Archive for the ‘Articles’ Category
Surge in Patents creating More Patent Patent Office Jobs
As I reported in yesterday’s post ‘New Patent Appeals Need to be Clear and Precise’, the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (BPAI) is presently experiencing a large increase in the number of ex parte appeals. From 3,349 appeals in FY 2006, the Board expects the figures to cross 4000 and 5000 in FY 2007 and FY 2008 respectively. The patent office is not only having to creat... Read More
New Patent Appeals Need to be Clear and Precise
The Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (BPAI) is presently experiencing a large increase in the number of ex parte appeals. In 2006 (Financial Year), the Board received 3,349 ex parte appeals. In 2007, the Board expects to receive more than 4,000 ex parte appeals; and in 2008, it expects to receive over 5,000 such appeals. In order to keep the process functioning smoothly in the face of thi... Read More
The Patent-Innovation Circle of Progress
A few days ago, I had drawn your attention to an article touting a surge in medical patents in the past few years. According to the article in Law.com, about 100 medical-process patents are now being issued every month. I also couldn’t help noticing how a couple of views quoted in the same article explained so clearly how patents and innovations complement each other – "My b... Read More
New Patent Office Rule Changes
The patent office is working towards implementing changes in its rules for limiting continuations and number of claims examined. The final version of the changed rules will be available in the Federal Register which will be published after a few days. Excerpt from the internal e-mail – OMB Approves Claims and Continuation Changes On July 9, 2007, the Office of Management and Budget concluded... Read More
Improper Double Patenting leads to Patent Invalidation
The importance of following proper rules and procedures in the filing of patents cannot be overemphasized. Even tiny mistakes can lead to patent invalidation. The Patent Prospector highlights a particular case where ‘double patenting’ finally led to invalidation of both patents. An excerpt from the post: Toprol-XL® is a drug used to treat heart-related malfunctions. A... Read More
