is bad for American workers; it is bad for American inventors; it is bad for American research universities; thus it is bad for America. We ask that you oppose this legislation, protect the property rights enshrined in the Constitution, and preserve a patent system that for over 200 years has provided great technological advances, material progress, and a high standard of living for all Americans. Thank you for your serious consideration of our views. Sincerely, Kevin Kearns, US Business and Industry Council David Keane, American Conservative Union Rev. Lou Sheldon, Traditional Values Coalition Jim Backlin, Christian Coalition of America Susan Carleson, American Civil Rights Union Jim Martin, 60 Plus Association C. Preston Noell III, Tradition, Family. Property, Inc. Harry Valentine, Capitol Hill Prayer Alert Barrett Duke, Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention Gary Aldrich, CNP Action, Inc John Kwapisz, VA Coalition for Common Sense on Climate Change Phyllis Schlafly, Eagle Forum Morton Blackwell, Conservative Leadership PAC Frank Gaffney, Center for Security Policy Colin A. Hanna, Let Freedom Ring Ron Pearson, Council for America Jeffrey Gayner, Americans for Sovereignty Alex St. James, AARLC Organization Connie Marshner, American Family Business Institute Jim Backlin, Christian Coalition of America Carmen Mercer, Minuteman Civil Defense Corps. Mark de Bernardo, Council for Employment Law and Equality Laszlo Pasztor, National Federation of American Hungarians Kevin L. Kearns is President of The United States Business and Industry Council. Prior to joining USBIC in 1993, he was a Senior Fellow at the Manufacturing Policy Project, a Washington, DC think tank. For 13 years before that he was a U.S. Foreign Service Officer with overseas assignments in Germany, Korea, and Japan, where he witnessed firsthand the operation of highly cartelized, mercantilist economies.

120 AC to 12 DC, an RV, a lamp chord and a child

2009-05-20T00:25:00.004-04:00

This warning sign is unintentionally appropriate to this case. Since I am an investigator, I usually have no idea what an insurance company is hoping to find out when they ask me to look into a case. My job was to check over the location and have the law enforcement that was involved in the investigation to corroborate the circumstances of the accident. I have posted minor details of this case on forums, but here I am providing the account in its entirety. A man takes his family to a Winnebago camping site. After long winter, the engine was a bit hard to start and that caused the battery to go weak. He arrives at the site, hooks up his Winnebago to the site's utilities, and remembers to charge up the battery. Except he is totally ignorant of electrical basics. As he recounted to a sheriff's deputy, he believed that he could charge the battery (12 DC) from the power company outlet (120 AC), because someone told him that "AC and DC don't matter" since "the difference is canceled by the RMS voltage." (not true, since Root Mean Square voltage is only an aspect of AC current). Thus he genuinely believed that 120 volts would charge a 12 volt battery in a giffy. All he needed was a small capacitor converter that "would stop sparks" when he would connect the battery to the lamp chord he had ready. Except he left the lamp chord plugged into the wall socket, and live. One lead was touching the aluminum molding on the Winnebago's Masonite interior. By this time the man's teenage son was already done dipping in a pond that was less than 10 feet from his Winnebago. Barefoot, he stepped onto the metal running board, got electrocuted, spasmed and staggered backwards into the 3-foot deep water, and drowned. When his son had been missing for more than 4 hours, the electricity genius father and his wife called the county sheriff's office. The deputy asked simple questions, retraced the man's story and within 15 minutes found the boy in the water.

The Cross Coalition and Its Star Chamber Letter About Patent Battle

2009-05-15T15:28:00.007-04:00

This is an interesting turn in the patent reform battle: The Cross Coalition, a group of companies doing business in green and environmental technologies wrote to Congress opposing the proposed patent reform bill. The Coalition is made up of big biochem companies, startups and similar environmental technology operations. The self-hype about anything green in Washington, the Cross Coalition might just succeed. This is similar to a letter that 430 bio and green companies wrote to Congress in 2007, also opposing the patent reform bill. These patent reform bills should be dumped until a new PTO Director can be installed and can put together respectable consensus within the patent world. The text of the Cross Coalition's letter:

We write today regarding the importance of the United States patent system to our transition to a clean energy economy. Our companies and those we represent are committed to nurturing the innovation pipeline and subsequent domestic manufacturing capacity that will build the next generation of energy efficient, renewable energy, and renewable fuel technologies, creating thousands of American jobs in the process. However, we are concerned with recent legislative proposals to make fundamental changes to the US patent system that we believe would weaken, rather than strengthen, patent protection, putting this innovation pipeline and subsequent American manufacturing capacity at risk. The patent reform legislation that has been introduced would reduce penalties for patent infringement by changing the law of damages. This change would elevate the importance of one of the factors now considered in calculating patent damages. By giving this one factor - apportionment - a preeminent position in damage calculations, proponents of the legislation would have achieved the goal of reducing damage awards. This type of reduction in the value of intellectual property rights could adversely affect the future of our industries in the United States in two ways. First, in order to meet the demands of a low-carbon energy future, the need for innovation in the areas of energy efficiency, energy crops, advanced biofuels, renewable energy, renewable fuels, carbon capture and storage, and environmental technologies is great. Our ability to rapidly innovate in these sectors is critical to ensuring that we and others will be able to effectively meet our mutual goals of reducing carbon dioxide emissions, thereby reducing the impact of global climate change and reinvigorating the American economy with the creation of green jobs. A significant reduction, or elimination of much of the value of the intellectual property that will be generated through this process will have an effect on the availability of the venture capital required, decreasing the speed at which innovation will occur. Second, we anticipate that our economy will flourish as innovation in environmental and climate technology sectors drives the creation of green jobs. Our companies and our members create these jobs as we manufacture and market our patented products and technologies to domestic and international customers. If the current patent system is modified, making it less costly to infringe on existing or future patent rights, we anticipate that our competitive advantage in the global marketplace will be reduced, impacting the creation of green jobs. As proposals are made to change the U.S. patent system, we encourage you to take into account the impact of these proposals on the viability of our burgeoning green economy and its associated green jobs, as well as our ability to attract the capital required to innovate at the necessary pace to effectively combat global climate change. Drastic changes, such as reducing penalties for patent infringement, will only discourage innovation, resulting in reduced investment and lost jobs at a time when the country can least afford it. We believe the American patent system is the best in the world and we look forward to working with you to ensure that it becomes even stronger. Thereby we can continue to encourage the kind of investment, product creation, and job creation that has been the hallmark of our economy for decades, and will ultimately drive our ability to meet the challenges posed by global climate change. Thank you for considering our views on an issue of fundamental significance to innovation in America.

Members of the coalition include: American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) - Washington, DC Biomass Coordinating Council - Washington, DC Ocean Renewable Energy Coalition - Darnestown, MD EESTech Inc. - Chino Valley, AZ Southwest Windpower - Flagstaff, AZ Ceres, Inc. - Thousand Oaks, CA Fallbrook Technologies Inc. - San Diego, CA Viryd Technologies Inc. - San Diego, CA Mendel Biotechnology, Inc. - Hayward, CA IP Checkups, Inc. - Berkeley, CA Environmental Energy Solutions - West Hartford, CT GreenWorld, LLC - Arvada, CO DuPont - Wilmington, DE EarthLinked Technologies - Lakeland, FL International Applied Engineering, Inc. - Marietta, GA Unicoi Energy Services - Marietta, GA Industrial Resource Group, LLC - Schererville, IN Konarka Technologies, Inc. - Lowell, MA Syngenta - Golden Valley, MN Monsanto - St. Louis, MO Solutia Inc. - St. Louis, MO Energy and Environment Research Center (EERC) - Grand Forks, ND Greentech Capital Advisors - New York, NY ECR International, Inc. - Utica, NY ArborGen, LLC - Summerville, SC PetroTex - Cedar Hill, TX The Stella Group, Ltd - Arlington, VA Powered Green LLC - Madison, WI Terra Moya Aqua, Inc. - Cheyenne, WY

Germany rejects Saudi's cruel chip patent

2009-05-14T13:51:00.005-04:00

The whole concept of patents is to benefit public, to make people's lives easier and to help advance progress. This patent application for something altogether opposite. News across WWW and print say (like here, for example) that last Friday the German Patent Office rejected a patent application from a Saudi inventor which claims implanted semiconductors under the skins of visitors to the kingdom, and remotely killing them if they misbehave. The chip also tracks immigrants using a GPS module to locate any visa violators. The crowning touch of the patent application is the chip's cyanide releasable by remote control to kill people if they become a security risk.

The anatomy of chainsaw respect fail

2009-05-13T04:30:00.005-04:00

This recent incident with a chain saw (a Michigan man accidentally hits his wife with a chainsaw, his sheriff's deputy neighbor is quick to responds to the scene, but it was too late) resembles the poor judgment using a chain saw in one of my cases: A man was doing minor yard work using his lightweight chain saw. After his was done, he realized he always wanted to trim unsightly boards protruding from his patio and abutting the side of his house masonry. He thought he could just nip the boards with the round end of the chain saw. Except he underestimated that physics of the chainsaw. As soon as he revved it up and touched a board, in a blink of an eye that chainsaw's round end bit the board, climbed onto the masonry and hit the man on his face, to the side of his nose. He was very lucky that he and his family agreed to the full reconstructive cosmetic surgery, which was very professional. It has bee less than a year and he has very little marks left that would testify to the violent accident. He says he never suspected chainsaws to have the unpredictable tendency to kick back.

MUZIIC, the new music tool that streams music from Youtube videos

2009-05-12T17:51:00.003-04:00

www.muziic.com throws a curve ball in the copyright wars by offering a simple to use interface to all of the music in videos posted to YouTube. You can use Muziic to stream music without having to view videos. Let's sit back and see how long it takes YouTube and the music studios to assault this enterprise. Enjoy it while it lasts, though!

How a senator blocked a Nevada businessman from trade marking the phrase "Last Best Place."

2009-05-09T15:38:00.002-04:00

Baucus inserted language in the fiscal year 2009 Omnibus appropriation bill that would prohibit the slogan "Last Best Place," which is an unofficial motto of Montana, from being trademarked.

"Trying to trademark "The Last Best Place" is as ludicrous as someone trying to patent a Montana sunset," Baucus said. "If I have to insert this provision for the next 20 years, I will because that is how important this saying is to our state."

He and the businessman have slugged out over the trademark since 2002, when Nevada businessman David Lipson tried to gain exclusive rights to the term for his Paw's Up lodge in the Blackfoot Valley. Baucus' provision would prohibit using any funds to approve the trade mark, effectively killing any chance of the slogan being trademarked. Baucus has included similar provisions in past appropriations bills.

"When you walk down a main street in any Montana town, or have a good conversation at a coffee shop, you know Montana truly is "The Last Best Place," Baucus said. "And folks should be free to use that to describe our great state."

Senator Jon Tester supported Baucus' measure. "As a third generation Montana farmer, I know that folks in our state treasure our status as The Last Best Place," said Tester. "Montana's slogan isn't for sale."

Greeks put up their Museum of Hellenistic Inventions in a port for love boats

2009-05-06T15:24:00.004-04:00

International Travel News is a low-profile but very informative monthly travel newspaper. It has reported on the Museum of Ancient Greek Technology, which has two floors of models of early Greek inventions, located in the Ilia region of the Peloponnese Archipelago of Greece, in the town of Katakolo, the port call for cruise ship day trips to Olympia.

Homeopathic treatment for Divorce: voodoo flower essence

2009-04-21T01:13:00.004-04:00

The concoction called Surprise Shock Divorce Combination essence I found here (http://rainfloweressence.com/Merchant5/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=R&Category_Code=DHE) was tested by a friend at his lab's HPLC (High Pressure Liquid Chromatography) Releasing Divorce/ Loss Anger essence (http://www.alibaba.com/product-free/100905519/Chysanthemum_Flower_Extract_Herbal_Extract_Chrysanthemi.html) reveals chromatographs no different than the Shock Divorce essence above.

Homeopathy: a huge molecule of a funny flower

2009-04-16T08:16:00.001-04:00

Using expedient generalization, I told the "doctor" about high molecular weight molecules having little chance of making it into the homeo dilutions, the "doctor', having no background in math or chemistry, conveniently abandoned the defense of the unique protein dilution, and stated that high dilutions which have no chance of retaining a single original molecule do preserve the memory of the molecule. I requested any scientific article showing experiments with water having memory. It is a very fair request: after all, scientists dedicated lifetimes to studying seemingly small, insignificant aspects of water's chemical properties. Surely, homeopathy should be basing its hydro-memory facts on years of research using at least atomic-, and ultraviolet- absorption, mass spectrometry gravity and high pressure liquid chromatography.

The homeodoctor quickly showed me to this passage "...succussion whereby the energetic blueprint or pattern of the substance is held in the remedy but without any of the original material." -no empirical data exists to substantiate this belief. from this site which is highly popular with patients. I offered a bait (a hypothetical scenario) that in the case of having to recover from mercury exposure, a patient would be given a dilution or succussion of mercury. The homeodoctor agreed(!) To which I offered that the succussion probably no longer contains a single ion (they forgot the existence of such) of mercury, and such a patient would be better off saving money and drinking municipal, (somewhat contaminated enough to contain sadi mercury) water from a kitchen faucet. He let out genuine laugh and grew thoughtful. QED. Enough said.

Homeopathy treats the individual rather than the disease so the range of conditions that can be helped is huge! Whilst a diagnosis can seem useful, in homeopathy it is rare that the same complaint is always treated with the same remedy

here is a good example:

A 30X ( 1:1000) dilution means that the original substance has been diluted 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 times. Assuming that a cubic centimeter of water contains 15 drops, this number is greater than the number of drops of water that would fill a container more than 50 times the size of the Earth. Imagine placing a drop of red dye into such a container so that it disperses evenly. Homeopathy's "law of infinitesimals" is the equivalent of saying that any drop of water subsequently removed from that container will possess an essence of redness. Robert L. Park, Ph.D., a prominent physicist who is executive director of The American Physical Society, has noted that since the least amount of a substance in a solution is one molecule, a 30C solution would have to have at least one molecule of the original substance dissolved in a minimum of 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 molecules of water. This would require a container more than 30,000,000,000 times the size of the Earth. Actually, the laws of chemistry state that there is a limit to the dilution that can be made without losing the original substance altogether. This limit, which is related to Avogadro's number, corresponds to homeopathic potency of 12C or 24X (1 part in 1024). Hahnemann himself realized that there is virtually no chance that even one molecule of original substance would remain after extreme dilutions. But he believed that the vigorous shaking or pulverizing with each step of dilution leaves behind a "spirit-like" essence—"no longer perceptible to the senses"—which cures by reviving the body's "vital force." Modern proponents assert that even when the last molecule is gone, a "memory" of the substance is retained. This notion is unsubstantiated. Moreover, if it were true, every substance encountered by a molecule of water might imprint an "essence" that could exert powerful (and unpredictable) medicinal effects when ingested by a person.

Skilled immigrants are returning to their native countries

2009-04-06T09:48:00.004-04:00

The first article is from the 16 March 2009 edition of Business Week, page 68, by Vivek Wadhwa America's Immigrant Brain Drain. His discussion focuses mainly on Chinese and Indian skilled immigrants, and their reasons for returning to their native countries are simple - better quality of life (even at a lower average pay), better career prospects (China is figuring out how much it will grow this year, not whether it will grow or fall, and growth creates careers), and the comfort of family and friends. Immigrants have started 52% of Silicon Valley's tech companies, and get many of the Masters and PhDs awarded in science and engineering. And demand for their skills is growing in their home countries. So why can this be bad for America's economy? The ominous portend of this trend is discussed in the second article that appears in the March 7th edition of the Economist, in an article on page 84 Give my your scientists ... - restricting the immigration of highly skilled workers will hurt America's ability to innovate. A few paragraphs that make use of patent data in an interesting way:

Addressing these issues requires data on just how inventive immigrants are, a question that until recently was the province of educated guesswork. But William Kerr, an economist at Harvard Business School, used name-matching software to identify the ethnicity of each of the 8 million scientists who had acquired an American patent since 1975. He found that the share of patents awarded to scientists born in America fell between 1975 and 2004. The share of all patents given to scientists of Chinese and Indian descent living in America more than tripled, from 4.1% in the second half of the 1970s to 13.9% in the years between 2000 and 2004. Nearly 40% of patents filed in 2005 by Intel, a silicon chip maker, were for work done by people of Chinese or Indian origin. Some of these patents may have been awarded to American-born children of earlier immigrants, but Mr. Kerr reckons that most changes over time arise from fresh immigration. What of the criticism that these workers are displacing native scientists who would have been just as inventive? To address this, Mr. Kerr and William Lincoln, an economist at the University of Michigan, used data on how patents responded to periodic changes in the number of H1B entrants. If immigrants were merely displacing natives, increases in the H1B quota should not have let to increases in innovation. But Kerr and Lincoln found that when the federal government increased the number of people allowed in under the program by 10%, total patenting increased by around 2% in the short run. This was driven mainly by more patenting by immigrant scientists. But even patenting by native scientists increased slightly, rather than decreasing as proponents of crowding out would have predicted

Medical insurance call: a case of iridology

2009-04-03T02:44:00.001-04:00

The economic crisis apparently has an effect on my business: the patent consultancy has been falling off, and there is a notable increase in the demand to settle alternative medicine cases. It's all logical - people have less capital to secure their intellectual property, and less capital for conventional medical treatment. Hence, they turn to the soothsayers of the alternative medicine, which in the end are as brutal on the bank account as conventional medicine. The most recent case is that of iridology. The state insurance commission called me with the case of a patient that started to combine ear-nose-and-throat MD visits with visits to an iridologist. The lab tests for the last year showed plenty of vitamins, iron and a good liver profile. The patient complained of sinusitis, which really was a reaction to dry, furnace heating-dried air. Yet the iridologist decided that the patient's iris indicated a lack of selenium (!) as well as iron, which was responsible for the stuffy nose. The patient stopped going through with the MD's prescribed, over-the-counter treatments, and made other decisions that complicated medical insurance claims, and prompted me being called onto the scene. I immediately advise the patient to start using a vaporizer, which she had (ultrasonic), and she found a good deal on a hot-water vaporizer that can be attached to the furnace. She immediately reported relief in breathing through her nose. I made an appointment with the iridologist, and made a usual request for a free advice. In the process, I asked the iridologist very basic questions, which challenged the laughable principles of the scam:

the founder of the iridology did not know enough about owl's eyes to start making deductions about human eye;
the iris is an island in the middle of the eye, relying on the air for oxygen absorption, and on the nutrients seeping through the glassy matter of the eye;
the only physical connection to the rest of the body is a nerve that controls dilation of the pupil.
iridology has had no clue of the selenium inside the human body, for the last 150 years.

The iridologist has failed to show me the presence of iridology research materials analyzing the ENT problems. Nor did the iridologist produce any publications that are peer reviewed. She referred me to many of internet web sites that brag about case stories (not studies) where diagnoses were made using the owl's eye ideology of the scam's author, with no other lab or doctor-administered tests. I also challenged the iridologist to explain the difference between the iridology assessment of the selenium and iron deficiency, and the professional alb results consistently showing the contrary. That prompted the iridologist to say that iridologists and their patients are successful "because they have faith in it." QED. Case finished.

To buy or not to buy WordLogic

2009-04-01T10:33:00.004-04:00

BUY: J. David Stewart, Analyst and Publisher, of the The Stewart Report (see this post) - A 25-year veteran of Wall Street, J. David Stewart is also a private professional investor, stock analyst and publisher of The Stewart Report (now in its 15th year of continuous publication). His acumen as an analyst specializing in small and micro-cap securities has earned him wide media attention, including feature stories in: Money, Fortune and Entrepreneur. He's also been quoted in The Washington Post, The Financial Post, The New York Times, The Financial Digest, Investor's Business Daily, The Dick Davis Digest and Barron's. The impact of his thinking is regularly reported in wire service dispatches by CBS Market Watch, Reuters, Bloomberg and Dow Jones News Service, and he is a frequent guest on national radio and television shows, including CNN. WordLogic Corporation's chart is one of the strongest I've seen in months. Admittedly, the recent market environment has resulted in a lot of very sickly looking stock charts, so I've been seeing some pretty bad stuff - but this picture would look outstanding even if I had nothing but bull-market winners to compare it to. After giving up roughly 90 percent of its value during the broad swoon that befell the entire market during 2008, WordLogic started bucking the general trend in early November and spent the next two months building a solid base from which to launch a New Year's rally - one that easily penetrated the short- (20-day), intermediate- (40-day) and long-term (180-day) moving averages, as well as a declining trend line that had represented minor upside resistance for more than six months. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has gained more than 200 percent, culminating on January 20 with a gap opening and subsequent move that tested the major resistance around 85 cents. Given the strong recent rally, I'd look for the stock to fail in this first attempt to break through that barrier, retrace to fill the gap on some short-term profit taking, then launch a rebound that will not only crack the major resistance but carry all the way to the $1.05-$1.10 level. If that takes some time, new resistance could build beyond that point - but if the stock gets there quickly, a further move carrying back to the 52-week high should follow close behind. The former Managing Editor of The Los Angeles Times Syndicate, Larry D. Spears has served as editor for America's foremost political and economic columnists, including Pulitzer Prize-winner Art Buchwald. As Editor of the Hume MoneyLetter, he polished the works of financial luminaries ranging from J. David Stewart to Wall Street Week host Louis Rukeyser and former U.S. Treasury Secretary William Simon. He also authored and edited "The SuperInvestor Files" for Hume Publishing and created the "100 Steps to Wealth" home-study course for Money Magazine. Currently, he is Editor-in-Chief for The Stewart Report and continues to specialize in the use of technical analysis and options trading, having authored four books on those subjects.

Intellectual Ventures buys up Transmeta's portfolio

2009-03-25T17:13:00.003-04:00

It is a rather interesting time to buy a microprocessor patent portfolio. Tech PC sales and related probably will drop a bit in 2009. From an article by Rick Merritt in EE Times, (01/28/2009 9:02 PM EST):

SAN JOSE, Calif. ‹ Intellectual Ventures, a patent development and licensing company, has acquired the patent portfolio of Transmeta Corp., a startup that made an unsuccessful bid to develop x86-compatible processors. The portfolio includes more than 140 issued U.S. patents and others pending and issued in the U.S. and elsewhere. The announcement comes as Novafora Inc., a venture-backed company founded in 2004, said it completed the $255.6 million acquisition of Transmeta originally announced in November. Novafora will use Transmeta's technology to boost its video processor designs; Intellectual Ventures will license the Transmeta technology on a non-exclusive basis. "The acquisition of the Transmeta semiconductor patents augments one of the most comprehensive patent portfolios in the semiconductor field which now includes more than 2,000 patents," said Paul Reidy, vice president of semiconductor licensing at Intellectual Ventures. "Some of the recently issued patents detail some of the most interesting breakthroughs in microprocessor architecture we've seen in the last decade or so," he added in a press statement. Transmeta had generated royalty revenues of about $300 million licensing its patents on areas such as low-power processors and code translation to chip makers including Intel Corp. Novafora did not indicate what role the patent transaction played in its purchase of Transmeta. "The addition of Transmeta's power management technology to our video processor will enable us to target Novafora's products to the broadest range of video-oriented devices," said Zaki Rakib, chief executive of Novafora. In November, Novafora announced it entered into a non-exclusive patent license agreement with Advanced Micro Devices. Under the terms of the agreement, AMD transferred to Transmeta 700,000 shares of Transmeta's Series B Preferred Stock held by AMD.

Incredible Books from '40-'50's, part 3 of 3

2009-03-18T14:14:00.003-04:00

Innocent, professionally written, non-globalist and classic reading from the cozy 1950's SCIENCE IN OUR LIVES Ritchie Calder. An exciting, factual story of the beginning and development of modern science, the relationship between its special fields -astronomy, chemistry, physics, biology -and its impact upon our daily lives. THE HANDY BOOK OF GARDENING Albert Ii. Wilkinson and Victor A. Tiedjens. New edition of the famous book on how to grow flowers and vegetables, fruits and house plants, care for lawns, and do landscaping. Comprehensive, illustrated. FLOWER ARRANGEMENTS Anyone Can Do Anywhere Matilda Rogers. Enjoy a fascinating new hobby which develops your creative talents and beautifies your home. A practical course in flower arranging, with 100 illustrations. LIVES OF DESTINY As Told For The Reader's Digest Donald Culross Peattie. Inspiring life stories of 24 men who overcame enormous obstacles to achieve a place among the world's great figures: Franklin, Voltaire, Marco Polo, Mozart,da Vinci, Darwin, and other patriots, naturalists, explorers, and artists. THE LIFE OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN: Stefan Lorant. A unique text and picture biography which unfolds the dramatic life history of a great and beloved American President, with hundreds of illustrations and a lively, illuminating text by a celebrated Lincoln scholar. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN: The First Mr. American Roger Burlingame. A brilliant biography of the most human of leaders, who achieved fame and wealth as an editor, scientist, diplomat and statesman during the founding days of the U. S. GANDHI: His Life and Message for the World Louis Fischer. The life story of one of the greatest inspirational and political leaders of our time gives insight into India's pivotal place in world affairs. HOW THE GREAT RELIGIONS BEGAN Joseph Gaer. An always timely, easy-to-read guide to man's unending quest for the spiritual, vividly told through the lives of the world's religious leaders: Jesus, Mohammed, Moses, Buddha, Lao-Tse and others. THE UNITED NATIONS and How It Works David Cushman Coyle. A stimulating, thoughtful and objective analysis of how the United Nations, related agencies and commissions, came into being; how they operate, and what they are doing to achieve lasting peace and better living conditions all over the world.

How IP will become a major influence in acquisition and merger deals

2009-03-14T23:05:00.002-04:00

From the 15 December issue of the National Law Journal, page 3: More than half of corporate and private equity executives believe that intellectual property will become a more important factor in mergers and acquisitions deals during the next five years, according to a new survey from deal-ranking company, the Mergermarket Group. Eighty-five percent of corporate respondents and 72% of private equity respondents to the survey also said a target company's intellectual property assets had importance equal to or greater than other corporate assets when M&A deals were on the table. K&L Gates and Boston-based consulting firm CRA International sponsored the survey. Given the global increase in patents and trademarks, it's not surprising that intellectual property is becoming a more important factor in M&A deals, said George Dickos, a Pittsburgh lawyer and co-ordinator of K&L Gates' intellectual property practices.

How trashy are Apple's iPhone Patents?

2009-03-10T15:04:00.004-04:00

Very excrement-like, since they didn't ask me to do the patentability searches :-) But more seriously, the February 9th issue of Barrons has an article on Apple's iPhone patents, with Apple COO Tim Cook quoting as stating that Apple won't stand for having its IP ripped off (with hints that the intended target is Palm, though Apple doesn't mind ripping off inventors). However the same article quotes San Francisco investment analyst Pablo Perez-Fernandez as raising doubts about the strength of Apple's iPhone patent portfolio, much of which focuses on touchscreen technology:

He asserts that the U.S. Patent Office "may have not observed the requirements of innovation on number of occasions", that the legal owner of key multi-touch technologies may be the University of Delaware, and that "the essential discoveries embedded in Apple's products were the result of the work of academics from the university now employed at Apple."

He goes on:

Apple didn't invent transparent, capacitive multitouch sensors that could be overlaid on screens; "that honor went to ATT's famous Bell Laboratories back in the mid-1980s."

His conclusion: while Apple's patents are probably infringed by competitors, the competitors could strike back on invalidity grounds. And I suspect he is right. Despite all of the bull's shirt from the big companies that complain about crappy patents that issue, they are all notorious for routinely submitting crappy patents with inadequate prior art references.

How electronic medical records will become another mini-bubble

2009-03-07T01:24:00.001-05:00

One component of Obama's recovery plan is to pour billions into electronic medical records. There are already tons of patents in this field, and lots of venture capital. But Forbes editor Lee Gomes, in the 12 January edition of Forbes, page 43, argues that doing so might make medicine more inefficient, i.e., more costly. "But the notion they're a panacea is a symptom of the fixation with high-tech gadgets that's part of the (healthcare) problem in the first place." Sounds like the PTO - fixing engineering management at the PTO is not a tech problem.

More on WordLogic and The Second of Nine Sisters

2009-03-04T01:49:00.001-05:00

WordLogic could vigorously pursue an Olympic-sized pool of legal targets, all of whom will be swimming in litigation. For this very reason, WordLogic has intentionally forestalled litigation against the other offenders until a second, "sister patent" is formally granted. Cumulatively, the Company has nine IP's: There's the one patent that's already been approved, and eight patents that are still pending. Patent pending number two is a close sister patent to the one already granted. Evanshen said it's also for a classical deep-search, content-seeking, predictive, algorithm-based software technology for advanced word recognition - except this one's supercharged. That makes it a powerful playing piece, one that both strengthens and broadens the overall coverage of Company's intellectual property - and therefore its suit against Mercedes-Benz. Technically, in its current state of legal flux, the sister patent is still pending - but it's pending fast! Let me explain: In reviewing the online application - which is the right of the patent applicant - Evanshen told me last week that activity in the file's movement within the U.S. Patent Office suggested that "approval was imminent". He was correct. As part of Tuesday's news release, the Company was able to announce, "The United States Patent and Trademark Office has put WordLogic's second patent pending in a position of allowance. The Company's patent attorneys have filed the necessary response required to have this second patent pending allowed. The Company considers this development significantly important, firstly as an additional asset increasing the value of the Company and secondly with regard to the importance it will have in settling this case. "I, as co-owner of Stewart/Abbott Medical and a U.S. patent that's now pending, all I can say is this: "Man, I sure hope we get a letter like that!" To be in a "position of allowance" means you're all but home, the deal is all but done and you're just waiting for the ink to dry. For WordLogic Corporation, it means: 1) The boundaries of the existing suit are about to extend favorably; and, 2) The case against Mercedes will be much easier to win. This does NOT mean WordLogic needs the sister patent to be victorious or that it needs a second trigger to fire the first gun. No, patent number two is simply extra ammunition to win the case. And I believe it will. And, when it does, defendants in all future cases will fall like dominos, the damage verdicts will become almost predictable and the courtrooms will pay off like casinos. There is a lot in the wind right now, and much of it could send this stock soaring to previously unseen heights. Regardless of the "End Game" and how it's played out, Evanshen is looking at a surprising number of opportunities. It's a fairly complex decision tree, but each of the potential decisions is incredibly lucrative - and virtually all of them could play nicely into the hands of stockholders. The momentum at this point is considerable. Within a month or three, I could easily see the stock returning to its 52-week high of $1.90. Longer term, an out-of-court settlement with Mercedes-Benz or a deep-pocket buyout offer from one of the Googles or Microsofts of the world would certainly put the stock back at its 60-week high of $4.30 - and even that could easily turn out to be the valuation understatement of 2009.

Incredible Books from '40-'50's, part 2

2009-03-03T08:10:00.003-05:00

The continuation of the Incredible Books from 1940-1950's reading list: PATTERNS OF CULTURE Ruth Benedict. A famous anthropologist analyzes our social structure in relation to primitive cultures. SEX AND TEMPERAMENT in Three Primitive Societies Margaret Mead. Are personality differences, between men and women linked to their sex? A noted anthropologist explores this fascinating question. THE NATURE OF THE UNIVERSE Fred Hoyle. Can an atomic blast change the earth into an exploding star? Will our earth eventually die? The latest facts and theories about the universe are explained with clarity and liveliness by a modern astronomer. Illustrated. NEW HANDBOOK OF THE HEAVENS Hubert J. Bernhard, Dorothy A. Bennett and Hugh S. Rice. A practical, fascinating guide to the stars, planets and comets.. Profusely illustrated. ON UNDERSTANDING SCIENCE James B. Conant. A noted educator, diplomat and atomic physicist explains the scope of science in our modern world, and gives an historical view of its growth. MAN IN THE MODERN WORLD Julian Huxley. Thirteen stimulating essays on the vital issues of today, selected from his "Man Stands Alone" and "On Living in a Revolution."

How is billable hour on the way out?

2009-03-01T11:55:00.001-05:00

The 12 January edition of Forbes, on page 26, has a full page opinion piece written by Evan Chester, presiding partner of Cravath, Swaine & Moore. He basically argues that it is time to stop billing by the hour for legal services: "The lawyer should identify the client's objectives, measure, calculate and come back with a [fixed] price." Would this work in the patent world? (It's a rhetorical question :-)

The "S" Class Action Suit (WordLogic In Reverse)x50

2009-02-24T11:24:00.001-05:00

In a tobacco suit or other class-action case (such as the asbestos litigation that leveled Johns Manville), you have several hundred people teaming together to sue a major corporation. If they win, lots of little people get lots of checks that they think are big. In the final analysis, though, only the attorneys score big. By comparison, we have one plaintiff - WordLogic Corporation - which is positioning itself to attack as many as 50 companies worldwide. If successful against Mercedes - as it was against Hewlett-Packard - tiny WordLogic stands to be awarded millions upon millions, year after year, with each consecutive victory setting a precedent to win the next - and to win it more easily. Case law is predicated on legal precedent - and, to some extent, WordLogic already has one. Before the Company even went public - and while the patent was still pending - CEO Evanshen won an out-of-court settlement against Hewlett-Packard for $2 million. Technically, the suit was for trademark infringement. Had the patent already been granted, as it now has been, Evanshen believes WordLogic would have received "probably ten times that $2 million amount." In time, dozens of other suits, worth dozens, if not hundreds of millions in damages each, will likely be filed against defendants with names that are just as recognizable as Mercedes-Benz - especially if WordLogic defeats Mercedes-Benz.

Magnets and watches don't mix?

2009-02-22T07:49:00.003-05:00

The Abacus watch has no hands at all. Instead, there’s only a single steel ball that rolls around inside the watch as you move your wrist around. But as soon as the watch is leveled horizontally, a magnet under the face stops the ball to show the correct time. I think it is missing the minute ball.

Incredible Books from '40-'50's, part 1

2009-02-20T13:18:00.003-05:00

I came across this reading list on the back of a Signet book from 1955 - excellent reading, not polluted by political correctness: HOW TO KNOW THE BIRDS Roger Tory Peterson. Line drawings and silhouettes of over 200 common species, selected from the cloth-bound edition, illustrate this basic handbook by 'a noted ornithologist. HOW TO KNOW THE WILD FLOWERS Alfred Stefferud. The habitats and habits of wild flowers, their distinguishing family marks, and how to grow them. Illustrated by Sidney Horn. HOW TO KNOW THE AMERICAN MAMMALS Ivan T. Sanderson. What mammals are - how to identify them, where they live-written and illustrated by - a distinguished naturalist. 200 pictures. THE MEANING OF EVOLUTION (revised and abridged) George Gaylord Simpson. The principles and meaning of evolution, tracing the entire span of life on earth and its ethical implications for mankind. MAN MAKES HIMSELF V. Gordon Childe. Man's social and technical evolution through 340,000 years of progress-the first American edition of a brilliant classic. LIFE ON OTHER WORLDS . H. Spencer Jones. Does life exist on other worlds? A lucid discussion of this intriguing question.

Transparency in ironing, too!

2009-02-19T11:15:00.004-05:00

I have written jokingly about the patentability of an iron-mp3-video combination, and now there is a gadget of pleasing lines and sheer functionality - B-IRON 725 lets one see the clothes being ironed. The sole plate is manufactured of tempered glass, and heat induction works by means of of electro-thermal wires.

The $360 Million-Dollar Door Ding

2009-02-18T09:47:00.003-05:00

Obviously, I couldn't begin to put a per-share value on the suit without some idea as to the value of the suit itself. To do that, I needed to know more about the cars with pirated WordLogic software. A lesser professional would have gone to the web, not me. Driven by the dedicated, relentless Southern California work ethic so closely associated with sleepy beach towns, I left work a little early (10 a.m.) to visit Mercedes-Benz of Laguna Niguel (the eleventh largest M-B dealer in the world) because I didn't want to chance a slow Internet connection. To save time, I also chose an uber-fast car to test drive: A race-inspired, "Silver Arrow"-colored 2009 AMG SL63. With a 6.2 liter, 525 HP V-8 motor tied to a seven-speed gear box, it can do zero to 60 in 4.2 seconds, has a top speed of 155 MPH (limited by an electronic "governor"), and is therefore worth every penny of its $152,665 price tag. That sounds like a large sum of money until you realize that M-B of Laguna Niguel sports a lavish "Customer Comfort" area with sumptuous leather chairs to sit in while you rest your wallet and sip complimentary Starbucks coffee as they hand wash your car ... any time you want ... free. So, it all works out. Right? Right! Opulent dealership set-ups such as this - coupled with seriously flawed logic patterns of car guys such as myself - enabled Mercedes-Benz to sell 1,034,700 automobiles in the first 11 months of 2008. December will be reported shortly and raise the figure a bit, but let's just say they are doing one million cars annually. Of those, Andre, my salesman, said about one-third are of the S-Class variety (which are the models with the COMMAND System as standard equipment), suggesting that over 300,000 M-B cars leave showrooms each year with WordLogic technology on board. That was the first number I needed to ascribe a value to the suit. Furthermore, in Mercedes cars that don't include it, the package with the COMMAND system option costs $2,950 additional - that being the second figure I needed. Until Tuesday morning (when the Company issued a news release covering this topic), I guesstimated that at least $200 of that $2,950 could/would/should have been paid in software licensing fees to WordLogic Corporation. Therefore, based on 300,000 Mercedes models sold annually with WordLogic software on board, and with that software worth at least $200, the infringement deprived WordLogic of something like $60 million each year. It was explained to me that, by law, the suit is allowed to go back two years, so that's $120 million in damages right there. However, since M-B knowingly ignored the patent and built COMMAND-equipped cars anyway, WordLogic is entitled to sue for three times that amount. That, according to my math is a $360 million "door ding" against Mercedes - and trust me, I'm good at math. Apparently, I'm a fairly good guesser, too: In the Tuesday news release I just alluded to, the Company said it is seeking "8.6 percent in royalties on the sales of the infringing product that sells for approximately $3,000 to $5,000 per car," and that "treble damages" apply to those models sold "in 2007, 2008, and 2009." Comparatively then, WordLogic's in-house formula equates to low-end damages of about $464.4 million. We'll play it conservative though and use my $360 million number as we compare it to the Company's capital structure. WordLogic has just over 30 million shares outstanding, meaning the suit, on a per-share basis, could deliver shareholders approximately $12 per share in cash. The stock is presently priced under a buck. Now it's your turn to do the math. Remember: Mercedes-Benz is two names, but it's just one company and this is just one patent infringement suit. Truth is, this patent is being blatantly infringed on daily - all over the world! How many devices incorporate predictive text messaging? How many other multi-billion-dollar corporate machines are running on this software? What might be the total amount of damages? Your guess is as good as mine, and I'm sure the aggregate numbers are probably far too large for any of us to believe.

A truly scientific coffee table

2009-02-16T07:26:00.005-05:00

This is patently obvious, but artistically unique: a periodic table of elements. Previously, I featured a V-8 engine coffee table, and now this is a table for all the scientists and chemists who can't live a minute without being too far from chemicals, though they are well aware of the triglyceride emulsifiers and tannins in their coffee. Don't you love the translucent icons?

This IBM patent clogs sewers:

2009-02-14T11:01:00.004-05:00

One rumored candidate to be the next Director of the Patent and Trademark Office is David Kappos, one of the head patent lawyers at IBM. Given IBM's many abuses of the patent system and patent policy over the past few decades, I think it is inappropriate, nay, wrong, for anyone from IBM to be head of the PTO. Might as well as make Bernie Madoff head of the SEC as part of his upcoming jail-time work-release program. IBM patent lawyers for too long have abused the patent system. Case in point. Last week IBM was issued its usual batch of patents, many of which are crap - crappy patents whose sole value is to clog the PTO's patent examination pipelines to the detriment of everyone else. A patent application policy actively embraced by David Kappos. If I was an IBM investor, I would applaud David for doing his best to help IBM. In fact, sometimes I recommend people to buy IBM stock because the company will do anything to maintain its market value. Kudos to David for his efforts in this regard. But the reward for abusing the patent system for the benefit of IBM should be a gold watch at retirement - and should not be the reward of being appointed head of the PTO. One of the many crappy patents issued last week is the one below, an expert system at a server that analyzes incoming messages (such as news), checks lists to see which subscribers want to be alerted to such messages, and sends the message to such subscribers. That is, methods Marimba used (and patented) to push software in 1996, IBM decides six years later to patent as methods to push other stuff. As usual, the patent cites an inadequate amount of non-patent prior art, based on IBM's inadequate IDS and the examiner's lack of experience in searching the non-patent prior art. Further, it looks like this patent, crappy as it is, was a First Office Action issuance - usually a good indicator of crap. After the application was submitted, an amendment was submitted, maybe with a bit of talking with the examiner, and then the patent was allowed to issue. Don't you all wish you had such clout with the PTO to get such crap issued? Part of the problem is that the claim language is IBM's usual excessively wordy, baffle-them-with-bull's shirt, confusing verbiage - again, another IBM patent policy actively supported by Kappos. Let's look at the abstract, which is almost easy to understand, and then claim 1, which gives me a headache to read:

United States Patent 7,487,550 Methods, apparatus and computer programs for processing alerts and auditing in a publish/subscribe system Abstract A message broker receives a published message from a publisher program. Responsive to identification of one or more subscriber programs subscribing to messages of the type of the received message, the broker forwards the received message to the one or more subscriber programs. Matcher components compares the received message with stored subscriptions to identify subscriber programs, generates an alert when an alert condition is satisfied, and compares the generated alert with stored subscriptions to identify subscriber programs subscribing to the alert. The alert is then forwarded to the subscriber program subscribing to the alert.

The patent only cites five or six prior patents, inadequate, grossly inadequate, especially in light of a Sun Microsystems patent whose title kills IBM's patent outright:

United States Patent 5,761,662 Dasan, June 2, 1998 Personalized information retrieval using user-defined profile

Now, for those of you who know anything about expert system database alert systems (i.e., a database with alert triggers, a decades old field), look at the crappy non-patent prior art considered:

Other References "Design of a General Clinical Notification System Based on the Publish-Subscribe Paradigm", A conference of the American Medical Informatics Association. By, A. Geissbuhler, M.D., W. W. Stead, M.D., Oct. 25, 1997, pp. 126-130, XP002179981. cited by other . "Exploiting an Event-Based Infrastructure to Develop Complex Distributed Systems", Proceedings of the 1998 International Conference in Kyoto, Japan Apr. 19-25, 1998, Los Alamitos, CA, USA, IEEE Comput.Soc, US, Apr. 19, 1998, pp. 261-270. cited by other . Icc.net Internet Commerce Corporation on website ICC.net/Services/Infosafe and ICC.net/Services/Infosafe/
Technology, 2001. cited by other . Arnold et al, "Discourse with Disposable Computers: How and Why You Will Talk to Your Tomatoes", USENIX Proceedings of the Embedded Systems Workshop, Mar. 29-31, 1999. cited by other.

Not one article from the any ACM publications and conferences on database systems, alert systems, message analysis systems, push, or expert systems, and only one article from the IEEE. Grossly inadequate, and IBM knows it. To cite nothing from SIGMOD or DEXA makes this patent crap. So maybe IBM should spend less time doing searches against other companies as part of its scam public patent review project, and more time doing searches of its own crap. Excrement, as in the language of claim 1 (the only claim as well, probably too long to not be workaroundable and thus unenforceable):

The invention claimed is: 1. A data processing apparatus for providing a publish/subscribe message dissemination service on behalf of publisher and subscriber programs comprising: means for receiving a published message from a publisher program; means, responsive to identification of one or more message subscriber programs subscribing to messages of the type of the received message, for forwarding the received message to the one or more message subscriber programs; and one or more matcher components for: comparing the received message with stored message subscriptions to identify the one or more message subscriber programs; generating an alert when an alert condition is satisfied; and comparing the generated alert with stored alert subscriptions to identify one or more subscriber programs subscribing to the alert; and means for forwarding the alert to the one or more subscriber programs subscribing to the alert, wherein the message and alert subscriptions are stored in data storage in association with message topic information, the one or more matcher components including means for retrieving stored subscription information by reference to message topic information of a received message, rules procedures for generating and determining required dissemination of alerts are stored in association with the message topic information,

NOTE: so far, this claim is nothing more than the many push systems popularized in the Internet era - no innovation here. And as a good example to deceive the Patent Office, the word "push" doesn't appear in the patent, depriving the examiner the opportunity to think about PUSH and search for Marimba's patents.

wherein the one or more matcher components are adapted to identify a relevant rules procedure by reference to the message topic information and to forward to the identified rules procedure: a message subscription list; a list of authorized recipients; and an identification of one or more subscribers for alerts; thereby to enable generation and determination of required dissemination of an alert; the one or more matcher components includes: means for performing an authorization check to identify a subset of the identified one or more message subscriber programs which subset of programs is authorized to receive the message; and means for generating an alert when the authorization check identifies an unauthorized message subscriber.

NOTE: actually, even this far, this claim is nothing more than the many push systems popularized in the Internet era - no innovation here. This patent is nothing more than an IBM ploy to clog the patent system with a patent application embodying little to no innovation - a tactic IBM has used for thousands and thousands of patent applications. A tactic warmly embraced by David Kappos. Who should not be appointed next Director of the PTO.

WHY IBM'S KAPPOS IS UNFIT TO BE NEXT PTO DIRECTOR

2009-02-11T06:36:00.000-05:00

I am totally opposed to Kappos being appointed as the next PTO Director, for his involvement in multiple IBM efforts over the last ten years to undermine any attempts to improve patent quality. It would be a horrible message to send to inventors to have a lawyer from the most abusive patent playing company, IBM, as head of the PTO. One reason the PTO's backlog is so great is that companies such as IBM flood the PTO with tons of crappy patent applications, to jam up the system making it hard for competitors to get patents that could challenge IBM's markets. Anyone forget IBM's airplane-bathroom-reservation patent? I also post this classic 1997 article from Business Week that pretty much describes how IBM invented trollism (shaking down companies by asserting lots of crappy patents, and some good ones, from their massive portfolio). IBM was a major player in the Software Patent Institute scam (a 1990s effort to deflect any resources from a serious attempt to improve prior art handling at the PTO), and is a major player in the SPI's child, the 2000s scam otherwise known as the Public Patent Peer Review project. For many of these undermining efforts, Kappos was involved. He should not be awarded Directorship of the PTO. Slashdot this week has a summary of criticisms of IBM's attempts to get U.S. bailout money so it can fire U.S. workers and move more of its jobs overseas. "As his company was striving to hide the bodies of its laid off North American workers, IBM CEO Sam Palmisano stood beside president Obama and waxed patriotic: 'We need to reignite growth in our country.', Palmisano said. 'We need to undertake projects that actually will create jobs." While Sam positions IBM to get a slice of the $825 billion stimulus pie, IBM is quietly cutting thousands of jobs and refusing to release the numbers or locations." The country deserves someone coming from some other company to be the next PTO Director, if the next choice is a corporate one. Kappos is a much smarter version of Jon Dudas, and will be as effective, if not more, in overseeing the further degradation of PTO capabilities with regards to patent examination (which again, is in IBM's interests). So everyone, make copies of the BusinessWeek article below, and send it to your Congressional representatives, asking them to not allow any lawyers from IBM to become the next Director of the PTO.

HOW IBM INVENTED TROLLISM

2009-02-11T06:18:00.003-05:00

Found in BUSINESSWEEK 17 MAR 1997: BIG BLUE IS OUT TO COLLAR SOFTWARE SCOFFLAWS by Ira Sager, Business Week, 17 March 1997, page 34 Big blue holds more software patents than any other company in the world. That's great for bragging rights, but it does little for the bottom line. Now, however, IBM sees money in that trove of intellectual property - and its efforts to collect are making software companies hoping mad. Note: might as well call this date the formal birth at IBM of trollism Lawyers for Big Blue are searching for software companies that it says should be paying royalties but aren't. Over the past several months, IBM has been quietly pursuing patent claims against such well-known software companies as Oracle, Computer Associates, Adobe Systems, Autodesk, Intuit and Informix. IBM is also pressing a software claim against computer maker Sequent Computer Systems. Note: a lesson well learned by many trolls to follow in the years to come. All thanks to IBM. So far, no lawsuits have been filed, but software companies aren't waiting. Several of them are launching a pre-emptive strike, hiring Silicon Valley's star litigator, Gary Reback, a partner at Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich, Rosati. Two years ago, Reback took on Bill Gates. Representing a handful of Silicon Valley companies, he unsuccessfully tried to get the Justice Department to broaden an antitrust investigation of Microsoft. Now, Reback is hurling charges against IBM similar to those he leveled at Microsoft. "IBM shows up the same way someone might might demand protection money.", he says. Officials at the companies confirm that IBM has contacted them, but most refuse to talk publicly. Note: Peter D. - instead of "troll", you should have suggested "goodfellas" Collecting the patent royalties could add millions to IBM's net profits. In 1995 - the last year IBM released figures - the company took in $500 million from royalties on all patents Note: yet it cannot afford to pay for prior art searches for its patent applications software and hardware alike. Insiders say that senior managers Note: this include Kappos? believe that IBM could collect $1 billion a year from its patents. The software makers that have been contacted by IBM aren't yet willing to help Big Blue reach that goal. They maintain that lot of software patents - IBM's included - are too broad and never should have been issued. IBM's pursuit of royalties, they argue, is an abuse of a patent system that is too lax and does not require an applicant to really prove that the software application is unique. Note: of course, while complaining, these companies did nothing to help organize prior art resources and tools to donate to the PTO. IBM contends it's just trying to protect its intellectual property and get a fair return on the $5 billion yearly tab it runs up on research and development. "What Gary Reback is asking us to do is provide an R&D subsidy to our competitors, and we won't do that.", says Marshall Phelps, IBM's attorney in charge of intellectual property and licensing. Note: Phelps moved over to Microsoft, which is now flooding the PTO with its crappy patent applications, while his groomed successor is Kappos. Some companies are afraid that paying now will set a precedent, making it harder to say no later. "If we sign up with IBM today, then what happens in three or five years, when the patent agreement expires?", asks Oracle patent attorney Allen Wagner. With all the skirmishing that lies ahead, this dispute is still in Version 1.0.

The rest of the story on the Microsoft espionage lawsuit

2009-02-11T06:07:00.004-05:00

We are frequently (almost always justifiably) outraged about IBM's antics in the patent procurement and/quality debate. While they don't make your rants nearly as often, I place Microsoft in almost the same company as IBM. An interesting case was reported last week based on a lawsuit filed by Microsoft against an ex-employee (who they fired) who had filed a patent infringement suit against a number of Microsoft customers, alleging he had violated his duty to Microsoft by downloading confidential Microsoft documents while a Microsoft employee that he then used in his lawsuits against their customers. Well, as Paul Harvey used to say, here's "the rest of the story". As is almost always the case, when IBM or Microsoft say anything about patents or patent-related litigation, one should receive it with a somewhat jaundiced eye. A useful note: a candidate to be the next PTO Director, Dave Kappos, is a head patent lawyer at IBM. From the Seattle PI, Feb.2, 2009 here is Miki Mullor's reply to the Microsoft lawsuit against him. His statement does not substantively address Microsoft's allegation that he stole Microsoft's confidential and proprietary information for use against the computer manufacturers:

I am the inventor of U.S. Patent No. 6,411,941 relating to software anti-piracy technology, and Ancora is my company. I applied for my patent in 1998. In 2002, the patent issued from the United States Patent and Trademark Office. In 2003, I approached Microsoft and had several talks with a Microsoft lawyer and employees of Microsoft's AntiPiracy group about my invention and the benefits Microsoft could realize by using it. Microsoft declined and said they had no interest in my invention. We ceased business operations at Ancora in 2005, and Microsoft was the first company to extend me an employment offer. I accepted. When I joined Microsoft, I notified them in writing of Ancora and my patent in both my resume and in my employment agreement. In its complaint against me, Microsoft withheld the portions of these key documents that show this. At the same time I was employed at Microsoft, but unknown to me, Microsoft was developing what is now known as "OEM Activation." OEM Activation is installed on computers made by HP, Dell, Toshiba and others ... to prevent piracy of Microsoft's Windows Vista software installed on those computers. This work was being done in a different department at Microsoft. OEM Activation is a blatant copy of my invention. In June 2008, my company Ancora filed a patent infringement lawsuit against HP, Dell and Toshiba in the federal court in Los Angeles. Microsoft fired me for trying to protect my own invention --- an invention I told them about before they ever hired me. Recently, Microsoft filed a retaliation suit against me personally in Seattle. Microsoft accuses me of lying, deceit, fraud and misappropriation. These are shameful, dishonest attacks on my character by Microsoft - the company that stole my idea in the first place. Their attacks are untrue, and they hurt me and my family. Microsoft basically admits stealing my idea in the complaint they filed because they are asking for a license to my patent. Microsoft would only need a license to my patent if they were infringing it in the first place. My patent case in Los Angeles has been going on for several months now with substantial progress. Clearly, Microsoft and the PC OEMs realized that they have no defense on the merits of the patent case.

IBM defines the US Patent Law

2009-02-08T07:27:00.006-05:00

IBM DECLARES WHAT IT THINKS 35 USC 101 REALLY MEANS Much as I love bashing IBM - they are so nefarious - I have to tip my hat to their claim drafters, who always do fun things with claim language. Just this week IBM was awarded a crappy software patent (memory storage pool allocation citing no non-patent prior art), with some fun language - here's U.S. Patent No. 7487322:

1. An article of manufacture including program logic on a computer readable storage medium(...)

This claim is classic in its contempt for 101 caselaw, because it directly attacks the nonsense of 101 caselaw (nonsense that all flows from the legal sewage otherwise known as Gottschalk v. Benson): is an executable computer program on a media an "article of manufacture"? Anyone who knows anything about the computer science or commercial software (a group which excludes much of the CAFC and SCOTUS) would say - sure - software is manufactured and sold as an article. Nothing wrong with this language. Or not, if you ask the Bilski crowd. Such language helps emphasize that Congress has to address the fact that the fundamental statutes of IP law (35 USC 101, 103 and 17 USC 102) will remain constitutionally vague until Congress defines what it means by such terms as "article of manufacture"- a definitional problem NOT the role of the courts to do.

The War in Germany and WordLogic

2009-02-07T01:22:00.002-05:00

According to CEO Evanshen, the people at Mercedes-Benz appreciated WordLogic's software superiority in assisting with driver operation of the GPS-based navigation system, and incorporated into their cars. But, they "forgot" to pay for it. So in 2005, WordLogic Corporation filed suit. Despite that, Benz continued using the software and eventually bundled it with a Harmon/Kardon Logic 7 sound system, Bluetooth cell-phone support (including a phone book), and made it a cabin-tech feature for all of its prestigious "S-Class" automobiles. In showrooms, the portion of the multimedia package that controls everything is known as the "COMMAND" system. Every component in the multimedia package is intuitively accessed using COMMAND's predictive software - software that Evanshen, the inventors and the attorneys steadfastly maintain is WordLogic's IP. Evanshen also told me that "... because the German car maker (actually he might have called it a "lawless beast") was made fully aware of the patent and ignored it anyway, treble (legalese for triple) damages are in order." The suit against Mercedes-Benz is "unspecified" as far as the dollar amount of damages being sought. If I understand my attorney correctly, an unspecified claim is a "tort claim", wherein the amount to be awarded is left to the Court to determine. This is usually the case when there are claims that don't have an exact value figure. "Plaintiff has been damaged in the amount to be proven or decided at trial," is an example of how the initial complaint might be phrased. Suits of this nature can also claim for "General Damages", which include future losses and cannot be decided - not today, anyway - by calculating receipts, etc.

Nigerian scams are getting into patents and academia

2009-02-03T16:42:00.004-05:00

A patent holder's lonely way by Jonathan Hum and Dov Gold From the 26 January Barrons, page 18

Medical researchers at 12 major universities were shocked recently when they got letters from Nzedegwu Robert Olisa III, demanding $155,000 payment from each lab. Olisa alleged they had violated his patent and copyright with their activities in proteomics - a hot niche of biotechnology that studies the genetic recipes for proteins. Olisa filed infringement complaints with the FBI and the National Science Foundation. Note: a new twist to asserting a patent. The patent is U.S. patent 7,244,702, filed April 2003, and only cites three U.S. patents as prior art. "People are pirating my work.", Olisa said. "They are squishing me." He told Barron's his drug was the subject of 3,000 medical journal articles. Asked for citations,he then said it contained ingredients that have been mentioned in medical journals. His Web site (www.biologicalagents.com) suggests that the drug is useful against cancer, tuberculosis, malaria and HIV. Members of the Assocation of Biomolecular Research Facilities are puzzled by Olisa's bold claims. Olisa also says he owns the patent for detecting 12 of the 20 standard amino acids of which proteins are made. "We're not going to pay his demand.", said University of Minnesota legal counsel Brian Slovut. "We evaluated his claim and determined that there was no validity to it." Note: Brian - you are so wrong. Olisa's patent is one of Jon Dudas' many high quality issued patents. Christopher Viney, general counsel at Roswel Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, New York, concluded that its lab practices didn't infringe Olisa's claims. Government patent examiners don't always understand the fast moving science of proteomics, noted Harvard University lab manager John Neveu. He said Harvard isn't paying. Olisa promised to call off the collection agents if the alleged infringers pay up. But they had better act fast. Olisa said he is a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy and is shipping off to Iraq in a few months.

How a patent lawsuit was used to inflate penny stock

2009-02-01T05:35:00.003-05:00

The newswires and stock blogs have been all-abuzz in the past month about a patent lawsuit filed by Wordlogic against Mercedes Benz. What follows is one financial newsletter's review of the case and their recommendation to BUY because Wordlogic is going to win hundreds of millions of dollars from MB, and then sue everyone else as well. I am dubious - the patent could have serious validity problems because of non-cited prior art. The patent involved, U. S. Pat. No. 7,293,231, is for a predictive text algorithm, that is as you type the first part of a word, the computer automatically offers one or more full words that could be what you have in mind. I type in "predict" and the computer automatically returns "prediction, predictive, etc.". Cute feature in some cases, aggravating feature in other cases. The following stock tout is interesting for its cheerleading wording, its use of patent lingo, and calculation of patent damages, which while I think are exaggerated, look like some of the patent damage calculations proposed in "legitimate" patent lawsuits. It is entertaining reading, and good copy if you want to tout your patent lawsuit in the future. A pity the tout ignores serious prior art problems with the patent. As of June 2008, WordLogic had retained Dan Skerritt of Tonkon Torp (Portland), a litigator whose big win seems to be one of those state lawsuits against the cigarette companies. I hope he understand prior art in the patent world. Also in June, WordLogic retained the services of Ascend Ventures, to help exploit its patent. The patent cites a fair amount of patent and non-patent prior art: 119 U.S. patents and patent applications, 15 foreign patents. While it cites a lot of non-patent prior art, only 10 are one year or more prior to the provisional filing date of March 1999. Since there has been two decades of research prior to the filing in this area of user interfaces, this patent could have invalidity problems, once Mercedes-Benz throws some good money at a prior art search. This potential problem is not mentioned at all in the tout below, one reason I am suspicious of its logic. The second problem is that there an Acacia subsidiary, Autotext, which has a lawsuit against 12 companies over a much earlier patent, 5,305,205, that is similar to WordLogic's patent (more primitive maybe, but raises 103 issues definitely). And this patent is NOT cited by Wordlogic's patent, raising invalidity issues of what other patent prior art Wordlogic missed finding, let alone what other non-patent prior art Wordlogic missed finding (I am available to do the search :-) Let's look at the key aspect of Wordlogic's independent claim 1:

(a) receiving a partial text entry comprising at least a first character (b) in response to receipt of the first character ...., obtaining a dynamically generated list of completion candidates .... (c) displaying the list of completion candidates in a search list

The rest of the claim is utterly obvious graphical user interface methods to ask the user if she wants to ignore the list, or choose one of the proposed words to be entered into the appropriate field. Now, let's look at the key aspects of Acacia's 5,305,205 patent not cited as prior art:

(b) list means responsive to the entry of a succession of characters by said entry device on a character by character basis for determining a succession of ordered lists of candidate words from said vocabulary words, .... (c) display means for displaying at least a portion of said list on said display screen, ...

Not that hard to map the three phrases from the WordLogic patent into the three phrases from Acacia's patent, suggesting that WordLogic has serious patent validity problems, especially if additional prior art searching is done. Supposedly WordLogic has a second patent about to issue, probably a continuation where they submitted additional prior art. But if such art included the Acacia patent, the second patent is proof not of WordLogic's innovation, but rather more proof of patent quality problems at the PTO. So when Frank Evanshen, president and CEO of WordLogic is proclaiming:

"The time has arrived for this company, its products, and its patents to be put on the world stage."

I can agree if the stage happens to be at a world comedy theater. On January 20th, 2009, WordLogic announced a comprehensive technical and financial review is being done of the patent, to be finished in a month. Without a rigorous prior art analysis, this review will be worthless. Indeed, the report is available at www.wordlogic.com/WordLogicReport.pdf, a report which is worthless for ignoring the prior art problems this patent probably has. Thus the following stock tout is a good example of a) patent lawsuit based stock touts you will see more and more in the future, and b) the dubious nature of many such stock recommendations if they aren't written by one or more people who know the stock markets, technology and patent claim analysis. Now, "Wall Street News Alert"- The Stewart Report Investment Opinion German Engineering Has the Respect, But WordLogic Holds the U.S. Patent. Laguna Beach, CA, January 23, 2009 - To most investors, WordLogic (OTC/BB: WLGC $0.80) is a cutting-edge software technology company... and I won't argue with that assessment. But, for our purposes, it's a pregnant win in the form of a giant lawsuit. Very recent events, not yet digested by the financial community, suggest this lawsuit is worth $12-$18 per share, yet the stock is still under a buck. Speculating on the outcome of a lawsuit might not seem like the highest of ambitions - the Wall Street equivalent of ambulance chasing - until you realize the value of the technology relative to the probable value of the suit itself. As for the defendant? It's none other than Mercedes-Benz of North America, meaning that this particular "ambulance" is stacked with enough $100 bills to pass for an armored Brink's truck. Besides, the technology being contested is so integral to modern daily life that you probably used it a couple times today before you even got to work. So did your kids. In fact, if you received this stock recommendation on your Bluetooth, Blackberry, iPhone or some other handheld device - or even if you got it via e-mail on your desktop - it's likely you used WordLogic's technology to open this profile on WordLogic itself. That's because most of today's personal electronics employ a "predictive text" program - i.e., the technology on your text-messaging program that finishes the word "message" before you finish entering the letters "mess" Actually, though, WordLogic's technology is to simple predictive text-messaging software what chess is to checkers. Horizontal logic is no big trick. It's the ability to bridge upward to access all kinds of specialty dictionaries that makes WordLogic's technology so patently unique. In terms of vertical growth, if its intellectual property was a building, we'd be looking at The Sears Tower. The software really is dynamic. But, again, the important thing is that it's also heavily patented - and the patent has been so heavily infringed on that triple damages are now being sought. If the adage is true, if "imitation really is the sincerest form of flattery", then the same thing could probably be said of plagiarism - or even the outright piracy of an intellectual property. My point being, if WordLogic's technology is good enough for Mercedes-Benz, it's probably very good technology! Beyond that, the techno-members of a wireless generation who live and breathe ethers of the Internet would be the ones to best explain WordLogic's software. No, my assigned role here is to offer The Stewart Report's investment opinion, in part because I've twice used the stock market to speculate on the outcome of David v. Goliath-type lawsuits similar to this - and twice I scored some fairly bodacious profits. I also have a 50 percent interest in Stewart/Abbott Medical, a privately held company with a technology that's patent pending, so I have a modest knowledge of patent law and the hurdles of the patent process. And, finally, the last stock The Stewart Report featured using the ---- service (Applied Nanoscience, Inc.: Pink Sheets/APNN) more than doubled in just four day's time. A little profit-taking set in after that, but it's still up a respectable 84.6 percent. Bragging rights aside, APNN is a "patent technology pure play." Bottom Line: WordLogic is also a "patent technology pure play", but with a wonderful wild-card twist: Massive, winnable litigation for treble damages! Ridiculous sums of money are up for grabs - and I believe that, one way or another, WordLogic will prevail. The adage is: "If you know the ropes, you are less likely to hang from them." Frank Evanshen, WordLogic's President and CEO, understands this. So he also understands that if you are to go up against an army of German lawyers, deep pockets can be helpful. Accordingly, selling the Company - and therefore the patent, the lawsuit and the future payday for a large fraction of its long-term value - is always a viable option. That makes WordLogic an obvious buyout candidate as well. So, whether it's in the courtroom or the conference room, shareholders have an intriguing situation that's already in play, and is the basis for The Stewart Report's strong speculative BUY Recommendation at this time. United States Patent No. 7,293,231 Everything centers on WordLogic's patent. The original application is titled: "Data Entry for Personal Computing Devices." Read that twice, consider the day and age in which we live and then tell me this isn't an important patent. You might also take a look at the link on the Company's website and view the patent documents themselves. In them, you'll notice that the Company makes 116 separate claims (all of them were approved!) and survived seven separate "Office Actions" (which is almost unheard of). See below: NOTE: If you are unfamiliar with the patent process, an Office Action is filed when the patent people come back to you with a complaint and/or a request for additional proof to substantiate your design claims. Usually, in all but the most important patent applications, after one or two Office Actions, a patent is either approved or sent to the shredder. Surviving so many claims is evidence of a patent application that has been thoroughly tested because it's truly far-reaching - If not all-encompassing. In other words, what we're talking about here is an honest-to-goodness "Platform Technology", such as DOS, on which Microsoft was built. These are, of course, rare - and tend to be wildly valuable.

Football clairvoyance

2009-01-21T03:58:00.002-05:00

Writing about nitty-gritty of sports, I always try to take a glance back at past season or two and distill some useful, reproducible statistics. Just like everyone else, I use football picks, at Comcast. net 's NFL standings section, a good source for those who are truly clairvoyant about every game, who have the sense of humor, and take some potshots. That is where someone can get the inspiration and enjoy those Good Teams Selection weeks. I always enjoyed Week 4. It's the last week before the Really Good Teams separate themselves from the Good Teams and the Up-And-Down Teams, so I could still eek out out some gambling bargains. Like the Chiefs, they're right at the juncture where the Rams some time ago, when the lines hadn't adjusted enough, when Kurt Warner's deal with the devil was still a state secret, and nobody knew they were the "14-2 waiting to happen." So that's where I made the money. Have you wondered how the Titans don't really make contenders till Steve McNair gets scrapped? One could just recommend that the night before every season he should just drive his throwing hand into a concrete wall. Might as well get it done and over with. He's is truly the Degree of Difficulty Guy, who need a partially torn ligament and a bunch of run of the mill receivers and he'll happily lead you to 10-some wins. Are you ready for an upset?

The ultimate in V8 engines, coffee tables, and recycling:

2009-01-20T09:33:00.006-05:00

It's also a conversation piece and a reserve supply of aluminum. The empty valve journals can hold 16 slim sausages, or cigars. source

New idea - earning air miles through online banking

2009-01-20T09:21:00.004-05:00

searching for Online Checking Accounts, I found the treasure trove of online bank deals. I found that Capital One Bank, for example, is offering a checking account with only a $50 to start. The account is only available in states where Capital One Bank has branch locations - New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Louisiana and Texas. Airline miles can be earned on this account by using a debit card, writing checks or paying bills online. The mile rewards never expire.

High tech spiders and arts

2009-01-20T08:51:00.002-05:00

La Machine is a company formed in the early 1990s as a collaboration between artists, designers, fabricators and technicians. Now led by Artistic Director François Delarozière, the company creates extraordinary theatrical machines, permanent installations, and also its own theatrical productions. I understand they use a lot of ingenious, hi-tech devices that make things look out of this world and aesthetic, too. Check it out at http://www.lamachine.co.uk/index.php/gallery/

I wondered myself, what does CD LAN Party mean?

2009-01-20T08:27:00.004-05:00

I thought it was some kind of a LAN converted into a WiFi, for party purposes. I have seen patents on this. Here is an interesting site that us brimming full of interesting information. If I you happened to look for CD key crack, you would find everything that you will ever need - sources of free software, cracks, serials, keygens, SIMs, as well as interesting news on new gadgets and games. Check out the iPod sniper rifle, and futuristic-looking shiny phones.

Another business opportunity: pet wills

2009-01-20T08:23:00.001-05:00

A Missoula-based Internet company recently launched "Pet Living Wills" as a way to protect your favorite dog, cat or goldfish when you are not there. If you could speak on behalf of your pets, what would you say is a question Mary Ellen Campbell asked when a horse she was watching for a friend came down very sick and a choice needed to be made. "So we called and Called and couldn't get anyone, and so we had to make some pretty important decisions life or death about whether to put down a horse" said Campbell. "I didn't really expect that emotional problem I would have trying to decide on someone's pet." The incident lead her to become a co-founder of Pet Living Wills, "It occurred to be how we have living wills maybe because pets cant talk and speak for themselves we need to have something that will speak for them." Boarded animals or animals left with a caregiver often don't have the proper instructions in case of a pet emergency, which co-founder David Firth says can lead to some tough choices. "Most people just don't assume that any thing is going to happen and that's why people have car insurance, because you don't assume your going to have a crash but that may just happen someday." The idea is the first of its kind, and after a three year process, the Internet business went public just last week.

Here is something for Obama's platform

2009-01-20T07:44:00.002-05:00

We sure have gotten to the historical moment when today, the first black U. S. President is about to be sworn in. Many Americans hope that he will make a difference, and implement perceptible, positive changes. I think that our country, as a leader in Internet-driven information, web social activities, and more particularly, in blogosphere, can move the changes forward by coordinating the changes. Because it is not up to one individual only, the US President or a prominent billionaire, but every web citizen to understand and hone up the master plan that the country should abide by. After all, as the common wisdom says, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. A good start for the plan, or the platform, I found, is something that has been outlined as Reinventing America. Good point - "we need to change our school curriculum by including courses on ethics and business manners. We also need business transparency platform that would establish guidelines for organizational transparency. This would include specific recommendations for both for-profit and non-profit organizations and government bodies. Greater transparency in the nation’s capital will lead America by example." This is a great new deal that avoid the unpleasant, intrusive governmental regulation.

Using OR in a claim

2009-01-14T06:13:00.001-05:00

The "or" can be used in a claim, when an integral function of an invention, such as:

an dial enabling said appliance to access cold, warm or hot water

but not in situation where there is a choice of machines, i. e., a different machine, such as

machine running on diesel or gas

it is all obvious, common sense.

The idea of going green in spare sparts:

2009-01-14T05:46:00.004-05:00

Trying to dispose of an old spare tyre, I realized it would be a pity to throw it just anywhere - the rubbish truck does not pick it up, the city recycling center does not take them, the little river running through the neighborhood has been cleaned up of these things serving as shore guards. Then I realized - I have more car parts that are a pity to throw into the nature. The do-it yourself repairs I used to do generated one too many of these non-biodegradable, annoying car parts. The easiest solution is ordering used car parts online, I searched in the "Automotive Shopping Online" category, and chose the 247spares, one of the top 6 hits. Their used car parts prices are very low, the orders processed and arrived on time. Judging from feedback, the standard delivery time is within 24 hours. I have been building a smart car from a kit, and the 247spares has a special telephone support line for smart car owners, just for finding the right car part. They have got glow plug sensors for my high tech diesel motor. The 247spares also saves me from having to spend a good chunk of time in uncertainty at Smart car breaker yards. Instead, a completed form on the 247spares site, with information about one's Smart Car vehicle and the car spares required, and the part is easily found at the best prices. All their Smart Car breakers offer fully guaranteed used Smart Car car parts, with Next Day Nationwide delivery services across the UK.

Checking houses for ghosts is also a valid business opportunity

2009-01-14T05:10:00.003-05:00

http://www.isurhousehaunted.com - is the strangest online business I've stumbled upon in a long, long while. The site help people find out if their house could be haunted. Do objects go missing or disappear in your house? Do you hear strange noises at night? Have you lived in your house for over 5 years? Answer easy questions about yourself and your own superstitions. Do you believe in black cats, walking under ladders, etc.? A rather clever idea to make money online, don't you think? I believe this particular site accepts US traffic only.

Meet a real knowledge broker

2009-01-14T04:37:00.004-05:00

Post content removed. This post's space is held for content suitable for the post title. To contact me directly and privately, leave a comment, which will be read but not posted.

The 10 Books That Treach Freakonomics

2009-01-14T00:28:00.003-05:00

1. Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior Why is it so difficult to sell a plummeting stock or end a doomed relationship? Why do we listen to advice just because it came from someone “important”? Why are we more likely to fall in love when there’s danger involved? In Sway, renowned organizational thinker Ori Brafman and his brother, psychologist Rom Brafman, answer all these questions and more. Sway introduces us to the Harvard Business School professor who got his students to pay $204 for a $20 bill, the head of airline safety whose disregard for his years of training led to the transformation of an entire industry, and the football coach who turned conventional strategy on its head to lead his team to victory. We also learn the curse of the NBA draft, discover why interviews are a terrible way to gauge future job performance, and go inside a session with the Supreme Court to see how the world’s most powerful justices avoid the dangers of group dynamics. 2. Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions What Ariely has done here is shift a lot of the thinking developed by such pioneers as Kahneman & Tversky who worked in behavioral economics, and moved it into the everyday sphere. And he’s done a great, insightful job. Where the behavioral economists are focused on financial decisions (why we buy high and sell low - and confound the assumptions of the classic economists who assume ‘the rational man,) Ariely eschews the technical language and walks us through everyday examples of our often fuzzy and quite irrational decision-making. 3. The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less I think “Paradox of Choice” does bring insight into shopping, but its range is actually much wider than that. Schwartz discusses people making difficult decisions about jobs, families, where to live, whether to have children, how to spend recreational time, choosing colleges, etc. He talks about why making these decisions today is much harder than it was 30 years ago, and he offers many practical suggestions for how to address decision-making so that it creates less stress and more happiness. He even discusses how so much additional choice affects children, and how parents can help make childhood (particularly young childhood) less stressful. 4. Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness “Buy on apples, sell on cheese” is an old proverb among wine merchants. Taking a bite of an apple before tasting wine makes it easier to detect flaws in the wine, and the buyer who does so will not as easily make the mistake of paying more than the wine is worth. Cheese, on the other hand, pairs well with wine and enhances its flavor, so a seller who offers cheese may command a higher price for the wine (and may even deserve it, if the wine is intended to be drunk with cheese). The proverb captures important psychological nuances of choice. The same product - a bottle of wine or a risky medical procedure - may be perceived differently depending on its context, and it is often possible to arrange the context to influence a choice while still maintaining the decision maker’s autonomy. 5. Quirkology: How We Discover the Big Truths in Small Things Richard Wiseman is an experimental psychologist and professor of “public understanding of psychology.” In this book, he discusses dozens of experiments performed by himself and other psychologists around the world over the course of the last hundred years. All these experiments have in common is unusual research methodology or amusing results. Topics include studies of personal ads and pickup lines, determining which are most effective, how to detect liars, manifestations of prejudice and hypocrisy (are religious people or priests more honest or generous than others? it has been tested). Wiseman even ran tests to see which experiments in the book are the most interesting, to help the reader know what would be the best conversation starters at parties. 6. Blind Spots: Why Smart People Do Dumb Things Clinical psychologist Van Hecke has compiled a list of 10 mental glitches that have infiltrated contemporary society, afflicting even the smartest among us, limiting thought, success and relationships. Van Hecke devotes a chapter to each blind spot, including “Not stopping to think,” “Not noticing,” “Jumping to conclusions” and “Missing the big picture.” Examining each in detail, Van Hecke details the root causes of these unconscious habits (”information overload,” “our tendency to habituate”) and tactics for overcoming them, using humorous anecdotes and other real-life examples to drive her points; the key is remaining open to new ideas and taking a step back from our busy lives in order to process information, situations and people. Filling in “the big picture” herself, Van Hecke demonstrates how embracing and understanding our weaknesses can not only improve personal and professional relationships, but also entire communities; this self-help is a welcome, highly readable first step. 7. Kluge: The Haphazard Construction of the Human Mind In “Kluge,” psychologist Gary Marcus looks to the many and varied foibles, inconsistencies, and inaccuracies of the human mind and concludes that our brains are not, in fact, models of brilliance and efficiency, but are rather cobbled-together systems, designed for one purpose and pressed into action for another - the classic definition of a kluge. The most famous kluge is probably the case of the carbon scrubbers on the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission. Crunched for time, engineers managed to create a system out of duct tape and socks (seriously) that worked adequately enough to clean the air on the space module- even though none of the materials they used were designed for, or optimal for, the job at hand. The result was ugly and inefficient - but it kept the astronauts alive. Likewise, Marcus argues, evolution has endowed humans with a hodgepodge of genetic material - the DNA equivalent of duct tape - with which to build all the sophisticated systems that supposedly set us apart from other creatures, like language, memory, and reason. The result is, for example in the case of language, “a vocal apparatus more byzantine than a bagpipe made up entirely of pipe cleaners and cardboard dowels.” 8. The Drunkard’s Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives The author writes to the layman, making the language of statistics, probability, randomness a fascinating read. It’s clear that he’s well aware of the fallacies and delusions (and consequent harm) to which most of us are easy prey. But he leaves it to the reader to draw any philosophical-theological inferences about the need for greater humility. His immediate goal is to help the reader understand the distinction between 1. the “common-sense” logic employed by self-serving finite beings coping with problems in the material world and 2. a “scientific method” that takes nothing for granted in a universe of perpetual flux. More miraculous than either the accomplishments of the romantic hero or the intercessions of a supreme being (everyday stuff for most of us) is the rare discovery that two things (or “events” in the spatial-temporal order) suspected of being connected (a hypothesis) in fact cannot be shown “not” to have such a relationship (the proof). 9. Guesstimation: Solving the World’s Problems on the Back of a Cocktail Napkin Somehow, guessing at numbers is unsettling, even though I’ve done it all my life. John Adam is a professor of applied mathematics, with a degree in physics. Larry Weinstein is a nuclear physicist. Their book is devoted to proving that intelligent guessing is useful and fun. The book lays out some general principles but its great strength lies in the interesting problems, a series of hints to help you solve each problem, and an interesting discussion of the pitfalls and triumphs involved. 10. Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion Cialdini believes that influence is a science. This idea attracted me. As a rhetorician, I have always thought of persuasion as more of an art. Cialdini, however, makes a first-rate case for the science point of view. But maybe most importantly, he makes his case in a well-written, intelligent, and entertaining manner. Not only is this an important book to read, it is a fun book to read too. He introduces you to six principles of ethical persuasion: reciprocity, scarcity, liking, authority, social proof, and commitment/consistency. A chapter is devoted to each and you quickly see why Cialdini looks at influence as a science. Each principle is backed by social scientific testing and retesting. Each chapter is also filled with interesting examples that help you see how each principle can be applied. By the end of the book, I had little doubt that these are six important dimensions of human interaction.

Non-prosecutable scam:

2009-01-13T04:33:00.001-05:00

True Story - Australian Police have been totally unable to recommend a prosecution for the following scam: A company takes out a newspaper advertisement claiming to be able to supply imported hard core pornographic videos. As their prices seem reasonable, people place orders and make payments via check to the ASFP company. After several weeks, the company writes back explaining that under the present law they are unable to supply the materials and do not wish to be prosecuted. So they return their customers money in the form of a company check, using the full company name. However, due to the name of the company, few people ever bother to present these to their banks. The name? - The Anal Sex and Fetish Perversion Company source

Business Methods and Software Patents are perfectly OK

2009-01-08T16:49:00.004-05:00

The most frequently overlooked support for computer software and business models being patentable - US Patent Act Title 35, The United States Code, §101:

Whoever invents or discovers any new or useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefore...

That is why this stnadard rule of thumb must be heeded: claims should be drafted from the point of view of the server, the subscriber, AND the software manufacture etc. (i.e., In re Beauregard claims).

The new and non-obvious idea of franchising

2009-01-08T16:38:00.005-05:00

I have thought about franchising, because many of our clients own franchise business. I think the benefit must be simple - the business is a copy of a successful business. The problems have already been worked out, therefore, the advantage is in the having of avoided the initial developmental hiccups and going straight to operating a business.

Many people want to be their own boss - this is the primary reason for pursuing their own business. For others, it may be the satisfaction of enjoying success through their elbow grease. No matter what the reason, franchising puts one on the road to success without the risk experienced by independent businesses.

There is also the advantage of brand awareness. When one buys into an established national or international brand, there is the automatic name recognition that comes with being associated with a large and familiar company. Furthermore, there is the free training and support that contains proven techniques so that brings on success faster. There is also a built-in access to a network of business owners who share exactly the same business experience. Networking and support from other owners is undoubtedly a priceless resource in business. A franchise means an immense enjoyment of the benefits of collective purchasing power. The franchisor has already established a relationship with many vendors and negotiated a reduced price for their products and services.

I have also thought of myself trying this, and realized it might be something related to general public needs - food, cars, pets, cleaning.

The best franchise opportunity, I have found, should be a car repair franchise. Everyone has had to have their car serviced -mufflers, brakes, tires, radiator flush. Or, it must be a dog grooming franchise . More than half the dogs in these climes where I live are shaggy enough to need grooming.

Thus this company provides the franchise service, it turns out, has tons of experience in the franchising industry. They educate anyone interested in owning their own franchise. Their franchise consultants are franchisees themselves. They are skilled at spotting character traits essential in a potential candidate, and then the candidates are prepared for matching with franchisors.

Their method of matching entails recommending the candidates to three respective franchisors. Each franchisors' representative acquaints the candidate with that franchisor's own qualification process. The franchise consultants keep in touch with the franchisors' representatives and with the candidate. The candidate completes the selection process by identifying the franchise company from which to franchise. The candidate then finalizes the franchise agreement, pays the franchise fee and is awarded the franchise license. The candidate never pays any fees to this franchising assistance company, which is effectively, the middleman. Instead of the franchisee, it is the selected franchisor who pays a referral fee - this is the attractive feature of the idea.

The standard caveat

2009-01-08T09:19:00.003-05:00

In each patent application there must be a standard caveat for any potential competitors, infringers and licensees. In the Specification section of the patent application, the start of the technical narration is headed with this (typical) paragraph: Before explaining the disclosed embodiment of the present invention in detail it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of the particular arrangement shown since the invention is capable of other embodiments. Also, the terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.

and finalized with this caveat:

While the invention has been described, disclosed, illustrated and shown in various terms of certain embodiments or modifications which it has presumed in practice, the scope of the invention is not intended to be, nor should it be deemed to be, limited thereby and such other modifications or embodiments as may be suggested by the teachings herein are particularly reserved especially as they fall within the breadth and scope of the claims here appended.

Some applications that have details drawings, or where drawings are a crucial piece of the application, might also mention drawings in a way that almost sneaks up on you. I don;t have a good example of these.

Mya is also the name for higher self-esteem

2009-01-08T09:09:00.004-05:00

Looking around at the office, I cringe at the thought that I have to agree - a woman with smallish, sagging breasts has a lower self-esteem and confidence. Especially comes to mind one of our office picnics. One of our paralegals said that yes, she felt "undersize," but her comforting thought was, men paid attention to her face and to what she said, not to her chest. The slightly sad fact is that a woman whose breasts are "undersize", either naturally, or due to childbirth, having lost weight, her self-esteem has been diminished, all the more so the potential for a satisfying interpersonal relationships and wider social life. Many of the women seeking breast augmentation have reported being distressed about their appearance in a variety of situations, and have been teased about their appearance. Women seeking breast enlargement have been reported as being usually younger, healthier, from higher socio-economic status, and more often married with children than the population at large. This woman can opt for this procedure, which can take care of any negative self-perceptions. This procedure has become one of the most often practiced surgeries that garners he highest patient satisfaction.

It may be referred to as a mammoplasty enlargement, augmentation mammoplasty or the common slang term boob job because it increases breast size and creates a curvy, full bosom. Breast augmentation is the most widely practiced form of cosmetic surgery. A patient-chosen implant is inserted through a small incision made in the natural fold under the woman's breast. The woman might have to spend a night at the hospital so she could be closely monitored and discharged with no possible complications detrimental to her overall health. After the operation, up to a week of sick leave may be required for the stitches and dressings to be ready for removal.

I think this paralegal at the office can benefit from such an operation. Sooner or later she will drop by this blog again, and check out this post - because she often and, being good natured, scans my blog for coverage of feminist and other women's issues. Breast augmentation is also carried out at this British site, which has nice and curvy models, and the their name - Mya.co.uk A beautiful coincidence?

Another great book on Nature:

2009-01-03T15:00:00.004-05:00

The Nature of Living Things, by C. Brooke Worth and Robert K Enders There has never been anything this good after this book has been out, since 1955. These questions sound staid and trite nowadays: ~ What is life? How did it begin? ~ How does one species evolve from another? ~ How did man develop from a one-celled animal? ~ How do cells grow and reproduce? ~ How has Darwin's theory of evolution influenced further scientific investigation? The book provides authoritative, easy-to-understand answers to these and many more questions about plants and animals and their relation to the universe which will give you a vivid picture of how life began and progressed through hundreds of millions of years. This book, back in 1955, provides the answers in the most innocent, non-political, objective style. The book is illustrated in the typical black and white, line-drawing or etching style drawings of the decade. I have read it and found it more satisfying than something that could be found on a glitzy DVD, coffe-table album or web site.

A way to add to an idea - Continuation in Part

2009-01-01T15:46:00.002-05:00

This tactic has a simple advantageous goals:

1. To add to a previously filed application, without risking a prior art infringement (102e).

2. To enable a partially new entity (new inventor) to file an application based on a prior application by a partially different entity, and not to risk infringement of parent application (paragraph 102e) see US Patent Laws.

A simple matchmaking idea

2009-01-01T15:41:00.002-05:00

You might have thought there is nothing new in matchmaking sites, where technology is predictable: personal data is associated according to criteria with a participant user, and the criteria data is compared to each of the group of users, where the size of the group may also be narrowed by the user. The classmate sites add nothing new, since they bring people together according to an existing criteria, which is a pre-existing group the user might have been a member of. Thus the standard dating sites have not really made any significant strides in web 2.0 direction. Whoever that is interested in trying one out can't really count on devoting a chunk of his life to each site. The time for comparison shopping has long been wanting a directory that compares sites side by side. It turns out that the Dating Directory site has created a simplest solution to it, a hypercontextual comparison of such sites sortable according to any imaginable category: Dating Sites By Age, Senior Dating, College Dating, Middle Age, Ethnicity Dating, Black Dating, Asian, Spanish, European, as well as * Interracial Dating Sites * Mainstream Dating Sites * Dating Sites * Women Seeking Men * Men Seeking Women * Straight Dating Sites * Regional Dating Sites * Dating Sites By State * Religion Dating Sites * Christian Dating Sites * Sexual Orientation Dating Sites * Gay Dating Sites * Lesbian Dating Sites * TS/TV/TG Dating Sites * Transexual Dating Sites * Transvestite Dating Sites * Crossdresser Dating Sites * Transgendered Dating Sites * Shared Interest Dating Sites * BBW Dating Sites * XXX Dating Sites * BDSM Dating Sites * Adult Dating Sites * Biker Dating Sites * Tattoo Dating Sites * Fitness Dating Sites * Swinger Dating Sites * Naughty Dating Sites * Millionaire Dating Sites * Gothic/Dark Dating Sites * Professional Dating Sites * Married But Playing Dating Sites I never thought many of these really presented a considerable market. Now each of them has a matchmaking venue.

Here's all you ever wanted to know about provisional patent applications:

2008-12-31T06:02:00.005-05:00

Provisional Patent Application is a part of §111 of US Patent Law. When you are not ready to have a patent attorney process your invention data into an application, but you are pressed by other factors to get some kind of legal footing, then the provisional filing is your option. A provisional application is a simple, inexpensive patent application ($110 for a small entity as of today) that will not be examined. Claim language in a provisional application is NOT required by USPTO, but it is recommended by other offices -a precautionary measure in case of an unforeseen litigation. The greatest advantage in filing a provisional is the right to claim an invention's priority date, and the status of a PATENT PENDING.

I get a shvoong for high tech spectacles

2008-12-31T04:37:00.005-05:00

Dealing with intellectual property, and especially with aerospace technology, I am so used to exotic metal technology that I realize my life is least involved with titanium. Now I have to face the reality of having to wear glasses, and might as well have the ones made of titanium. The metal is unique for having a memory structure. The shape it was formed or stamped into a final product would always be the form it will return to, regardless of how bent. I launched a pedantic, rocket-science-like search for a pair of specs. I found several at Zenni Optical's Holiday frames. The one I picked is this one: It is a 3739 Pure Titanium Half Rim Frame, with 1.56 index lens weighing only 21 grams, which impresses me as quite durable, all for only $39.95. All that is needed is a current eyeglass prescription. The procedure has been made very simple, I would have to copy from my prescription the standard data such as OD/OS, the Sph (focal plane), Cyl and Axis data regarding astigmatism, any additional data, whether the glasses are single vision distance glasses, or single vision reading lens, the Pupillary Distance, and the Prescription and Lens Type. I see that the Holiday Frames page has tons of frames to pick from. Plastic or Acetate, Stainless Steel, Memory Titanium, Acetate or Mixed Material, Sunshade Models, Pure Titanium, Aluminum Alloy, Rimless, Variable Dimension Frames, Children's Frames, Leading Edge Designs, Women's Fashion Frames with sparkling crystals, or argyle, or stained glass pattern, Men's Classic Goggles, what have you. I think these site has started a pro-customer revolution.

Claim Language is from Mars, 1

2008-12-30T07:44:00.003-05:00

We never say "a hot pot for placing on said magical pad". "Placing" is a very vague verb. It has become to be used as a noun, wherein the patent has no use for such a noun, i. e., a step of placing. Therefore, these formulaic norms are used: X is for disposing on/juxtaposing with Y = X for placing on Y this norm hold true for temporarily, or intermittently placing of X on Y However, when X is placed and affixed on Y permanently during manufacture, for example, then the formulaic norm is: X is disposed on Y=X is part of B

British Debt Calculator may save us from the financial crisis

2008-12-30T07:34:00.003-05:00

Considering the latest financial crisis, the personal finances bode ill for most of the average public. I know people who are still relying on revolving their credit card debt, skimming pathetic grand or two through mortgage refinancing (lucky few), and performing incredible juggling acts with the seemingly straightforward debit cards. What I see and cannot help, since I am into patent law, is that sooner or later, the credit partying comes to an end. The debt owed gets handed over to a chain of financial companies, who start loading up the debtor's answering machine. Some of the debt gets bought by a packaged collection companies, who pretend to be the law, and demand that you start using their payment coupons, and then, through a carrot and stick tactic, manage to dangle an offer for a debtors' credit card. Soon the point of sale terminals start declining debit cards, personal checks, and the cold hard reality starts to kick in. Debt Advice sites, like cleardebt.co.uk, provides hope as well as incredible avenues of action for anyone burdened with debt in UK, and loads of interesting solutions for those in other countries, especially in USA. Many people here in US do not suspect that they can hammer out an IVA-type of agreement (Individual Voluntary Arrangement) with a collection department of any company. Letter Of Apology, Court Order, Freezing Interim Judgement they all can be studied in detail and with step by step advice, all laid out in front of you, can forestall the most uncomfortable events in one's financial life. Their Debt Repayment Calculator is sheer fun.

Avoid Lamborghini at all cost

2008-12-30T05:26:00.003-05:00

Beware of making claim which is dependent on a component, workpiece or a system that is necessarily located outside the US (i. e. its national boundary) as it may limit infringement: it would make very easy for a US party to actually avoid using this foreign component and exploit your patent to the fullest, unpunished. Preferably claim this type from perspective of US component. Thus if you are have a patent being written on a system that uses a Lamborghini car (to test motor oil, tire endurance, or moonshine gasohol, better avoid claiming the use of this particular car, and instead, claim a car powered by an engine having at least 6 cylinders, having aerodynamic outer dimensions generally patterned after modernistic perceptions of Italian Renaissance, and capable of accelerating from 0 to 60 mph in 2 seconds.

This is the way to get ready for the Superbowl Sunday

2008-12-30T05:11:00.002-05:00

For someone who likes winters sports there seems to be nothing that could mar a nice weekend of outdoor fun. But it happens, a lot, here in the Midwest, with frequent power outages due to ice storms, fallen branches, an odd thunderstorm or just the old infrastructure crumbling and rusting. I visited my friend Vidal, and found that he has a high tech power management built into his house that is based around his own diesel Power Generator sitting inside an inconspicuous shed in his backyard. The power system is also coupled to a power line carrier digital system, which is better than Bluetooth and WiFi, and works when the electric company supply is down. O looked into it and realized that as far as my knowledge of things electrical, I can have a power generator installed by a qualified professional, and I can take it from there. I think I would choose one of Natural Gas Generators , since it running around the town looking for Diesel is to tally unknown for me. I would need a plentiful supply, since sometimes outages last for at least 4-6 hours, and I would go for a generator that would support all of my house appliances, including the gas-fired furnace and two fridges. I also understand power transmission well enough to appreciate and recommend strongly that a gas generator be always used with a Generator Transfer Switch , which deals with the often ignored topic of the switching process. How would the switchover happen? It should not cause a destruction of the appliances that have to be powered. Once the electrical company is working on restoring power, the generator should be isolated from the rest of the grid so as not to shock the company employees working on power lines that they assume are not live. I think my house of 2500 square feet would need at least a 150 amp switch and a 60 kW generator (www.gencentral.com) - sounds industrial, however, why not err on the safe side?

WORKING AT THE IBM VS. WORKING AT PTO

2008-12-21T13:19:00.000-05:00

On the Kappos bit, however - granted that the past behavior is that of a quisling, could there not be a scintilla of benefit to bringing in the management style of IBM? Regardless of IBM's manipulating the (Patent) system to their own ends, IBM has had one of the most ruthless, effective and fair management styles. At least it did have, in earlier times (which was pre-PC and women executives, when it was mandatory to wear dark suits, ties and laundered shirts - professionally laundered, not in the home washer). This discipline, which surpassed the military of then (and assuredly the military of now, that permits work clothes and tiger suits off-base and battle-rank is worn openly) was the epitome of equality in the one most important aspect: The higher one rose in IBM, the tougher it got. A single grievance by client or employee resulted in immediate reallocation of your resources until a hearing was held. If you were exonerated, the employee was terminated and you were free to pick up the pieces. At the PTO, the situation is ack-basswards: The main pressure is put on the lower ranks, with the incentive to rise being exponential increases in pay and bonuses with far, far less responsibilities - not to mention the relief from escaping the production system used as a cattle-prod on examiners. A common refrain of managers is that they are "constrained" by HR and OPM (from doing their jobs). On more than one occasion, I have been told that an examiner cannot be reassigned because the person is of a protected persuasion and a) the manager/supervisor/director fears scrutiny, or b) the manager/supervisor/director is being already scrutinized or c) the employee has a civil rights appeal pending. In short, the unprotected lower class is overworked and under-supervised, the "protected" lower class is under-worked and under-supervised, the middle management is overpaid, underworked and inexperienced. While the customers - the US Citizens and the Country - are abused and neglected. So, bring in a lackey of IBM. Perhaps some of the discipline from the old school will rub off. It might sound tough, but it was a hell of a lot easier to work in a system where your supervisor was paid twice your salary - because they worked twice as hard - rather than the upside-down world of today's PTO.

Patents, The $50 Billion Fraud and Globalism

2008-12-18T13:08:00.003-05:00

Business Week columnist Michael Mandel has an excellent article just published about how the last ten years of American and global finance was built much on lies. The article is at: "Madoff and the Global Economy: The world was told the U.S. was a low-risk, high-return investment. But like the Wall Street trader's victims, we are learning the truth." The article is at: www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/dec2008/db20081214_802212.htm Why was the U.S. not a low-risk, high return investment economy? "First, the U.S. economy was supposed to be on the cutting edge of innovation. Innovation through technological change, by nature, is a very risky activity. Sometimes it pays off and sometimes it doesn't. If the investment in innovation pays off, the economy booms, as it did during the second half of the 1990s. But innovation has fallen short in recent years. Biotech and nanotech still have not come to fruition, and alternative energy is moving slowly. As a result, the U.S. economy as fallen short of expectations. The income isn't there, and the debt just piles up." Important to this is the ability for investors, domestic and foreign, to be able to recognize real innovation. While real innovation is measured much by commercial success (a reason the secondary factors of Graham should be the primary factors), one measure of real innovation is the association of the innovation with a quality patent, a vital role of the Patent Office in the national economy. The patent indicates that the inventor thinks there is enough commercial potential to more than cover the costs of patent prosecution and litigation (a useful sign to an investor). A high quality patent lessens the risk of the litigation on the side of the inventor (which is why large companies like IBM encourage the PTO to issue tons of crappy patents - it hurts IBM's competitors more than it hurts IBM). High quality patents help minimize the risk for investors in investing in recent innovation. (And to correct Michael, there wasn't much real innovation in the second half of the 1990s, if you look at those patents. The Internet bubble was driven as much by the arbitraging of personal information about consumers and their spending habits, as opposed any great advances in computing technology). But that association (innovation and quality patent) simply isn't happening. I ask, when the average patent issues, can the average investor really say that the patent is novel, unobvious and fully enabled? No, they can't. Sure many patents do have reasonable quality, but many don't - enough of a parity that without paying a lot of money for a validity opinion, the average investor has to guess which patent is high quality. PTO management's solution: reject everything, which while killing the crap, also kills patents that protect real innovation. For this reason alone, much of current PTO mismanagement has to be swept out by the next PTO Director. And that the PTO Board of Appeals has to distort engineering principles to help PTO management reject everything is reason enough for the next PTO Director to do a sweeping overhaul of the Board. Small companies with real innovation are being hurt in two big ways. First, they are running out of money in this economic climate to pay to fight idiotic rejections and other games being played with appeals. They are being forced to abandon their patent applications. Second, assume they survive an increasingly expensive examination process while doing what it takes to obtain a high quality patent (starting with good searching), their quality patent gets lost in the noise of all of the crappy patents being issued, in most cases, to big companies such as IBM that flood the PTO with uninnovative patent applications. So if all of the politicians in this country, starting with President Obama, really believe their mindless chanting about how technology and innovation is going to save the U.S. economy, they better start paying attention to the incompetence and corruption at one of the chokepoints in innovation commercialization - at the Patent Office. As one of the worst PTO Directors in recent times, Bruce Lehman (so horrible of a PTO Director that Congress passed a law requiring the PTO Director to be competent in patent and trademark law, which Lehman wasn't) once said: "Issused patents should be checks in the banks, not licenses to sue." Checks in the bank, as in the issuance of a high quality patent should lead to investment dollars for those patentees seeking such support. A high quality issued patent is an information signal to the investment markets. It should be relatively easy for investors to detect such signals. But right now, the signal/noise ratio is too high. Because of incompetent PTO management. Which betrays the investing public. This country can't afford to play politics with the appointment of the next PTO director - no legislative aides, no academics, and no one whose experience is at companies that have undermined the patent system. Also, someone suggested to me that the next PTO Director must be someone who publicly opposed the continuation rules package, and/or publicly opposed the PTO in Bilski.

Beyond Angry Snails

2008-12-16T07:40:00.002-05:00

I have been thinking of supercharging my 1992 Chevy Caprice, which is in mint condition and sitting in my parents' garage. I remember that I always wanted a pair of angry snails turbo-whining under the hood of a car that really deserved them. But now I am still harboring dreams from the days when as a part of a Ford customer program, I have test driven Thunderbird SC, a supercharged sport coupe, and was relatively free of worries and the necessary science that turbocharger requires. I think my Chevy can be souped up with a Buick or Pontiac supercharger. The car really asks for it. In addition to a Dural straight flow radiator, I have installed oil and trans fluid coolers with thermostats which have semi auto option, for those oil-frying traffic jams during Midwest summers.They are working fine. I have also installed peroxide injection, which sometimes I use with methanol, or mixtures of t-Butanol and Butyl ethers. These chemicals, however, need a better compression management though. I have also installed a tuned dual exhaust which was really designed for super high output engines. Hence, the most logical solution is to supercharge. I know of an online supercharger outlet that has professionals, high quality parts and also a learning center. Their prices, I keep finding out, are very reasonable. It looks like somebody can even get a Mercedes supercharger there. All of their parts come with a full 1 Year Warranty unless an even longer warranty is noted. This is a good place to get a supercharger.

Is there a trivial patent, especially if filed in October 2002, and citing no non-patent prior art?

2008-12-16T07:06:00.000-05:00

Which, amateur, naive, pro-se patent applicant would seek such a patent? Automated docketing system U.S. Patent 7,369,701 (Issued May 2008, CON from Oct 2002) Inventor: Patent Lawyer Steven Lundberg Abstract: The present invention includes a method for docketing an action or event, such as an action or event defined in a form received from the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The method includes scanning the form having written information thereon, the written information comprising a date and indicia defining a docket event, to obtain a scanned image. The indicia on the form defining a docketing event includes a title such as, "Office Action", "Notice of Allowance", "Notice of Missing Parts" and so forth. The date on the form includes, in many embodiments, "Date Mailed". The method also includes processing the scanned image with character recognition logic and identifying the indicia defining the docket event or action and the date on the image.

NO NON-PATENT PRIOR ART IS CITED. So let me be blunt - any named-partner patent lawyer who submits a patent application of his own and allows it to issue with no non-patent prior art citations should be disbarred by the PTO Office of Enrollment and Discipline. It is a contempt for the system, and deceit on the Patent Office, to think that such inventions have no non-patent prior art of relevance. To do so is just plain unethical. And it makes you wonder if his firm advises their clients to play the same pathetic prior art submission games. But he does have gravitas, so I suppose that excuses his behavior.

The explanation for the ridiculous patents

2008-12-11T08:54:00.000-05:00

Check out the Excrement Patents tag. There are lots more such patent applications. I guess it is extra money for the PTO to waste. Now, you are thinking, what is the harm that people file such silliness, such silliness will never issue?" Oh, you poor, naive fools: GENERAL CONCEPT: scan incoming documents into a relational database, identifying relevant fields AS TRIVIAL A CONCEPT AS IT GETS SLIGHTLY MORE SPECIFIC CONCEPT: scan incoming documents with printed dates and form identifications, and load date/form data into appropriate fields of relational database AS TRIVIAL A CONCEPT AS IT GETS SLIGHTLY MORE SPECIFIC CONCEPT: scan incoming PTO Office Actions with dates and document types ("notice of allowance", "missing documents") and load into the relational database inside a docketing system.

To patent submarine patenting:

2008-12-09T11:13:00.000-05:00

I have critiqued silly and ridiculous patents in the previous and other posts, but here is the attempt to patent submarine patents, filed by someone who knows nothing about jurisdiction (out of pity, the PTO should return his application fee): Submarine patents U.S. Patent Application 20080221912 David James Harris, of Great Britain 1. A method of seeking patent protection for an invention, comprising: a) filing a first European Patent Application for the invention at a first date; b) filing a second European Patent Application for the invention at a second date not more than one month later; characterised in that the second European Patent Application is a divisional European Patent Application claiming the filing date of the first European patent application.

David, my boy, a patent issued in the United States is completely useless for a method performed completely outside the United States. Now, I can understand a pro se inventor filing such wackiness, but I am shocked that a US law firm is helping a foreign inventor file such excrement:

Computer system for distributing a validation instruction message U.S. Patent Application 20080201334 Justin Ryan Simpson (Legal Rep: Brooks Kushman) Claim 1: 1. A computer system for distributing a validation instruction message, the computer system being adapted to communicate with an interface, a specification database and a plurality of European agent computers, the interface including: a European patent identifier receiver adapted to receive a European patent identifier; and a country selection receiver adapted to receive a country selection, and the specification database being adapted to store a plurality of European patent specifications, wherein, when the computer system receives a European patent identifier and a country selection, the computer system is adapted to: (a) obtain, from the specification database, a European patent specification corresponding to the European patent identifier; and (b) provide the European patent specification and the validation instruction message to a European agent computer corresponding to the country selection.

Justin, more than likely, someone is going to implement this computer system outside the United States, making your U.S. patent (if it issues) completely useless. Such as implementing this system in Europe, where sadly because the EPO and courts love to betray science, engineering, semantics and law with their silly "technical effect" drooling, the European sibling of this patent application will never issue.

Application For The Method of Patenting Paralegal Process:

2008-12-06T10:37:00.000-05:00

This is the classic attempt at dealing with the European fetish for the pompousness of using the characterized by vs. the good old American said: System for facilitating the preparation of a patent application with an automatically variable omnibus form paragraph U.S. Patent Application 20080256428 Milton; Harold W. DICKINSON WRIGHT PLLC Claim 1: A method of preparing a patent application including DESCRIPTION and CLAIMS sections by using a computer program comprising the steps of: presenting an omnibus form paragraph preceding the CLAIMS section, drafting a claim in the CLAIMS section including at least one key, storing a key explanation describing the use the key, characterized by scanning the claims for the key, automatically inserting the key explanation in the omnibus form paragraph in response to the presence of the key in the claim. 3. A method as set forth in claim 1 further including storing "characterized by" as the key. 5. A method as set forth in claim 1 further including storing "said" as the key.

Patent claims don't have to be easy and readable

2008-12-04T11:57:00.003-05:00

If you are second-guessing n examiner or a prospective buyer, or a competitor, don't act on the naive urge to write out and describe claim components in an impressive language. Claiming, according to the US Patent Law, has NO enablement requirement OR readability requirement. A claim might read like this: 2. The cryopump as in claim 1, wherein said fluid conduit is fluidly connected to said group of manifolds and operatively communicating with said variably-opening orifices. None of the components are described in a technical, enabling manner, but the description is maximally encompassing the scope of the invention regarding the component of the device claimed in claim 1. Thus, do not limit a claim in order to make it more readable to an average person. The claims are for attorneys and other people who enjoy reading contract documents. Only enhance readability if it will not unnecessarily limit the claim.

Rangefinder Season

2008-12-04T11:34:00.003-05:00

You know that I love high tech serving people in more ways than just showing them cute pictures on their mobile phones. I really love high tech optics, when they help me bird watch or hunt. I stumbled on great Nikon Hunting Christmas Promotion deals for Nikon Sport Optics at NikonProGear.com, NikonHunting.com all offering a rare opportunity holiday promotion that comes with a unique show from Lee& Tiffany Lakosky. The first thing I found is my favorite, a rangefinder. It is a ProStaff 550 Rangefinder that comes with its own DVD manual discussing hints and techniques for using the Nikon BDC reticle, which I am not yet familiar with. The rangefinder is a part of the Nikon’s Ultimate Hunter’s Package that is put together for increasing one's long-range shooting skills. The package also contains a ProStaff rifle scope. I found that this deal for this holiday season offers great prices on various, hi-tech Nikon riflescopes, such as ProStaff Riflescopes, Nikon Monarch Rifle Scopes, Buckmasters and Omega Riflescopes. The promotion also has what many of my friends might be looking for - high-quality, rugged binoculars, and Nikon, as I see in their information, has got great prices on all the ATB Binoculars and a surprise gift. A Nikon Pro Gear Gift Card that is worth $25 and $50 value, by the way, comes free with the purchase of Nikon Monarch Binoculars, Trailblazer Binoculars, Nikon Action 10x50 Binoculars and ANY Nikon ATB Binoculars. I think it might be more fun buying the gear and keeping it in a pristine condition in my library till I get the chance to use it next hunting season.

On Festo and "Means"

2008-12-04T11:23:00.002-05:00

In patenting, Festo is a doctrine of equivalence: if a patent claims a, b, c - this can sometimes also include c (broad claiming). But since the actual Festo, if one starts off broad and narrow, then one cannot claim broader (doctrine of equivalence) again.

Means + Function is no-no in patent claims. The combination refers to a too general component expressed functionally (which begs for a method claim language: a module for cooling), as opposed to structurally (what it is, i.e., a cooling module, and not only what it does). See the Patent Writing:Claims tag for similar topics.

Wind Turbines, Oil Rigs and Curious George

2008-12-04T09:04:00.005-05:00

Now that Dubya is packing up and about to be moving out of the White House, the media and the web are awash with negative gloating and mindless euphoria. The US economy has grown in all directions possible, major fiscal indicators have been on a roller coaster ride, the real estate market is pathetic, nobody has health insurance, and the layoffs seem to be the talk of every neighborhood bar. In tough times like these it makes sense to browse for some viral videos. The Good Bye Curious George is probably the best anti bush video that captures the spirit of the nation, of our mood and that of the outgoing neopresident. The video is simple, yet a cut above amateur animation. The unexpected zoom-in on the card mix up involving the bank rescue plan (why should the taxpayer rescue banks, the bastion of capitalism, when the essence of capitalism is the survival of the fittest? Let the weakling bank disappear), the Lincoln's name mixup which is so typical of the Bush presidency steeped in bumbling and word-mincing. It reminds us of George W. Bush's the "Mission Accomplished" bravado speech aboard an aircraft carrier after the Iraq invasion ring so fresh and simplistically premature. The nuclear option scenario is also credibly hilarious, because the nuclear solution has been contemplated regarding Iran. It goes hand in hand with the paradigm we know since childhood: The Curious George wants to know, what would happen if the Red Nuclear Button is pushed? The video does not deal with a nuke scare, rather, the video keeps on portraying the bumbling petrodollar utilitarianism of Dubya's business dreams. No matter the wreck he causes us, there is always the petrodollar lining to it for him, but desolation and smoke for us. Give an Oscar to the cartoon's creator(s) for being the most unique funny video addressing such a character in US history, the rigmarole he is leaving behind and the snafus he has not (lucky you and me) have the chance to execute. The video has a tastefully light finish, wherein Dubya the Curious George Cowboy rides into the sunset, which seems to be after the nuclear war-like destruction with the oil rigs in the background, while wind turbines telescope out of the ground and start spinning while the sky turns jubilant with an Obama-esque rainbow. Therapeutically pleasing. I think lame duck is an understatement. The video offers us comedy relief while reliving the last eight years of the mess.

Halliburton applies for the method of troll patenting

2008-12-04T05:21:00.004-05:00

It was UC Berkley, among others. Then, Microsoft. President Obama better sign a decree that makes it a criminal offense for anyone in the patent world to use the word troll. It is a meaningless term that becomes more and more pointless each day, due in part to the following absurd wackiness applied (and breezed through by the US Patent law) for by Halliburton Energy Services:

Patent acquisition and assertion by a (non-inventor) first party against a second party U.S. Patent Application 20080270152 Claim 1: A method for a non-inventor first party to acquire and assert a patent property against a second party, the method including the first party performing the following acts: obtaining an equity interest in the patent property; writing a claim within the scope of the patent property, the claim being written to cover a product of the second party, where the product includes a secret aspect, the secret aspect including an unobservable aspect, where writing the claim includes performing research using a computer to convert the unobservable aspect to an observable aspect; filing the claim with a patent office; offering a license of the patent property to the second party after the patent property issues as a patent with the claim; and attempting to obtain a monetary settlement from the second party based on the assertion of infringement of the claim. Patent property - both novel and vague term. Aspect is already used in the claim within a different aspect. I guess Dick Cheney needs novel and non-obvious ways to make business off government contracts.

More on the USPTO v. Tafas & GSK Appeal

2008-11-23T09:23:00.001-05:00

USPTO v. Tafas & GSK Appeal - Dec. 5, 2008 14 November 2008 By Gene Quinn The United States Patent & Trademark Office appeal of the Tafas and GlaxoSmithKline case regarding the claims and continuations rules that were famously enjoined by Judge Cacheris of the Eastern District of Virginia is set for oral arguments on Friday, December 5, 2008, at 10am. I will be in attendance at the hearing and blogging immediately thereafter with my thoughts on the hearing, providing my perspective and insights, that is assuming there is an oral argument that day at all. I know it is scheduled for then, but let me be perfectly open and honest about my intentions. I want to see the Patent Office and/or the Department of Justice step in and do the right thing and withdraw the rules and moot the appeal. That is the only responsible thing to do and the fact that those making the decision to move forward with this case have not seen fit to save themselves this embarrassment demonstrates that they are out of touch and simply don't care what damage will be done to not only the Patent Office but all Administrative Agencies. It is irresponsible and reckless to do anything other than withdraw the rules, and we all need to do whatever we can to bring pressure to bear in the coming weeks to get our government to do what is obviously the right. The fact that this case has gone this far is an unfortunate testament to the fact that the Patent Office and the Department of Justice are hell-bent on forcing the Federal Circuit to issue a decision that is going to be nearly ruinous for all of the agencies of the Federal government. How is it possible that a lame duck administration at the tail end of its time in office can continue to push and appeal a case where the outcome is so certain? This is going to be a disaster for all agencies, and a decision that should be made by the next leaders of the Patent Office and the Department of Justice. The claims and continuations rules should be withdrawn and this appeal mooted. That is the only responsible thing to do, so please Mr. Dudas, on the way out do the right thing here and don't risk the decision of the Eastern District of Virginia being ratified by a Court of Appeals and thus becoming precedent that will allow for the challenge of virtually any administrative rulemaking decision. On Tuesday, August 19, 2008, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued a decision in Cooper v. Dudas, which makes it clear what the outcome of the PTO appeal of the GSK & Tafas case will be. As I pointed out in my post titled Trouble Ahead for the PTO, the Cooper v. Dudas case, although a win for the PTO, laid the foundation for the Federal Circuit to ratify the decision of Judge Cacheris lock, stock and barrel. In this decision the Federal Circuit explained that the PTO does not have the authority to make substantive rules, explained that substantive rules are those that effect a change in existing law or policy that will affect individual rights and obligations. The Federal Circuit went on to explain that in the Cooper v. Dudas case the PTO was fine because they were merely setting a working definition of an ambiguous term used in a statute. That is hardly the case in the Tafas & GSK appeal. The statute is clear, inventors have the right to file as many claims as they want and file as many continuations as they want. There is nothing in the language of the statute that supports any limitation, and what the Patent Office tried to do clearly and unambiguously was affecting substantive rights. Changing rules in the middle of an application process cannot be characterized any other way. You had the right to do something yesterday, no right to do it today. That is a change, and it impacted a lot of pending applications. It should not come as a surprise to anyone that the Federal Circuit might signal in decisions leading up to an important case which way they are leaning. They do this all the time. In fact, if the Patent Office and the Department of Justice actually force the Federal Circuit to issue a decision you can expect that the decision will cite the Cooper v. Dudas opinion liberally. They have inched the law closer to where it needs to be to support what it is that they are about to do without it being viewed as a shift in the law. It is rare that the Federal Circuit so abruptly changes course like they did in Bilski without moving that direction slowly. So I predict that if the Federal Circuit issues a decision it will be to affirm Judge Cacheris. Now why would the Patent Office and/or the Department of Justice want a Court of Appeals to affirm a decision that is such an indictment of Patent Office rulemaking? I have no idea. It is reckless and is something that should be stopped. Someone in the government, whether in the DOJ, Department of Commerce or Congress, needs to step in and be the voice of reason. We all know there are a lot of needless and irrational challenges to actions taken by Administrative Agencies, and while this is not one of those meritless situations, an indictment of rulemaking that will flow from a Federal Circuit decision will do nothing more than embolden challenges and flood the court system with cases that will for years require district courts and the regional Courts of Appeals to set the appropriate balance. The only way that will happen is by further indictment of the Patent Office as judge after judge explains just how bad the Patent Office rulemaking was and that in whatever case is before them the clear disregard for the law shown by the Patent Office is not what is at issue. When the Federal Circuit ultimately issues its decision after the new PTO administration is in place the claims and continuations rules will be once and for all thrown out and there will be no doubt left that the Patent Office did not have the authority to directly contradict the patent laws enacted by Congress. The truth is that the Patent Office tried to do something they didn't have the right to do and they were challenged, thankfully, by Dr. Tafas and GlaxoSmithKline and the many amici who filed briefs explaining exactly how and why the rules were bad and not supported by the law. Why do our lame duck political leaders want to turn a clearly bad decision to act contrary to the overwhelming weight of public comment and contrary to the Patent Act itself into a miserable precedent that will undoubtedly embolden legions of challenges to legitimately rulemaking? Because if you continue down that path this is exactly what will happen, and someone needs to point that out to our leaders and get them to accept reality. About the Author: Gene Quinn is a US patent attorney and the founder of IPWatchdog.com, and is the Editor and chief contributor to the PLI Patent Practice Center and is on the PLI Patent Bar Review faculty.

This library has all the port numbers and error codes

2008-11-23T09:07:00.003-05:00

Years ago I never had much time to optimize my PC, and was using Outlook a lot, which meant that every single chain email opened a browser or a slideshow, left my PC running slow, acting funny, not to mention countless blue screens of death, most of them mincing no words by displaying an X code and informing me of a fatal exception. Most friends and techies advised to defrag or reformat. I could not spend more time on down time. As a result, I was forced to learn things on my own - using a file search I found a Windows error code lists, and network port numbers. My situation turned out to be the code corresponding to too many processes running in the background. Thanks to all those slideshows and sites offering free screensavers running new screensaver available updates. It turns out that when Windows crashes, it is still capable to report on why it crashed. For example, the code 0x8 means not enough memory. No need to defrag or reformat. There are codes caused by too many files open, by applications not functioning correctly, or software unable to access data on the computer. A simple tweak can prevent the situation of reformatting PC or buying a totally new one. For example error 109 means that data pipe has been ended, through whatever reason. A pipe is a section of shared memory that processes use for communication. The process that creates a pipe is the pipe server. A process that connects to a pipe is a pipe client. One process writes information to the pipe, then the other process reads the information from the pipe. Problems associated with this messages can be fixed with a Windows update or a patch. I also learned to control my own ports. When I was on only one web site, and my open port list showed port 80 used, I felt safe. Once, with my browser closed, the port 44744 was open, and I learned that it was a typical port used to set up a back door attack on unsuspecting peoples’ PCs. There are ports for Outlook, FTP, time synchronization, multi-terminal network connection, remote desktop, and others. More than 50,000 of them. Just running a check on any of your open ports will set your mind at ease, or point you in the right direction to lock up your PC from arrogant people and web sites. Now there is a site that has it all in one place, error codes and port numbers lists. There are three tabs (and no video clips, animated menus and similar bells and whistles to confuse your issues): Home, Errors and Port. The site is Microsoft Gold-Certified, they have been featured in Washington Post, Yahoo, USA Today and Internet.com This is the source of the real, bottom-line information.

Presentation details severe confidence crisis at the European Patent Office

2008-11-17T08:07:00.006-05:00

What follows is the text of a presentation detailing the crisis conditions at the European Patent Office, with both management and examiners being increasingly miserable. The same memo could be written about the U.S. Patent Office. Look folks, I do not make this stuff up - I can't afford to drink that much Beaujolais to do so. We have massive engineering workflow institutions (PTO, EPO) on the verge of collapse. Is the IP world totally devoid of leadership for someone to step forward and .... lead? We face a perfect storm of troubles: - incompetent people appointed to high management positions - lack of accountability quality, imposed costs/fees, and productivity - legislatures ignoring their oversight role while getting milking the system for lobbyist dollars - courts blatant with their contempt for science, technology and semantics in their decisions - "professional" bodies (AIPLA/IPO/AIPPI/ABA) devoid of leadership The result: despite the outright lies of Jon Dudas and his foreign counterparts - patent quality continues to drop, patent fees continue to rise, patent pendency continues to rise, and more. The next head of the PTO has to be a true, competent, professional leader. Or let's just take 35 USC off the books. So as you read what follows, ask yourself: where has been any leadership in the IP world that we have arrived at management memos as below? This is the text of a presentation given by a management representative, not from a Union representative. You be the judge: The EPO as an organisation has moved from duality to crisis. We will explain how and why and will describe the steps that are necessary to reconstruct a common culture and a positive social partnership. A dual organisation. The sociological analysis based on the results of the human capital survey of 2006 had shown that the EPO was a dual organisation; a dysfunctional system that finds its equilibrium in the creation of two separate universes; - the "executive management universe" focused on a defensible production level, defensible backlogs, and a defensible financial situation, and - the "operational universe" focused on staff autonomy, intellectual content of the work and existing working conditions (Salary, benefits and job security) These focus points are essential to maintain a balance. A change in one or more of these conditions would jeopardize the status quo. This is exactly what has happened. Change of the conditions of the duality. Management expressed strong concerns about the production level, strong concerns about the increasing backlogs and strong concerns about the financial situation. On the operational side, one felt some pressure on the autonomy (more control tools, micromanagement, lack of trust), some fear concerning the intellectual content of the work (e.g., the possible mutual recognition with other players having a lower quality or the delegation of activities to national Offices) and a high level of fear concerning working conditions (the pension system revision being often considered as the first step to multiple changes of the working conditions.). With the disappearance of all conditions necessary to maintain the equilibrium of the duality, the EPO could only slip into crisis. Characteristics of the crisis. Work is valued but the organisation is not trusted. The work as such is a source of positive feelings. Experienced as interesting, rich and motivating it is considered as a service of quality for others. But the organisation (including all actors from management to staff representation and union representatives) is the subject of negative feelings and perceptions. Contradictory information influenced by clearly opposed point of views harm the capacity of the people to understand issues properly. Consequently they loose their common references and don't know "who" or "what" to trust anymore. Negative collective perception of change. The crisis is a disturbance of the capacity to perceive reality. All actors have a subjective perception of how the world works. Because of the differences between these subjective perceptions, change is collectively seen as a source of disorder and contradiction. At an individual level the organisation is perceived as a threat. At an individual level, change is perceived as elusive, irrational and distressing. It is felt to be change for change's sake or even worse, for individual and personal benefits and careers. The lack of a clean break with the past and the absence of future perspectives create a psychological confusion that express itself either as a complete lack of interest in the change process or as clear opposition to it. Mutual "demonisation" of the actors. For all actors, the system has become threatening and impossible to master. The energy of frustration is diverted to an excessive personalisation of collective problems. Opposed actors become mutual "scapegoats". For the Union, the executive management is the only source of problems and has all possible flaws. For the executive management the union is the major threat to the good functioning of the organisation. The actors are totally dominated by these negative emotions. "Lies", "incompetence", "hidden agenda"; are words that are becoming common in the organisation vocabulary. Incapacity to imagine the future. The individual and collective capacity to dissociate oneself from the present in order to imagine the future is "anaesthetised" by the crisis. Fatalism is omnipresent and one can easily observe a clear absence of real alternative thinking about the functioning of the organisation. How to come out of the crisis? Shared values have disappeared and constructive communication has become impossible. Reason and common sense have been replaced by negative emotions and systemic distrust. Attempts to communicate and to explain methodically turn into conflict. Every action (even the most positive) is interpreted through the filter of negativism and transformed into a potential threat. Subjectivity dominates and everything consolidates the negative perception. "The more you try, the worse it becomes". The problem seems therefore quite unsolvable and can only be addressed through radical and unusual ACTIONS supported by formal AND informal steps framed to transform the system. Step 1: Take the pressure off by acknowledging the crisis. First the intangible but enormous fear and pressure felt by almost everyone has to disappear. The only way to do it is to say "STOP", make a step backward and get a common acknowledgement of the crisis by all actors. Only the President can initiate this. In the present atmosphere, a declaration of intent will not be sufficient. The current global scepticism would transform it in "one more useless speech". It has to come with an important decision that would show an indisputable determination to REALLY tackle the crisis. For example, put the SRP on hold and revise it in the frame of step 2 would be a major sign. Step 2: Back to the essentials Once people agree about the crisis it will be necessary to go back to what could be called "the essentials". What are we? What is our purpose? Why do we exist? What does society expect from us? Through the crisis the very identity of the organisation has been lost and the essentials have to be reintroduced as a foundation for the reconstruction of a common culture which is the first step of the re-appropriation process. We need to be professional, proud and ambitious together. We need to reconcile quality of product and quality of process; how can we apply the EPC, maintain and even increase the quality while reducing the backlogs? How can we show and increase the importance of our role for the future of Europe? These questions should now be asked and answered by each and every one of us. Step 3: Redesign a vision for the future based on these essentials. When the two first steps are done, the presentation of an inspirational image of the future will be the way to move forward as a united Organisation. But this vision of the future (and this does not refer to "The vision" formal tool designed professionally as part of a process) has to be based on the rediscovered essentials defined by all actors of the Organisation. Obviously the President of the Office will have to become the "Champion" defending this vision, the Champion of our Quality and the first representative of the EPO's significance for the future of Europe. Conclusion These three necessary steps will not be easily implemented. It will require courage, imagination, a good understanding of the crisis, commitment, lots of perseverance and possibly the capacity to act against one's own current conviction for a higher purpose. But unless it is done, the Office, lost in its identity crisis, won't get a chance to move forward taking thereby the risk to leave its future in someone else's hands.

Notable paragraphs of the US Patent Law

2008-11-16T10:36:00.004-05:00

These paragraphs are most often cited by the USPTO examiners, and patent agents struggling with pushing inventions through the institution's paper jam: US Patent Act Title 35 of the United States Code §100, Definitions: Process means process, art and method, and includes a new use of a known process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, or material. §101, Patentable inventions: Any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefore… §102, Novelty: 1. Not previously known, used, patented, printed, publicly used, sold. 2. Invention was not patented, used, printed one year prior to date of application. §103, Non-Obviousness: 1. Not patentable if at time of prior art invention, the subject matter as a whole would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art. §111, Application: 1. Specification: 2. Drawing: §112, Specification: Written description: manner and process of making and using invention – full, clear, concise and exact so as to ENABLE a person skilled in the art to make and use the same. Claims: One or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention – independent, dependent or multiple dependent form. Claims may be MEANS or STEPS for performing a specified functions, and may not be enabling (but supported by spec). §271, Infringement: Making, using, offering, selling any patented invention infringes the patent. NOT if it is changed by subsequent processes.

Luminox, and A Clip-On Weather Station

2008-11-16T09:47:00.005-05:00

I was looking for hi-tech watches, and found Luminox on Sierra Adventure Gear. I chose one from the cornucopia of Luminox line which includes EVO Navy SEAL, Field Chrono, SEAL Dive Watch, Titanium Dive, Night View and Quandrum. This one looks cool: It is Luminox Yachting, with blue dial, and steel bracelet. Esthetically hefty, while practical. I love gadgets, but don't write about them much here. They are all mostly a recycled audio-video toys. Searching through the site's menu of Bags & Backpacks, Camping Gear, Electronics, Emergency Kits, Flashlights, Headlamps, Knives, Multipurpose Tools, Optics, Outdoor Navigation, Safety & First Aid, Sleeping Gear, Sunglasses, Tents and Watches, I looked for a utilitarian gadgets, like a personal, portable, laptop- and key chain-friendly weather analytical device. The kind I could also set on my desk at the office or home and keep track of humidity, since I am sensitive to dry air. I have humidifiers everywhere I work. Finally I have found this ultimate gadget. It is the Brunton ADC-PRO, which is a personal Atmospheric Data Center, performing all the function I have been looking for and more:

Basic weather conditions
Forecasts
Calculates relative air density, heat index, & more
Infrared data port transfers info to your computer
Weatherproof
Submersible for measuring water flow
Barometer
Altimeter
Wind speed & wind chill
Temperature
Time and date

Here's what I have read up on the company. The D.W. Brunton started in 1894, when avid outdoorsman and geologist turned inventor. Brunton began to design equipment for outdoor professionals. His innovative approach called for lightweight gear with maximum durability. This ingenuity catapulted his unique products to the forefront of American outdoor equipment. The company bearing his name still develops products using that same philosophy. Their headquarters is in the Rocky Mountains of Wyoming, and I found out that they live the outdoor lifestyle and apply their experience in the business. They have been developing and producing innovative backpacking and camping equipment, optics, and are pioneering a new category called personal power, which includes power storage devices and flexible solar panels (patents?) for adventurers. Times maybe hard, but life, work, and play is always more fun when you spend time outside and use quality equipment. That's why I ordered it from Sierraadventuregear.com

Device claims: configured vs. able

2008-11-14T08:21:00.003-05:00

In previous posts like this I discuss the importance of handcrafting claim language, down to carefully picking verbs and nouns that clinch the spirit of the invention while reserving the maximum territory of the art.

An important difference exists between method and device claims. Method or system claims vary in their language, too: in a system claim, components of the system are designed, i.e., configured; whereas in a device claim a component is designed to perform a unique function, i. e., to enable, or to be capable of - better yet - to enable a function.

In device claims use configured to and never able to.

Thus, the language for a valve: a control device for enabling fluid communication between said electric mechanism and said collector upon demand. More to follow.

Annoying phone calls get a web 2.0 treatment

2008-11-14T08:05:00.004-05:00

Our office used to get plenty of annoying spam calls which were just the regular type of elevator music. We didn't know or had the time to do anything about them. A paralegal once did a reverse search and discovered that the calls originated from the central switchboard of a Florida motel. The problem with the annoying phone calls gets addressed by the latest in web 2.0 ideas too. There is now the Harassing Caller Report site that pools the harassing call victims' reports. All is needed to report a phone number is the ability to leave a comment, just like while commenting on a blog or a forum post, and the report will be appended to the list under the phone number. Sometimes it is also to get some relief, because comments under a phone number may reveal that it is only a non-English speaking person having an innocent issue with the language. It seems like the site management has some ideas up ahead. It would be nice to know if they will become a sort of a consumer advocate service that can perform quick, automatic investigation and reporting to the FCC. The www.reportphonenumbers.com is intuitively formatted and is easy to use. Useful resource.

Microsoft gets awarded yet another excrement patent

2008-11-11T10:25:00.003-05:00

Case in point - one of the revolting pieces of fecal patents just issued recently to Microsoft. It demonstrates yet again the contempt of large companies do to any prior art searching, the love of large companies to flood the PTO with crap applications to choke the system while whining about others who do the same [now known as Chandlerism], and once again, it demonstrates the PTO'S COMPLETE AND TOTAL MISMANAGEMENT OF PRIOR ART SEARCHING AND RESOURCES. When Jon Dudas told Congress that most, if not all, measures of quality at the PTO are their highest in 25 years, he deliberately LIED to Congress. Whoever is paying Dudas to wreck the PTO is getting their monies worth. The patent. The USPTO belched/oozed/barfed out U.S. patent 7,437,290 to Microsoft: Automatic censorship of audio data for broadcast U.S. Patent 7,437,290 MICROSOFT (filed October 2004, issued October 2008) Despicable claim language aside, this patent is a method for detecting undesired speech in broadcasts, censoring (deleting, bleeping) the undeisred speech and updating probability tables for the presence of the recognized speech. COMPLETELY UNINNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY. The claim is attached below. So how much tremendous amounts of prior art, with Bill Gates' billions to sustain decent prior art searching (NOT - a lesson well learned by its stepchild Intellectual Ventures) - how much prior art is associated with this patent? NEXT TO FREAKING NOTHING. The patent cites two prior patents, and one non-patent prior art published too late: 7,139,031 Automated language filter for TV receiver 6,337,947 Method and apparatus for customized editing of video and/or audio signals Seide et al, "Vocabulary-Independent Search in Spontaneous Speech", IEEE International Conference on ASSP, May 2004 Such pathetic prior art submissions should a priori be automatic proof of intent to deceive the Patent Office. Just how pathetic is this patent? Once again, let me do a 15-minute-Jon-Dudas-High-Quality-Patent-Bust. Thebust relies on five patents that were published by the time the examinershould have been doing ANY searching, four of which were published at the

time Microsoft filed they patent, had they wanted to do any searching: Publ. Date. Number Title ----- --------- --------------------------------------------------------- 1993 5,199,077 Wordspotting for voice editing and indexing 2004 6,829,582 Controlled access to audio signals based on objectionable audio content detected via sound recognition 2000 6,166,780 Automated language filter 1999 5,870,708 Method of and apparatus for scanning for and replacing words on video cassettes 1994 5,369,440 System and method for automatically controlling the audio output of a television So let's look at this prior art, which neither Microsoft nor the PTO did, to see how crappy Microsoft's patent is. The first patent, dating back to 1993 (eleven years before Microsoft filed) is a foundational patent on pattern recognition systems (in this case, Hidden Markov Models) to learn to recognize and delete segments of speech, which includes questionable segments of speech that are being broadcasted: _________________________________________________________________ United States Patent 5,199,077 Wordspotting for voice editing and indexing Abstract A technique for wordspotting based on hidden Markov models (HMM's). The technique allows a speaker to specify keywords dynamically and to train the associated HMM's via a single repetition of a keyword. Non-keyword speech is modeled using an HMM trained from a prerecorded sample of continuous speech. The wordspotter is intended for interactive applications, such as the editing of voice mail or mixed-media documents, and for keyword indexing in single-speaker audio or video recordings. From the SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION: An important application for the wordspotting system of the invention is not only indexing of recorded speech, but especially for interactive voice editing of recorded speech, such as voice mail, dictation, or audio documentation. Wordspotting can be employed by the user to enable editing operations by locating specific words in the recorded speech for deletion, substitution, or insertion. It will also ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ enable efficient and automatic means of indexing into long audio documents. The system, while restricted to a single speaker, or pairs of speakers is not restricted in vocabulary size. _________________________________________________________________ One application of this patent is to use the Hidden Markov Models on recorded speech THAT IS BROADCASTED, using the detections to delete specific words, i.e., Microsoft's patent. Almost complete anticipation, especially when obviously combined with the following patent: _________________________________________________________________ United States Patent 5,369,440 System and method for automatically controlling the audio output of a television Abstract A system and method for automatically controlling the audio output from a television so as to avoid listening to undesired material includes a microphone for converting the audio output from the television into audio signals, an audio amplifier for amplifying the audio signals from the microphone, a waveform pattern comparator, a waveform digitizer and recorder, a speech recognition unit, an external device controller, a computer and an input/output device. In setting up the system for subsequent use, waveform patterns of audio signals corresponding to material being outputted from the television which the listener considers undesirable are digitized by the waveform digitizer and recorder and then stored in the waveform pattern comparator. In addition, digital signals corresponding to key words in undesired material are entered into the computer through the input/output device and then transferred from the computer to the speech recognition unit. Once the system has been loaded with the undesired material, waveform pattern comparator continually digitizes and compares the audio signal output from the audio amplifier with the stored data. At the same time, the speech recognition unit compares the audio signal output with the stored key words. When the undesired material is detected an indicator signal is sent to the external device controller which outputs a control signal which is applied to the television to make some adjustment to either the sound or the channel to avoid listening to the undesired material. _________________________________________________________________ So two patents, published in 1993 and 1994, TEN YEARS BEFORE MICROSOFT FILED THEIR PIECE OF CRAP, completely anticipate Microsoft's supposed invention. Just to have fun, I found three more patents, also so much on point to be powerful prior art. _________________________________________________________________ United States Patent 6,166,780 Automated language filter Abstract A method and apparatus for analyzing the closed captioned aspect of a video signal for specific undesirable words or phrases and then muting the audio portion of those words or phrases while not affecting the video portion therein while simultaneously modifying the closed captioned signal in order to display only acceptable words or phrases. _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ United States Patent 6,829,582 Controlled access to audio signals based on objectionable audio content detected via sound recognition Abstract An apparatus, program product, and method restrict access to objectionable audio content in an audio or audio/video transmission using sound recognition. Sound recognition may be performed, for example, to detect and control access to objectionable non-spoken audio content, e.g., by detecting violent sounds such as screams, explosions, gun shots, sirens, punches, kicks and/or other non-spoken content such as sexually-suggestive sounds. In addition, occurrences of objectionable audio content detected in an audio transmission may be tracked so that access to the audio transmission may be controlled responsive to the identification of multiple occurrences of objectionable audio content. Furthermore, access control over detected objectionable audio content in an audio transmission may result in inhibition of access to a program associated with the audio transmission. _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ United States Patent 5,870,708 Method of and apparatus for scanning for and replacing words on video cassettes Abstract A scanning apparatus for scanning a video recording for objectionable content is disclosed that includes an audio processor for analyzing the recording and recognizing the objectionable audio, and audio control gate for manipulating the objectionable audio. The scanning apparatus also includes an amplifier that amplifies the signal and converters to convert the signal from analog to digital format prior to analysis and digital to analog format after analysis. The method of scanning the video recording for objectionable content includes the steps of analyzing the recording and manipulating the recording. The method first includes the steps of amplifying the recording signal, separating the audio portion of the recording from the composite recording, digitizing the portions of the recording, and storing the composite portion of the recording in a loop while analysis is performed on the audio portion of the recording. _________________________________________________________________ So five patents I found in 15 minutes completely invalidate Microsoft's crappily issued patent. And this doesn't rely on even more patents, and even much more non-patent prior art that is available, had anyone bother to do any searching (apparently a firable offense at Microsoft). 15 minutes neither Microsoft nor the PTO spent doing a similar search. Because to big companies like Microsoft, and big liars like Jon Dudas, patent quality is still a big freaking joke. So when con artists like IBM lie about the need for public peer review of patents, while remaining silent about the incompetence of PTO management with regards to prior art handling, it is just con artists cheating. And when liars like Jon Dudas chandleristically whine that the PTO needs more prior art, it is a big freaking lie because the PTO still is unable to make use of all of the patent prior art it has complete access to, let alone non-patent prior art. All of these people are liars, especially since it takes longer for them to write their liars about prior art that it does for me to find the prior art. ========== Automatic censorship of audio data for broadcast Microsoft U.S. Patent 7,437,290 1. A method for automatically censoring audio data, comprising the steps of: (a) automatically processing the audio data to detect any undesired speech that may be included therein, by comparison to undesired speech data, by performing the following steps; comparing words in the audio data against words comprising the undesired speech, to identify potential matches; dynamically varying a probability threshold dependent upon at least one criterion; and based upon a probability of a potential match and the probability threshold, determining whether any undesired speech is included in the audio data; (b) for each occurrence of undesired speech that is automatically detected, altering the undesired speech detected in the audio data, producing censored audio data in which the undesired speech is substantially no longer perceivable by a listening audience; and (c) dynamically adjusting the probability threshold based upon a frequency with which undesired speech by a specific speaker is detected in the audio data, so that as the occurrences of undesired speech that are detected increase, the probability threshold is reduced

Why a GPS device that insults is not so patentable:

2008-11-04T04:21:00.003-05:00

In the previous post I looked at the paragraph 101 patentability of the aesthetic patent invention: United States Patent Application 20080172175 Funny/humorous/abusive GPS system or navigation system Whatever its 101-"ness", does it have 102 problems based on a radio car talk show, as pointed out by patenting expert: Even if it does satisfy 101, it isn't novel. The Bob & Tom radio show has a comedy bit called The Nagigator" that appears on their album "Sideshow" that was released in November, 2004. The idea in the bit is replacing the nice navigation lady with the voice of your wife, telling you how stupid you are. Putting aside the obvious problems with this published application, what this gentleman in the '175 describes has already been disclosed on the radio nationwide at least three years before he filed his application.

On the patentability of GPS systems that insult

2008-11-01T12:42:00.002-04:00

According to the spirit of our patent law, all of the arts should be patentable, including music and books. I believe aesthetic effects are useful manufactures to satisfy 101. Case in point. The following utility patent application, the novelty is purely aesthetic.

United States Patent Application 20080172175 Funny/humorous/abusive GPS system or navigation system Abstract My invention is an added feature to the existing GPS systems or navigation systems. It can also be a stand alone GPS system as well. Currently the navigation systems politely give you directions to your desired destination. My invention will be an extra feature in voice generated directions or audio system, which if added to the existing GPS systems can be turned on or off at will. Depending on the mood of the driver or the passengers, this new feature will add a little spice in driving especially to new destinations. The system will behave like a normal human being and will be little unforgiving in case the driver has trouble following voice generated directions. The voice generated directions will be spiced up by adding funny phrases like "YOU SILLY" OR "YOU DUMMY" OR "YOU STUPID" etc. It will purely add a lot of fun and laughter in the vehicle for the driver and the passengers and driving can be a fun experience. In ABUSIVE GPS SYSTEM, meant only for adults, any kind of language or four-letter words or phrases can be programmed in the system. This will also add a lot of spice to the driving of vehicles.

Harvard spinout licenses "black silicon" patents

2008-10-30T11:36:00.002-04:00

by Dylan McGrath, EE Times, (10/13/2008 3:09 PM EDT) SAN FRANCISO - Startup SiOnyx Inc. has licensed a portfolio of shallow junction photonics patents from Harvard University in exchange for an unspecified equity stake and downstream royalties. The patents cover a laser implant technique said to alter alters the photonic properties of semiconductors. This technology, known as "black silicon," was discovered by Harvard's Eric Mazur, a professor of physics and applied physics. Mazur co-founded SiOnyx (Beverly, Mass.) in 2006. According to a joint statement issued by SiOnyx and Harvard's Office of Technology Development Monday (Oct. 13), black silicon is a material that absorbs nearly twice the visible light of regular silicon and detects infrared light that is normally invisible to silicon based devices. This capability that allows for performance enhancements in applications ranging from simple light detection to advanced digital imaging and solar energy, according to the statement. SiOnyx said it is is producing devices for scalable platform for hyper-spectral imaging. The SiOnyx implant is compatible with established semiconductor manufacturing processes and introduces no new material, according to the company. SiOnyx has a patented process that employs femtosecond laser processing of the target material resulting in an extremely thin (300nm) photoconduction layer applicable to both biased (detection) and photovoltaic (power generation) applications, the company said. "Black silicon addresses the fundamental pain point in all photonics systems, the sensitivity to light," said Stephen Saylor, SiOnyx president and CEO. "By demonstrating that the black silicon process cost effectively scales within the established semiconductor device manufacturing infrastructure, SiOnyx is poised to transform the $10B+ light detection, imaging and photovoltaic markets by offering device manufactures a path to smaller, lighter and more efficient photonic systems." SiOnyx recently raised $11 million in funding from Harris & Harris, Polaris Venture Partners and RedShift Ventures. Copyright © 2008 TechInsights, a Division of United Business Media LLC All rights reserved

Verizon has lost an infringement lawsuit against Cox

2008-10-29T16:31:00.002-04:00

Below is a news item that Verizon has lost an infringement lawsuit against Cox, with a jury ruling that there was no infringement. The lawsuit was the classic "troll" tactic - sue a little guy (Cox) before going after the big companies. Now one reason trolls are so labeled (I prefer patent yakuzas to troll) is that they are falsely criticized for not practising the technology in the patent. But assuming that is a legitimate criticism, what do you call it when the patent tr-ll denies the technology .... TO ITS CUSTOMERS? From the article: "Verizon has been aggressively asserting its patents in Internet phone technology, despite not promoting the service to its own customers." Sounds like a tyrant to me - and thus making Verizon a tyrant troll. If one is going to engage in silly labeling of problems in the patent world. Verizon Loses Patent Lawsuit Against Cox By AMOL SHARMA Verizon Communications Inc. lost its patent-infringement case against Cox Communications Inc., signaling that Verizon may have a difficult time extracting royalties from cable providers for Internet-based telephony. A federal jury in the Eastern District of Virginia found that Cox didn't infringe on six Verizon patents related to Internet telephony. Cox, which has more than three million residential and business phone customers, said in a statement it would "look forward to competing vigorously with Verizon in the marketplace, not the courtroom." Verizon has been aggressively asserting its patents in Internet phone technology, despite not promoting the service to its own customers. Many analysts and patent lawyers said its case against Atlanta-based Cox, which was filed early this year, was a prelude to further lawsuits against bigger cable rivals. Verizon was seeking past damages from Cox of $404 million. "Despite the decision, we believe our patents were infringed," Verizon said in a statement. "We will continue to innovate and protect our intellectual property." The New York company said it hasn't decided whether to appeal the decision. Cox argued that it wasn't liable because it doesn't actually offer Internet phone service. While its call traffic is broken into digital voice "packets," it isn't routed over the public Internet, the company said. Cox said it controls the calls through its own cable network. A Verizon spokesman declined to say whether the company would target other major cable providers like Time Warner Cable Inc. and Cablevision Systems Corp. with patent lawsuits. Verizon recently reached a deal with Comcast Corp. in which both companies agreed not to sue each other for patent infringement for a period of five years. That agreement covers all patents the companies hold. Write to Amol Sharma at amol.sharma@wsj.com Copyright 2008 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved

UC Berkley to offer degrees in Financial Engineering

2008-10-27T08:51:00.002-04:00

Next Monday, the Haas School of Business at U.C. Berkeley is having an afternoon panel lecture for business school students seeking degrees and jobs in their newly invented field of financial engineering. Is the use of "engineering" here the same as in "electrical engineering"? Or does "financial engineering" refer to doing finance while erroneously drinking lots of alcohol - "financial in-Gin-erring" (which watching Wall Street implode is a reasonable alternative). UC Berkeley is one of the leading engineering schools and one of the leading business schools, so their use of the word means much. If in their minds, and the minds of other universities offering degrees in financial engineering, is that "engineering" is being used in the same way as with "electrical engineering" and "chemical engineering", i.e., applied science, then FOR ALL YOU IDIOTS - business methods belong to a technical field of knowledge. To all of the anti-Bilski people (at least those of your whose financial firms are not bankrupt) - either learn the science and engineering or shut up. Consider the flyer for the panel lecture, and notice the words used: "The recent explosive growth and current events in quantitative finance have led mathematics, physics, computer science, economics and engineering students of all levels to wonder whether a career in quantitative finance is right for them." Notice all of the fields of students they suggest this pathway: mostly fields of science and engineering as preparation for a career in financial engineering - how can anyone (outside PTO/EPO management) deny that there is much that is technical - applied science - here? The flyer continues: "With the rapid increase in sophisticated quantitative and computational techniques employed in financial firms there has been increasing demand for students with highly quantitative backgrounds to work in the financial field." "For more information, please visit the the Berkeley MDE Master's in Financial Engineering program, http://mfe.haas.berkeley.edu" So the PTO, EPO, CAFC, House of Lords, etc., all must ask themselves one question here: is this use of "engineering" the same as when the word is used in phrases like "electrical engineering"? If so, many business methods are as technical as anything else is technical. When Wall Street bond traders are using quantum field theory to calculate interest rates, what idiot denies they are not being technical - not engaged in engineering? When Wall Street traders subscribe to the montly "Technical Analysis of Stocks and Commodities", are they deluding themselves as to the relevance of "technical"? No.

Twin lawyers charged with court fraud

2008-10-25T10:41:00.002-04:00

From New York Times, 27 September page A7: "An Italian lawyer has been charged with fraud and false representation because she is suspected of having her identical twin sister fill in for her during court hearings. The lawyer, was also a part-time judge near Milan, helping other judges with heavy caseloads. But when she had to fill both roles, she twice sent her sister, who is not a lawyer, in her place, collecting legal fees even when she was elsewhere. The sisters will be tried next month.

The Supreme Court is likely to sideline patent cases

2008-10-23T09:21:00.002-04:00

The 29 September issue of Barrons has an article by their D.C. reporter, Jim McTague, on patent issues at the Supreme Court next year. He got his gossip from Seth Waxman (author of one of the more scientifically-poor anti-Bilski briefs) of Wilmer Hale. McTague writes: ... points out that the [Supreme Court] has an unusual docket because, for the first time, there are no patent cases scheduled [for the 2008-2009 term]. Not only are patent cases a regular feature of the court's calendar - they also represent the most significant body of law for U.S. business today. Is that really true - patent law is the "most significant body of law"? If so, that's ironic, because much of patent law governs the activities of one of the most significantly mismanaged government agencies - the PTO. Maybe there would be less of a need for patent caselaw if the PTO was run by professionals. McTague writes further: ... thinks the Supremes want to give the lower courts and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office time to digest prior decisions and actions now making their way through the lower courts, including attempts to patent business processes. The Supreme Court is passing on patent cases while the justices take some remedial college courses on basic science and engineering.

A rehearsal for writing claims

2008-10-22T15:32:00.003-04:00

In Europe , with its stuffy, literary, and sanctimonious bragging style of patent claims, characterized by refers to the point of innovation. Here in US we claim the aspect of invention by using having or featuring.

Again, first time you mention something it is always a, otherwise an examiner will return a no antecedent basis response.

Consider a dependent claim: Anything introduced there in the preamble is henceforth (in the claim or independent) the. Anything introduced after the preamble is said.

Identification is a noun. Identifying is a verb. Steps in a method claim are verbs.

Examiner's hard drive crash costs him his job

2008-10-21T00:37:00.001-04:00

Also in the September issue of the PTO Examiners' Union's newsletter: Examiner fired after computer crashes When managers in Technology Center 2700 offered next to no catastrophic time after the hard drive crashed and burned for a probationary examiner who was producing at 100 percent, the examiner's production unsurprisingly suffered and the USPTO fired him because he had "not progressed at the expected rate". Maybe the examiner could have progressed at the expected rate with a crashed hard drive if the examiner was working from a beach in Hawaii. Any patent reform that does not start with an overhaul of PTO management is corrupt patent reform.