Recent Articles

dummy

Jake Ward
November 21, 2008 02:43

U.S. Pat. No. 5,320,571:  Dummy for use as sham passenger in car.   What is claimed is: 1. A dummy for use as a sham passenger in a car, comprising: a head, limbs, and a trunk; wherein said trunk comprises a neck containing therein a retaining disk provided with a serrated portion, a V-shaped c...

Jake Ward

Jake Ward
November 18, 2008 01:36

Via the Promote the Progess blog (with hat tip to Filewrapper.com): The United States Patent and Trademark Office today published a Final Rule in the Federal Register that levies a ‘practitioner maintenance fee’ on attorneys and agents recognized to practice before it in patent cases. The new rule r...

ipq

Jake Ward
November 12, 2008 16:43

  Professor Rob Merges (Berkeley), Professor John Duffy (George Washington), and Professor Doug Lichtman (UCLA), recently recorded a one-hour audio podcast about the In re Bilski decision.  The participants are prominent patent academics and have interesting perspectives on the case.  Indeed, Profes...

pizzapizza

Jake Ward
November 12, 2008 14:29

U.S. Pat. No. 5,508,049: Pizza pie with concentric rings of crust.   What is claimed is: 1. A pizza pie, comprising:           a substantially flat piece of cooked pizza dough having a predetermined peripheral configuration,           said piece of cooked pizza dough having a surface which includes ...

Jake Ward

Jake Ward
October 30, 2008 15:24

The applicable test to determine whether a claim is drawn to a patent-eligible process under § 101 is the machine-or-transformation test. (Fed. Cir. 2008, 07-11130, en banc) Bernard L. Bilski and Rand A. Warsaw (collectively, “Applicants”) appealed from the final decision of the BPAI ...

humancircuit

Jake Ward
October 30, 2008 15:08

U.S. Pat. No. 6,754,472: Method and apparatus for transmitting power and data using the human body. JW Note:  Hoping you have a scary and safe Halloween!   What is claimed is: 1. A network of devices comprising:           a first device for generating a first electrical signal;           a second de...

lilshpptohrs

Jake Ward
October 22, 2008 15:38

  In surfing for a Halloween-themed TIW? patent this morning, we happened across the following USPTO website, titled The Little Shop of Patent and Trademark Horrors. At first blush, one might think this is a clandestine USPTO department responsible for scaring practitioners and developing ghoulish ...

cricketcarnage

Jake Ward
October 22, 2008 15:14

U.S. Pat. No. 5,103,585:  Cricket gun.     What is claimed is:           1. A cricket gun for holding and dispensing crickets comprising a holding container and an intergral chamber with dispensing means; said holding container comprising a removable cap at one end, and a funnel at the opposite end ...

boo

Jake Ward
October 08, 2008 20:52

U.S. Pat. No. 6,776,687:  Haunting aid.   What is claimed is: 1. An entertainment prop comprising: a substantially flat or low-relief backing depicting at least a head of a being and a pair LEDs to simulate eyes, each LED comprising a base positioned adjacent a portion of said backing, each LED f...

Jake Ward

Jake Ward
October 01, 2008 17:21

Synopsis: Based on the true story of college professor and part-time inventor Robert Kearns’s (Greg Kinnear) long battle with the U.S. automobile industry, Flash of Genius tells the tale of one man whose fight to receive recognition for his ingenuity would come at a heavy price. But this determined ...