IP Today survey of Top Patent Firms

January 31, 2005 on 12:11 pm | In The-Practice-of-Law | Comments Off

Every year IP Today magazine (a great resource) surveys IP firms to determine how many patents/trademarks the various IP firms had issued/registered.  Their website contains links to the 2003 stats:  The 2003 Top Patent Firms, The 2003 Top Trademark Firms and The 2003 Corporate Patent Scorecard.

They are currently soliciting information on The 2004 Top Patent Firms.  I don’t see their patents issued survey form on their website, so I’ll attach it (see below) for your review (and submission if your firm hasn’t submitted in the past).  Deadline for response is Feb. 4.

UPDATE:  On second thought…they might not want the PDF circulating…as such, I’ve pulled it.  I believe you can send an email to planet-AT-iptoday.com and they’ll send you one (if your firm wasn’t on the 2003 edition (if you were, someone at your firm probably already received the PDF)).

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Apple patent in the Spotlight

January 29, 2005 on 2:56 pm | In Interesting Patents | Comments Off

Apple’s latest operating system, code-named "Tiger," is slated for release in the coming months.  One of the new features this release will add is a "desktop search" program called Spotlight.

Microsofts forthcoming operating system, code-named "Longhorn" was likewise rumored to have such an integral desktop search program, but in September MS pulled the program (WinFS) from Longhorn development. I wonder if Apple’s pending patent application had anything to do with it.  One of the Apple blogs recently noted that Apple just received (1/25/05) a patent on its Spotlight technology.   See: Apple Spotlight patent predates Microsoft’s Longhorn announcement by three years .  The patent, USPN 6,847,959 covers a universal interface for retrieval of information in a computer system.

Claim 1 is amazingly broad:

1. A method for locating information in a computer system, comprising the steps of: inputting an information identifier; providing said information identifier to a plurality of plug-in modules each using a different heuristic to locate information which matches said identifier; providing at least one candidate item of information from said modules; and displaying a representation of said candidate item of information.

The claim seems to describe what I’ve heard about how Spotlight works…Spotlight is built into the OS and is directly linked to all of the sources of data on your computer.  As data changes, Spotlight is told about the update and the index is automatically updated in the background.   An amazing claim…

UPDATE:  Via Scoble — eWeek article:  Microsoft Won’t Bundle Desktop Search with Windows.

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This week’s “News for Inventors”

January 28, 2005 on 6:00 am | In Independent Inventors | Comments Off

I/P Updates talking about the "FreePatentAuction.com" website: 
http://feeds.feedburner.com/IntellectualPropertyUpdates?m=1221

"Promotion firms need to be vetted"
[mentions invention promotion company:  Advent Product Development]
http://www.dailynews.com/Stories/0,1413,200~20950~2668439,00.html

IPNewsBlog:  "Debunking a myth:  The Poor Man’s Copyright, or, why 37 cents won’t get you the same protection as the Copyright Office."
http://feeds.feedburner.com/IpNewsBlog-Ipnewsblogcom?m=557

"Company entices inventors but has multiple complaints"
http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/story.cfm?story=81005&ran=161170
This is one of the better newspaper pieces on invention promotions companies I have EVER seen.  Definitely worth a read.  Interesting quotes: 

"Some Invent-Tech clients have signed confidentiality agreements, which threaten legal action for disclosing to anyone, including "any governmental agency or department," any information "affecting or relating to the business of Invent-Tech," according to a copy of one agreement."

In the small print of Invent-Tech’s "Invention Research and Documentation Proposal," which clients sign, the company claims no product successes.

"The total number of customers known by Invent-Tech to have received a net financial profit as a direct result of the invention promotions services provided by Invent-Tech is zero," the document reads. "…The total number of customers known by Invent-Tech to have received license agreements for their inventions as a direct result of the invention promotion services provided by Invent Tech is zero."

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The Guide to Downloading Patent Copies has been updated

January 27, 2005 on 10:46 pm | In Patent Searching | Comments Off

FINALLY!!!  A new update to the Guide (if you know of any sites/programs to add…please let me know)

PatentMatic.  Free.  Enter patent number and it gives you a summary page with abstract and related patents and a link to download a PDF copy of the patent.  Coverage:  "European (EP), United States (US), ‘World’ (PCT/WO) and Japanese (JP) patents." 

PatentMatic’s site includes a "kind codes" key.  Great way to figure out what "A9" means.

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Tech Tip Thursday

January 27, 2005 on 10:23 pm | In Tech Tips | 2 Comments

Oops…almost forgot the crazy tech tips o’ the week.

A couple of years ago we picked up a FREE Xerox color printer for the office.  It prints not with a laser but with a wax.  Quality is as good as a color laser…for free.  The only catch is that you have to buy ink directly from them.  It seems to be a pretty good deal…the ink is cheaper than our HP Color LaserJet and it seems to cost less to operate (our HP seems to always need another $300 "consumable parts" (i.e., drums, transfer kits, etc.).  For our little 4 man office…its a pretty good deal.  Here’s the link:  http://www.freecolorprinters.com  [I mentioned my free Xerox printer to a friend who works at HP here in Boise…she replied "oh, now they have to give them away."  Great line!]

I used to love Netscape radio…until they decided to start charging you to listen.  My response was "uninstall."  THEN, I found iTunes.  I don’t own an iPod…and you don’t have to to use iTunes.  Consider it Apple’s answer to Windows Media Player (WMP).  You can actually play  hundreds of free radio stations through the iTunes program.  Unlike, WMP, you don’t have to go to some web page and jump through a bunch of hoops to listen to the stream.  iTunes is worth downloading just for the radio.  You can run iTunes on both your Windows PC and your Mac.

Finally, Skype.  I’ve really come to enjoy using the free VOIP program called Skype.  Using Skype you can talk to another Skype user in better than cell phone quality for free.  If you want to call a land line…you can do that too (using "SkypeOut") for ~$0.02 a minute.  It also has an integral chat program.  It is not uncommon for me to have short chats with 3-4 of my fellow bloggers a week.  If you try it out…send me a message (username:  jurisnipper).  You can run Skype on both your Windows PC and your Mac.

Until next week…

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Trademark File Wrappers now available

January 27, 2005 on 4:30 pm | In Trademarks | Comments Off

The USPTO has finally provided public access to trademark application file wrappers!!!  See:  http://portal.uspto.gov/external/portal/tow

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New Kid on the IP Blawgk

January 27, 2005 on 8:41 am | In Weblogs | Comments Off

Lee’s Blog:  Views on life and the intellectual property (legal) profession and life in Pittsburgh, PA from a patent attorney at Cohen & Grigsby.

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Tesla

January 25, 2005 on 5:46 am | In Famous Inventors | 1 Comment

From the files of "One of these things is not like the other":

P1010065

I can’t explain why…but this just cracks me up.

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Five Things Corporate Counsel Need to Know About Patents

January 24, 2005 on 6:46 pm | In Articles | 1 Comment

My first article for law.com is available online (subscription required).  It is entitled "Five Things Corporate Counsel Need to Know About Patents."

I frequently come across corporate counsel with questions about intellectual property. They are the legal "jack of all trades," but often aren’t regularly enough exposed to patent law to be able to effectively spot issues when they occur. In this brief article, I provide five things corporate counsel need to know about patents…

Until I obtain permission to post a reprint…you’ll have to go to to the IP Law Practice Center to check it out. 

UPDATE:  a reader pointed out that a link to the article (without a subscription requirement) can be found in the right hand margin (perhaps today only) on the IP Law & Business magazine site.

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USPTO To Hold Live On-Line for Independent Inventors

January 24, 2005 on 10:06 am | In Independent Inventors | Comments Off

According to the main page at USPTO.gov:

Senior officials of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, as well as a representative from the Patent and Trademark Depository Library Program, will be available live on-line next Tuesday, January 25, from 2 to 3 pm (EDT). They will be answering questions and offering tips for independent inventors. Instructions for taking part in the online will be posted on the home page of the USPTO website at 10 am (EDT) on Tuesday. Inventors can begin logging on for the on-line at 1:30 pm.

The independent inventor on-line is part of the USPTO’s continuing efforts to promote and protect America ’s independent inventors. This effort includes educating inventor-entrepreneurs about the risks of working with invention development companies.

Transcript of the 07 December 2004 Online for Independent Inventors is now available.

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