Inventors

AI Software Inventor on Patent

Can AI Be An Inventor on a Patent? US Court Says No and Supreme Court Declines Challenge

AI, Patents, SCOTUS, USPTO / By / May 8, 2023

Asked to decide if an artificial intelligence (AI) software system can be listed as the inventor on a patent application, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) said no. And SCOTUS recently declined to hear a challenge to the case.

The case raised the fundamental question of whether non-human entities can be recognized as inventors under the Patent Act.

According to the Patent Act, the term “inventor” is explicitly limited to natural persons, i.e., human beings. Consequently, the US Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) denied a computer scientist’s patent applications that failed to identify any human as an inventor. The only inventor listed on the patent application was the very software that the computer scientist had created.

The definition of “individual” is not explicitly provided in the Patent Act. However, the Supreme Court has previously clarified that “individual” generally refers to a human being or a person when used as a noun. While this particular ruling (Mohamad v. Palestinian Auth., 566 U.S. 449, 454, 2012) was unrelated to patents, it highlighted the understanding of “individual” in legal contexts.

The CAFC firmly held that an inventor must be a human being, drawing support from its own precedent and reasoning. Consequently, the court confirmed that patent inventors must be actual individuals.

It is worth noting an intriguing detail mentioned in the opinion. The plaintiff pointed out that South Africa has granted patents with his software acknowledged as an inventor. While this aspect warrants further investigation, those interested can explore the full opinion in Thaler v. Vidal.

And remember, if you are an inventor filing a patent application, paying close attention to accurately listing the inventors is of utmost importance. Surprisingly, this crucial aspect is often overlooked or glanced over by applicants. Getting inventorship right is essential to ensure the validity and success of your patent. If you have any questions about what constitutes an inventor or any other patent-related queries, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Source: Reuters

www internet source code nft auction

Original Web Browser Source Code Being Auctioned as NFT

Copyrights, Internet, Inventions, Inventors, NFT, Patents / By / June 16, 2021

Tim Berners-Lee, known as the inventor of the World Wide Web, is auctioning off the source code to the original web browser as an NFT. Some find Berners-Lee’s sale of his intellectual property odd because he famously refused to patent what is clearly one of the most important inventions in history.

Invented in 1989, the “WorldWideWeb” application was the first hypermedia browser/editor, allowing users to create and navigate links between files across a network of computers.

The auction includes the original archive of dated and time-stamped files, approximately 10,000 lines of source code for the HTML, HTTP, and URI protocols that are still in use today. Also included are the original HTML documents that instructed early web users on how to use the application.

Sotheby’s, which is running the auction, compares owning Berners-Lee’s code to owning the original hand-written manuscript of Charles Darwin’s “On the Origin of Species”.

"post-it notes" by Dean Hochman is licensed with CC BY 2.0

The Inventor of the Post-It Note Has Died

Inventions, Inventors, Patents / By / May 14, 2021

The inventor of the Post-it Note has died. Dr. Spencer Silver, a research chemist at 3M, was trying to create an adhesive strong enough for use in aircraft construction. Though he failed at that, his various experiments produced a reusable adhesive that stuck to and easily peeled away from surfaces.

Dr. Silver tried to get 3M to take notice of his adhesive for years. Six years after he developed the adhesive, a chemical engineer looking to develop new products showed some interest. Art Fry worked in the tape division at 3M. He was frustrated that his bookmarks in his hymnal kept falling out. So he applied Dr. Silver’s adhesive and found that it held the bookmark in place and didn’t tear the pages when it was removed. The first Post-it was born.

Executives were skeptical of the product after testing it in various markets in the late 1970s. But they were ultimately convinced when one test revealed that 90 percent of receptionist in one market would buy the product.

3M introduced Post-it Notes in 1979. The adhesive was patented in 1972. In 1993 Art Fry received a patent for a method of making the Post-it.

Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/13/business/spencer-silver-dead.html

Featured Image Credit: “post-it notes” by Dean Hochman is licensed under CC BY 2.0

USPTO Issues Patent No 11000000 Twitter @patentauthority Elliot Furman

United States Issues Patent Number 11,000,000

Inventions, Inventors, Patents, USPTO / By / May 11, 2021

The United States issues patent number 11,000,000 today, three years after the USPTO issued patent number 10 million.

The first patent, which was signed by George Washington, was issued on July 31, 1790 to Samuel Hopkins for a process of making potash, an ingredient used in fertilizer. By 1836, over 9,900 patents had been issued. On July 13 of that year the U.S. started numbering patents. Patent No. 1 was issued to John Ruggles for a traction wheel for steam locomotives.

Since then, patents have issued at an exponential rate.

USPTO Exponential Growth of Patents
Image Courtesy of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

Patent No. 11,000,000 is for a new method for delivering, positioning, and/or repositioning a collapsible and expandable stent frame within a patient’s heart chamber.

Other interesting historical facts about patents can be found on the USPTO’s page Milestones in U.S. Patenting.

Inventor Spotlight – Garrett Brown

Inventors, Patents / By / April 5, 2021

“Captivated by innovation and storytelling as a child, Garrett Brown was many things—folk singer, car dealer, copywriter, radio personality—before he invented the Steadicam and Skycam, whose stable, gliding shots have captivated movie and television audiences ever since. At 78, with more than 50 patents, 70 films, an Oscar, and an Emmy to his name—among other impressive awards and honors—he is still inventing, this time on what could be a revolutionary new alternative to walkers and wheelchairs.”

https://www.uspto.gov/learning-and-resources/journeys-innovation/field-stories/look-out-0