View source for AME 40590 Intellectual Property for Engineers

=ALPHABETICAL LISTING OF CASES=

*[[A. & P. Tea Co. v. Supermarket Corp., 340 U.S. 147 (1950)]]
*[[Abbott Laboratories v. Geneva Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 182 F.3d 1315 (1999)]]
*[[Alza Corp. v. Mylan Laboratories, 464 F.3d 1286, (2006)]]
*[[Anderson's Black Rock, Inc. v. Pavement Co., 396 U.S. 57 (1969)]]
*[[Aro Mfg. Co. v. Convertible Top Replacement Co., 365 U.S. 336 (1961)]]
*[[Arrhythmia Research Technology, Inc. v. Corazonix Corp., 958 F.2d 1053 (1992)]]
*[[Asgrow Seed Co. v. Winterboer, 513 U.S. 179 (1994)]]
*[[Atlas Powder v. E.I. du Pont de Nemours, 750 F2d 1569 (1984)]]
*[[Bilski v. Kappos, 130 S.Ct. 3218 (2010)]]
*[[Bobbs-Merrill Co. v. Straus, 210 U.S. 339 (1908)]]
*[[Bonito Boats. v. Thunder Craft, 489 U.S. 141 (1989)]]
*[[CCS Fitness, Inc. v. Brunswick Corporation, 288 F.3d 1359 (2002)]]
*[[Chester v. Miller, 906 F.2d 1574 (1990)]]
*[[D.L. Auld Co. v. Chroma Graphics Corp., 714 F.2d 1144 (1983)]]
*[[Diamond v. Diehr, 450 U.S. 175 (1981)]]
*[[Egbert v. Lippmann, 104 U.S. 333 (1881)]]
*[[Electric Storage Battery Co. v. Shimadzu, 307 U.S. 5 (1939)]]
*[[Elizabeth v. American Nicholson Pavement Company, 97 U.S. 126 (1877)]]
*[[Filmtec Corp. v. Allied-Signal Inc., 939 F.2d 1568 (1991)]]
*[[Gottschalk v. Benson, 409 U.S. 63 (1972)]]
*[[Gould v. Hellwarth, 472 F2d 1383 (1973)]]
*[[Graham v. John Deere, 383 U.S. 1 (1966)]]
*[[Graver Tank & Mfg. Co. v. Linde Air Products Co. 339 US 605 (1950)]]
*[[Hotchkiss v. Greenwood, 52 U.S. 11 (1850) ]]
*[[Hybritech v. Monoclonal Antiboties, 802 F.2d 1375 (1986)]]
*[[In Re Bilski]]
**[[In Re Bilski, Dky concurring opinion]]
**[[In Re Bilski, Newman dissenting opinion]]
**[[In Re Bilski, Mayer dissenting opinion]]
**[[In Re Bilski, Rader dissenting opinion]]
*[[In re Brana, 51 F.3d 1560 (1995)]]
*[[In re Carlson, 983 F.2d 1032 (1992)]]
*[[In re Hall, 781 F.2d 897 (1986)]]
*[[In re Kahn, CAFC 04-1616 (2006)]]
*[[In Re Rouffet]]
*[[J.E.M. Ag Supply, Inc. v. Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc., 534 U.S. 124 (2001)]]
*[[Juicy Whip v. Orange Bang, 185 F.3d 1364 (1999)]]
*[[KSR International Co. v. Teleflex, Inc., 550 U.S. 398 (2007)]]
*[[Laboratory Corporation of America vs. Metabolite Laboratories, 548 U.S. 124 (2005)]]
*[[Lorenz v. Colgate-Palmolive-Peet Co., 167 F.2d 423 (1948)]]
*[[Lyon v. Bausch & Lomb, 224 F.2d 530 (1955)]]
*[[Metabolit Laboratories, Inc. and Competitive Technologies, Inc. v. Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings, 370 F.3d 1354  (2004)]]
*[[Metallizing Engineering Co., Inc. v. Kenyon Bearing & Auto Parts Co., Inc., 153 F.2d 516 (1946)]]
*[[Microsoft Corp v. At&T Corp.]]
*[[Monsanto v. Good F.Supp.2d, WL 1664013 (D.N.J.) (2003)]]
*[[Perkin-Elmer Corporation v. Computervision Corporation (full text)]]
*[[Pfaff vs. Wells Electronics, 525 U.S. 55 (1998)]]
*[[Philips Electric Co. v. Thermal Industries, Inc. (full text)]]
*[[Quanta Computers Inc v. LG Electronics (full text)]]
*[[Reiner v. I. Leon Co. (full text)]]
*[[South Corp. v. US]]
*[[South Corp. v. US (full text)]]
*[[South Corp. v. US 690 F.2d 1368 (1982)]]
*[[State Street Bank & Trust Co. v. Signature Financial Group, Inc., 149 F.3d 1368 (1998)]]
*[[Traffix Devices, Inc. vs. Marketing Displays, Inc.]]
*[[US v. Adams, 383 U.S. 39 (1966)]]
*[[US v. Adams (full text)]]
*[[U.S. v. Univis Lens Co., 316 U.S. 241 (1942)]]
*[[Universal Athletic Sales Co. v. American Gym Recreational & Athletic Equipment Corporation, Inc. (full text)]]
*[[Warner-Jenkinson Company v. Hilton Davis Chemical Co., 520 US 17 (1997)]]
**[[Warner-Jenkinson v. Hilton Davis Petitioner Brief]]
**[[Warner-Jenkinson v. Hilton Davis Respondent Brief]]
*[[Winner International Royalty Co. v. Wang, 202 F.3d 1340 (2000)]]
*[[W.L. Gore & Associates, Inc. v. Garlock, Inc., 721 F.2d 1540 (1983)]]

=[[INTRODUCTION]]=
This is a summary. Click on the title for the full chapter: [[INTRODUCTION]]

Outline:
*The main purpose for obtaining a patent is ''economic''.
*It grants the exclusive right to ''make, use or sell'' the invention for a limited period of time.
*The governing law is Title 35 of the United States Code (35 USC).
*The governing regulations are from Title 37 of the Code of Federal Regulations (37 CFR).
*The law is federal, so patent cases are resolved in the federal court system:
**district courts;
**circuit courts;
**the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC), a special appeals court for patent cases; and,
**the Supreme Court.
*The US Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) processes patent applications.
*Patents last for 20 years from the date the application is filed with the PTO.
*Patents have the attributes of personal property.
*The foundation of the federal government's authority to create a patent system is in the Constitution.  The purposes is explicitly economic, "to  promote the progress of science and useful arts..."
*Other forms of intellectual property
**copyright;
**trademarks; and,
**trade secrets.

=[[NONOBVIOUSNESS]]=
This is a summary. Click on the title for the full chapter: [[NONOBVIOUSNESS]]

Outline:

*This is perhaps the most difficult factual patent issue.  In addition to meeting the novelty requirements of 35 USC 102, 35 USC 103 requires that the claimed invention as a whole must have been nonobvious "at the time the invention was made to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which said subject matter pertains."
*There is a lot of historical confusion regarding this standard.  Basically, it is a notion of something being meeting some type of sufficient inventive standard or nontriviality.
*To determine this, there are three fundamental lines of inquiry:
**the scope and content of the prior art;
**the differences between the prior art and claims at issue; and,
**the level of ordinary skill in the art.
*Secondary considerations include:
**a long-felt but unsatisfied need met by the invention;
**appreciation by those versed in the art that the need existed;
**substantial attempts to meet this need;
**commercial success of the invention;
**replacement in the industry by the claimed invention;
**acquiescence by the industry;
**''teaching away'' by those skilled in the art;
**unexpectedness of the results; and,
**disbelief or incredulity on the part of industry with respect to the new invention.

=[[INFRINGEMENT]]=
This is a summary.  Click on the title for the full chapter: [[INFRINGEMENT]]

=[[THE PATENT DOCUMENT]]=
This is a summary. Click on the title for the full chapter: [[THE PATENT DOCUMENT]]

Outline:
*A patent has several parts:
**specification: describes the invention;
**claims: delineates the ownership rights;
**drawings: not required, but if they are included then any element included in the claims must be shown in the drawings; and,
**other miscellaneous parts.
*Interpreting claims: claims are said to ''read on'' another device.
*The doctrine of equivalence, prevents something from being patented that only has minor alterations from the prior art.
*The date of the invention
**''reduction to practice'';
**''diligence'' requirement.
*The ''file wrapper''.

=[[NOVELTY]]=
This is a summary. Click on the title for the full chapter: [[NOVELTY]]

Outline:
*Specified in 35 USC 102.
*Fundamentally: an invention must be ''new''.
*Section 102 basically defines in a technical way what it means to not be new:
**Events prior to invention
***known or used by others in the US
***patented or in a printed publication in another country
**Events one year before filing the patent application
***patented or in a printed publication anywhere (''in this or a foreign country'')
***in public use or on sale in the US
**Other bars
*The applicant must be the inventor (not the employer)

Outline:
*Literal Infringement
*The Doctrine of Equivalents

=[[UTILITY]]=
This is a summary.  Click on the title for the full chapter: [[UTILITY]]

=[[PATENTABLE SUBJECT MATTER]]=
This is a summary.  Click on the title for the full chapter: [[PATENTABLE SUBJECT MATTER]]

Can computer programs, algorithms, laws of nature, life forms, plants, ''etc.'' be patented.  In particular, are the following patentable:

* Plants
* Algorithms and Computer Programs
* Scientific Facts?

In a recent case
* State Street (1998)
the CAFC substantially broadened the subject matter of section 101 to include such things as methods of doing business, etc.

=[[FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC PRIORITY]]=
This is a summary. Click on the title for the full chapter: [[FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC PRIORITY]]

Outline:
*Priority in general
*Foreign priority
*International applications
*Domestic priority
*Provisional applications

=[[THE PATENT APPLICATION]]=
This is a summary. Click on the title for the full chapter: [[THE PATENT APPLICATION]]

Outline:
*The Disclosure
*The Claims
*Other Sections
*New Matter
*The Examination Process

=[[INVENTOR ELIGIBILITY]]=
This is a summary.  Click on the title for the full chapter: [[INVENTOR ELIGIBILITY]]

[[GOTTSCHALK v. BENSON, 409 U.S. 63 (1972): full text]]

[[GOTTSCHALK v. BENSON, 409 U.S. 63 (1972)]]

[[Diamond v. Diehr, 450 U.S. 175 (1981): (full text)]]

[[Diamond v. Diehr, 450 U.S. 175 (1981)]]

[[Laboratory Corporation of America vs. Metabolite Laboratories, 548 U.S. 124 (2005): (full text)]]

[[Laboratory Corporation of America vs. Metabolite Laboratories, 548 U.S. 124 (2005)]]

[[METABOLITE LABORATORIES, INC. and Competitive Technologies, Inc. v. LABORATORY CORPORATION OF AMERICA HOLDINGS (doing business as LabCorp): the CAFC case (full text)]]

=[[ANTICIPATION]]=
This is a summary.  Click on the title for the full chapter: [[ANTICIPATION]]

=[[PRIOR ART]]=
This is a summary.  Click on the title for the full chapter: [[PRIOR ART]]

[[Pfaff v. Wells Electronics: full text]]

[[Perkin-Elmer Corporation v. Computervision Corporation (full text)]]

[[Perkin-Elmer Corporation v. Computervision Corporation]]