Honoring the Inventor

Smith & Wesson IP

2009-12-30T14:21:00.004-05:00

Springfield, MA-based Smith & Wesson has 123 U.S. patents and patent apps, see them here.

Their latest was from 11/17/2009 titled Fire Control Mechanism for a Firearm, #7,617,628 [the lone inventor for this patent is the prolific Brett Curry]--

A firearm includes a frame and a slide. A firing mechanism for the firearm includes a striker-type firing pin, a trigger, and a trigger bar. A sear inside the frame is pivotally balanced about a central fulcrum, and is biased in a first pivotal direction by a spring. In this position, a rear portion of the sear engages the firing pin. Actuation of the trigger causes the trigger bar to move rearwards for engagement of a forward portion of the sear. This pivots the sear in a second pivotal direction, against the spring, which releases the firing pin. The spring then causes the sear to pivot back for reengaging the firing pin when it returns to its rear position. Movement of the slide to a retired position causes the trigger bar to disengage from the sear (preventing discharge of the firearm) until the slide returns to a battery position.

Smith & Wesson is a public company, SWHC on NASDAQ.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Scaled & Burt Rutan

2009-12-10T11:14:00.004-05:00

Scaled is Burt Rutan's company (founded in 1982, based in Mojave, CA), and the firm has four patents.

Consider Fabrication of structure having structural layers and layers of controllable electrical or magnetic properties from 2001--

A structure having layers of controllable electrical properties is prepared by furnishing a sheet of a substrate material, patterning a pattern of recesses into a surface of the sheet of the substrate material, filling the pattern of recesses with a mixture of an active phase and a matrix, and laminating the sheet to a base structure. The filled recesses may be of any desired shape, depth, and orientation. The active phase is particles of a material such as an electrical conductor or semiconductor, or magnetic particles.

Scaled is working with Virgin Galactic on private spaceflight.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Monsanto: Patents for Seeds

2009-11-30T15:32:00.005-05:00

St. Louis-based Monsanto has a lot of seed patents, to the growing chagrin of some farmers.

How many U.S. patents & patent apps in total?

14,183.

See them here.

Consider their most recent patent, #7,622,660 titled Plants and seeds of hybrid corn variety CH475361 from 11/24/2009--

According to the invention, there is provided seed and plants of the hybrid corn variety designated CH475361. The invention thus relates to the plants, seeds and tissue cultures of the variety CH475361, and to methods for producing a corn plant produced by crossing a corn plant of variety CH475361 with itself or with another corn plant, such as a plant of another variety. The invention further relates to genetic complements of plants of variety CH475361.

This article in the Winnipeg Free Press talks about Monsanto's patent enforcement, and the likely effect on farmers.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Sherwin-Williams IP

2009-11-25T10:20:00.003-05:00

How many U.S. patents & patent apps for Cleveland-based Sherwin-Williams?

771.

See them here.

Since its founding by Henry Sherwin and Edward Williams in 1866, The Sherwin-Williams Company has not only grown to be the largest producer of paints and coatings in the United States, but is among the largest producers in the world.

Their latest patent is from October 2009 titled Pigment and coating composition capable of inhibiting corrosion of substrates:

The present invention relates to a pigment and a coating composition comprising such a pigment, wherein it is contemplated that a coating composition containing such pigment is capable of inhibiting corrosion of a substrate to which it is applied. In one embodiment, the pigment comprises a filler having calcium borate, calcium molybdate, and calcium phosphate deposited on the surface of the filler. In an exemplary embodiment, the filler is calcium carbonate.

There are three inventors listed--

Simpson, Charles H. (Avon, OH)
Peck, Michael W. (Coffeyville, KS)
Wright, Lisa M. (Coffeyville, KS).

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Blackwater IP

2009-11-17T09:59:00.002-05:00

Blackwater (Moyock, NC) is pretty controversial. But like them or not, they have IP-- eleven U.S. patents and patent apps, see them all here.

Consider Target System, from 5/30/2006, invented by Jim Dehart--

A target system provides a unified target solution where a plurality of targets are fixed to a base member. This base member allows, for example, easy portability of the plurality of targets as well as provides a mechanism for allowing multiple targets systems to be interconnected and interchanged.

And here's a recent book about the company.

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Inventor Jacques Cousteau

2009-11-12T10:42:00.004-05:00

Jacques Cousteau received his first U.S. patent in 1949, called Diving Unit.

Over his long life, he garnered a total of 16 U.S. patents.

The last was Apparatus for Producing a Force When in a Moving Fluid, from 12/23/1986--

A device for producing a force when in a moving fluid, such as air or water, and a method for using said device. The device may be placed in a fluid moving in a first direction for producing a force in a second direction, which is substantially transverse with respect to the first direction. The device avoids the use of large sail areas needed where the force derived from wind is proportional to said area. The device according to the invention comprises an elongated body having in cross-section a rounded symmetrical profile, which defines an elongated and rounded leading portion whose thickness increases from the front to the rear and a rounded trailing portion whose thickness decreases from the front to the rear, the leading portion being longer than the trailing portion. The device according to the invention is also provided with at least one flap, which projects from the body and which is located on the trailing portion of the profile.

Brad Matsen recently authored a superb book on Cousteau, called The Sea King, and Cousteau's work continues today at Cousteau.org.

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Munchkin: 59 Patents

2009-11-03T11:08:00.006-05:00

North Hills, CA-based Munchkin develops "innovative products that excite and delight parents, children and pets."

The company was founded in 1991, and sits atop 59 U.S. patents and patent applications.

Straw Drinking Cup from inventor Justin McDonough from 4/14/2009 got our attention:

A straw drinking cup includes a container and a flexible straw having a first, drinking, end and a second and that is disposed within the container. Advantageously, the cup includes a straw positioning mechanism that ensures that the first, drinking end of the flexible straw will remain upwardly oriented to minimize the possibility of leakage, regardless of whether the straw positioning mechanism is in the open position, the closed position, or in transit between the two positions. The straw drinking cup further includes an advantageous venting mechanism that includes a flexible membrane that permits air to flow into the container only when a sufficient pressure differential is developed across the membrane, such as will occur when a consumer is sucking on the flexible straw. The venting mechanism further operates so as to prevent leakage from the container, as sufficient pressure will not exist to draw any liquid across the flexible membrane.

Early this year, Munchkin announced a partnership with Arm & Hammer to develop a line of deodorizing products for the nursery.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Keraderm: Nail-Healing Light

2009-10-27T14:03:00.006-04:00

Blacksburg, VA-based Keraderm just raised $2.5 million in an "A" round. The company has invented a device that looks like this that uses phototherapy to fight nail infections.

The firm's President, Bill Cumbie, has two patents:

7,494,502 Alteration of the skin and nail for the prevention and treatment of skin and nail infections

The method of prevention and treatment of microbial infections that occur on, or just below, the skin and nails of a person consisting of applying a means to inactivate the microbes thus rendering them harmless. The treatment consists of applying a means which alters the skin or nail so that the skin or nail will either no longer serve as a food source, will be inhibitory to the organism, will be toxic to the organism, or will be altered in a manner that makes it more responsive to treatment of infections.

7,306,620 Prevention and treatment of skin and nail infections using germicidal light

A method of prevention and treatment of microbial infections that occur on, or just below, the skin and nails of a person consisting of electromagnetic radiation to inactivate the microbes thus rendering them harmless. The treatment consists of irradiating an area of the skin and nails for a period of time long enough to inactivate the organisms. Some additional features which are not integral to the treatment but increase the safety of the treatment include shielding of non-infected areas from irradiation and a cover to prevent damage to sight which may result from viewing the electromagnetic radiation.

The treatment eliminates the potential serious side effects of current medications and has shown encouraging results in preclinical and early clinical testing. The firm believes that the ability to safely and effectively treat nail infections, the low cost, and the shortened treatment time of the Keraderm light-based solution potentially will transform what is a billion-dollar-plus market.

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Kanzius and his Cancer-Zapping Device

2009-10-19T10:01:00.004-04:00

Last night 60 Minutes looked at the Kanzius Machine.

John Kanzius invented a radio machine to zap cancer cells. And he tried it on himself.

Kanzius earned one patent and five patent applications.

His patent 7,510,555 is titled Enhanced systems and methods for RF-induced hyperthermia and was issued 3/31/2009:

A method of inducing hyperthermia in at least a portion of a target area—e.g., a tumor or a portion of a tumor or targeted cancerous cells—is provided. Targeted RF absorption enhancers, e.g., antibodies bound to RF absorbing particles, are introduced into a patient. These targeted RF absorption enhancers will target certain cells in the target areas and enhance the effect of a hyperthermia generating RF signal directed toward the target area. The targeted RF absorption enhancers may, in a manner of speaking, add one or more RF absorption frequencies to cells in the target area, which will permit a hyperthermia generating RF signal at that frequency or frequencies to heat the targeted cells.

Kanzius died earlier this year. The company he founded is Therm Med.

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Archer Daniels Midland IP

2009-10-14T13:35:00.005-04:00

Decatur, IL-based Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) is one of the largest agricultural processors in the world.

They have 359 U.S. patents and patent apps as of this moment, see them here from the most recent.

The latest is #7,582,777 titled from Long chain (C22-C50) polyunsaturated hydrocarbons, derivatives, synthesis and uses thereof from 9/1/2009--

The present invention is directed to unsaturated or derivatized long chain (C₂₂-C₅₀) polyunsaturated hydrocarbons and a method of preparing the long chain hydrocarbons via electrocoupling of C₁₂-C₂₆fatty acids. It has been found that soapstock is an inexpensive source of starting materials for the present method. The present invention is also directed to compositions comprising the long chain polyunsaturated hydrocarbons, which can be used as reactive diluents and modifiers in latex, epoxy, alkyd and polymer compositions. In another aspect, the present invention is directed to derivitization or ozonolysis of the long chain polyunsaturated hydrocarbons. The present method is also useful for preparing C_12-26alkyl esters and C_12-26carbon chain compounds containing a terminal olefin.

The inventor is Paul Bloom, and the patent was filed on 10/17/2005 (thus almost a 4-year wait).

ADM was founded in 1898.

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Friendster: IP in Social Networking

2009-10-07T10:23:00.005-04:00

Friendster has 19 million worldwide monthly unique visitors per Comscore, but has been passed by (see MySpace and Facebook).

Still, they have IP-- five social networking patents between 2006 and 2009 including U.S. Patent 7,478,078, titled “Method for sharing relationship information stored in a social network database with third party databases.” It was awarded 1/13/2009.

Other social networks may violate the patent:

Social network information maintained in a first database is shared with a second database. The operators of the second database use the social network information to better manage services provided to their customers and target particular information to their customers. The process begins with a request made to an application server of the first database by an application server of the second database, for social network information relevant to a set of individuals. The request includes identifying information of each individual in the set. The first database is then searched for matches with the identifying information in the request. If matches are found, the social network information relevant to those individuals for whom matches are found is shared with the second database.

Information supplied by the company:

* In July 2006, Friendster was awarded its first U.S. patent describing how people are connected in the context of an online social network, titled “A System, Method and Apparatus for Connecting Users in an Online Computer System Based on Their Relationships within Social Networks” (U.S. Patent 7,069,308).

* Friendster was granted a second U.S. patent in October 2006, which discloses the process of enriching other users’ profiles with text, video, pictures and additional content, titled “Method of Inducing Content Uploads in a Social Network” (U.S. Patent 7,117,254).

* In March 2007, Friendster added another patent to its portfolio, titled “System and Method for Managing Connections in an Online Social Network” (U.S. Patent 7,188,153), which describes a technology that manages connections in a social network and allows members of the social network to add friends, personalize their network through arranging, ordering and classifying their connections, and search and browse profiles of other members of the social network.

* In December 2008, Friendster was granted its fourth patent, titled “Compatibility Scoring of Users in a Social Network” (U.S. Patent 7,451,161), which discloses a unique methodology used to calculate compatibility based on expressed interests between users of a social network. This includes scoring the compatibility between two members of a social network based on their interests and scoring the correlation between two interests for a given member of a social network.

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Foley & Lardner: Water IP

2009-09-28T09:35:00.005-04:00

Among seven categories of water technologies, more

patents were issued during 2008 for inventions in the “water purification” category than in any other, says a report from Foley & Lardner LLP, a large international law firm based in Milwaukee known for innovating in the IP arena.

The report, Water Technology U.S. Patent Landscape Annual Report, indicates that among 384 water technology patents issued last year, there were 124 patents and 1,958 claims made in the “water purification” category. Other leading categories were water reclamation and treatment (96 patents, 1,534 claims) and water conservation (65 patents, 1,051 claims). The category with the least patent activity was “metering,” with 16 patents and 274 claims. Data were also presented for these other water technology categories: irrigation, desalinization and/or distillation, and hydro/wave/tidal power.

Looking at the types of devices described in the patents, the report said the largest number of claims made under their respective patents were for “water flow-reducing fixtures or flow-limiting valves” (277 claims). Other top categories of claims were “appliances with water conservation characteristics” (263 claims), “treatment of industrial processing or wastewater” (263 claims), “sub-surface current-driven hydropower generation (hydro turbine flow ducts or flow accelerators)” (241 claims), and “purification devices using ionization or electrodes” (199 claims).

The report also identified so-called “white space,” or technological areas where there seems to be the greatest potential for additional patents and technical innovation. The top “white space” category, in the firm’s analysis, was “water treatment with biological agents,” followed by “materials and compositions for water treatment.

More than 30% of 2008 water technology patents were granted to individual inventors as opposed to corporations, the report indicates. Corporations tended to file more patents in more sophisticated water treatment technologies such as desalination, where barriers to market entry typically are higher.

Foley & Lardner has been incredibly prolific helping inventors and companies earn patents-- peruse this lengthy list.

To see the full report in PDF format, click here.

And Foley is on Twitter-- http://twitter.com/FoleyandLardner.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Buzz Aldrin's 3 Patents

2009-09-24T15:25:00.002-04:00

Buzz Aldrin, the 2nd man ever on the moon, has three patents-- see them here.

Multi-crew modules for space flight was issued in 2004--

A system for launching a space for humans into orbit comprises a launch vehicles. There are multiple separate crew modules mounted in relationship to the launch vehicle. The multiple crew modules are nested around the circumference of the launch vehicle. Alternatively or additionally, there are multiple separate crew modules located in a pod relatively directed along the length of the launch vehicle. A single rocket is for launching the multiple space crew modules. The separate crew module return from orbit to Earth separately.

Mr. Aldrin not only has a website, but is also on Twitter-- @therealbuzz.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Pharmalicensing.com

2009-09-16T08:05:00.006-04:00

The well-crafted www.Pharmalicensing.com is a division of UTEK Corporation; a business development company that has created a progressive open innovation business model to help companies grow rapidly with university, research laboratory and corporate technology.

They have the notion of Company Profiling--

Our profiling service maximizes your potential of finding the most suitable partner for your opportunities by targeting our focused global business development and licensing audience.

Pharmalicensing provides a central meeting point for potential partners from all around the world. Whether you are looking to in- or out-license, your profile allows interested parties to contact you directly with solutions that match your needs.

This 9/16/09 press release gives a sense of the power of profiling, in this case for Exotic Naturals, a company based in India:

New Research Formula for Heart Disease with effective control over CRP levels.
According to American Heart Association, High levels of CRP consistently predict new coronary events in patients with unstable angina and acute myocardial infarction (heart attack). Research shows that people have heart attacks due to high levels of CRP; high levels of LDL cholesterol are also a major risk. Various studies have proved that statin is a drug of choice for patients with high CRP levels with or without elevated blood lipid levels However; statins have few important side effects. The most serious side effect is liver failure as it causes increase in liver enzymes and rhabdomyolysis which can impair kidney function & lead to kidney failure.

Considering all these facts Exotic Naturals has focused to develop a unique formula which helps to reduce CRP levels considerably and to improve quality of life. E - LL - 01 was developed because of intensive R&D process and intellectual knowledge of Exotic Team. Exotic naturals is proud to present E-LL-01 which has shown lipid lowering activity with reduction in CRP levels in 62 patient clinical studies.

An open label randomized study to compare the safety and efficacy of two doses of E-LL-01 in lowering blood lipids and reducing risk of myocardial infarction was conducted as per ICH-GCP guidelines. 62 patients with LDL > 160 mg/dl and/or Total Cholesterol > 240 mg/dl were given therapy of E-LL-01 as mono therapy for 12 weeks. Both the doses of E-LL-01 have shown significant reduction (P < 0.05) in LDL-C, VLDL-C, and Total Cholesterol at the end of the study as compared to baseline. There was 34% reduction in CRP levels in one group (C-Reactive Proteins) indicating reducing the risk of Ischemic heart diseases.

Exotic has developed products in some of the fastest growing health categories - Male Sexual Dysfunction, Lipid Lowering and Diabetes Type 2, Allergies, Insomnia, Osteoarthritis & Antioxidants and lots more at the R&D stage. Exotic Naturals is offering these exclusive opportunities to alliance partners for co-development and co-marketing worldwide.

For more information on Exotic Naturals & its products visit www.exoticnatural.com or contact Rekha Patel (bizdev@exoticnatural.com)

Learn more about Pharmalicensing's powerful approach to IP bizdev here.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

23andMe & IP

2009-09-10T13:55:00.002-04:00

23andMe has two patent apps, let's take a look:

United States Patent Application 20090119083, Family Inheritance (5/7/2009)
Displaying a comparison of genetic data is disclosed, including receiving an indication of a first individual, receiving an indication of a second individual, retrieving the genotypic information for the first individual and the second individual, comparing the genotypic information of the first individual and the second individual, displaying an indication of the comparison of the genotypic information of the first individual and the second individual graphically. A first graphical symbol is used to display an indication of the genome regions for which the first individual and the second individual are identical. A second graphical symbol is used to display an indication of the genome regions for which the first individual and the second individual are half identical.

United States Patent Application 20090118131, Genetic comparisons between grandparents and grandchildren (5/7/2009)
Displaying a comparison of genotypic information between relatives is disclosed, including receiving an indication that a first individual is a grandparent, receiving an indication that a second individual is a grandchild of the first individual, comparing the genotypic information of the first individual and the second individual and calculating a similarity score, and displaying an indication of the similarity score graphically using colors.

Here's the 23andMe eStore; per Compete.com they see about 37K unique visitors per month to their website.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Coverplay

2009-09-04T10:50:00.004-04:00

Here's the key patent behind Coverplay, featured on ABC's Shark Tank show last week.

Allison Costa's patent 7,401,366 titled Children's play yard and elastic, removable liner was issued on 7/22/2008--

Various embodiments of the invention are directed towards a baby play yard cover or lining that lines the walls and floor of a baby play yard in order that the play yard is protected from soiling by the baby. Various embodiments of the invention are re-attachable such that the play yard liner may be washed separately from the play yard. The play yard cover has a plurality of elastic reinforcing portions which facilitate the securing of the cover to its corresponding play yard.

And yes, the company won funding from the Sharks....

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Auto-blogging TV Remote?

2009-08-28T14:18:00.005-04:00

Seems IBM is working on technology that would enable you to blog or tweet straight from the remote control of your TV.

Their patent 7,519,658 titled Automatic blogging during media viewing was issued on April 14, 2009--

A method, system and apparatus provide for automatic blogging of media viewing using an enhanced remote controller having networking capabilities that support social networking and blogging. The enhanced remote controller, suitable for use while viewing media programming and content, allows a viewer to autoblog about currently experienced media programming in real-time without having to resort to direct interaction with a computer to perform the autoblogging. The enhanced remote controller allows the viewer to both communicate with a blogging server, and thus to a blogging service, as well as to display responses to and from other bloggers with whom the viewer is communicating. These blog communications may be accomplished without the viewer having to leave the broadcast receiver of the television.

IBM's Inventors for this IP (total of five)--
Anglin; Howard N. (Austin, TX), Young; Yvonne M. (Elgin, TX), Silvia; Elizabeth (Austin, TX), Ratliff; Emily J. (Austin, TX), Kandagatla; Chaitanya (Round Rock, TX) .

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

eInstruction IP

2009-08-21T10:47:00.004-04:00

There's a powerhouse set of classroom tools now available for America's teachers.

A good example is Denton, TX-based eInstruction which was founded in 1980 by Dr. Darrell Ward, and pioneered the use of student response systems in education with the creation of a small hand-held device called CPS™ (Classroom Performance System™) and associated software.

Their patent 7,343,134 titled System and method for communicating with students in an education environment was issued in March of 2008--

A communication system for communicating with students in an education environment includes a plurality of remote units, a base station that receives messages from the remote units, a processor, a memory, and a display simultaneously visible to all users of the remote units. The base station receives a response to a current question from a remote unit. The processor determines whether the current response is a valid response, and uses the display to visually indicate to a user of the remote unit whether the response is valid.

eInstruction was in the news this month re: IP, read their press release here.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

HeartWare: Ventricular Assist

2009-08-12T10:41:00.003-04:00

Framingham, MA-based HeartWare makes ventricular assist systems.

Their patent 7,436,145 titled Method and apparatus for controlling brushless DC motors in implantable medical devices was issued in October of 2008, it is one of 10 U.S. patents & patent applications they have.

HeartWare is in the process of raising about $59 million. The firm considered a merger with Pleasanton, Calif.-based Thoratec earlier this year, but the FTC moved to block the $282 million merger, contending Thoratec already dominates the U.S. market for heart implants designed to boost the left ventricle's ability to push blood throughout the body. The companies then said they were voluntarily spiking the merger rather than deal with a costly legal challenge.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Trumpet's Patent Attorney Website Framework

2009-08-04T11:51:00.010-04:00

The folks at Trumpet Marketing Group, LLC, in their 10th year in business, have created a new Patent Attorney web framework that can be viewed at http://demo.patentattorneywebsites.com, and a full list of features can be seen at http://www.patentattorneywebsites.com.

Most patent attorney websites are way overdue for a refresh, especially with the proper sensitivities to SEO. The Trumpet Marketing Group has long excelled in creating attorney websites (LegalMarketingPros.com is their main website), and their new Patent Attorney framework is a major leap forward in the state-of-the-art.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Apple Computer IP: 2,612 is the number today

2009-07-31T07:19:00.004-04:00

Here you go Apple Computer watchers, a short URL to all their US patents and apps, now numbering 2,612:

http://cli.gs/AppleComputerIP

Updates automatically whenever Apple's US-based IP changes.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Netflix: 6 Patents Now, More May Come from Netflix Prize

2009-07-20T09:18:00.008-04:00

Netflix (Los Gatos, CA; NASDAQ: NFLX) has 6 U.S. patents as of this moment (short URL = http://cli.gs/NetflixIP).

This Netflix patent is interesting, Approach for estimating user ratings of items from 7/22/2008--

According to another embodiment of the invention, an approach is provided for estimating how a user would rate an item that the user has not yet rated. The approach is applicable to any type of items, including rental items such as movies and games, and the invention is not limited to any particular type of item. The approach is applicable to a wide variety of contexts and is ideally suited for automatically selecting rental items to be recommended for rental. One or more items that have been rated by the user are identified. Then, one or more other users are identified that have rated the one or more items and given ratings to the one or more items that are substantially similar to ratings given by user to the one or more items. Finally, an estimation is made how the user would rate the item that the user has not yet rated based upon how the one or more other users rated the item.

The five inventors include the Netflix CEO & Founder Reed Hastings--

Hastings, Reed W. (Santa Cruz, CA)
Hunt, Neil Duncan (Mountain View, CA)
Randolph, Marc B. (Santa Cruz, CA)
Ciancutti, John Robert (Mountain View, CA)
Lanning, Stanley Miguel (La Honda, CA).

And more IP is likely coming for Netflix, thanks to the Netflix Prize, the status of which the NY Times captured on July 18, 2009--

The Netflix Prize is a stellar example of crowdsourcing. In October 2006, Netflix, the movie rental company, announced that it would pay $1 million to the contestant who could improve the movie recommendations made by Netflix’s internal software, Cinematch, by at least 10 percent. In other words, the company wanted recommendations that were at least 10 percent closer to the preferences of its customers, as measured by their own ratings.

(Cinematch analyzes each customer’s film-viewing habits and recommends other movies that the customer might enjoy. More accurate recommendations increase Netflix’s appeal to its audience.)

The contest will end next week because a contestant finally surpassed the 10 percent hurdle on June 26, and, according to the rules of the competition, rivals have 30 days from that date to try to beat the leader. The frontrunner is a seven-person team, and its members are statisticians, machine learning experts and computer engineers from the United States, Austria, Canada and Israel. It is led by statisticians at AT&T Research.

The leading team is a very elite crowd, indeed, but it is also one that was made possible by the Internet. The original three AT&T researchers (one has since joined Yahoo Research, but remains on the contest team) made good strides in the first year of the contest. But to make further progress, they went looking for people with other skills and perspectives. So they reached out eventually to a pair of two-person teams, who were among the leaders in the rankings posted on the contest Web site.

“The leader board was right there,” said Chris Volinsky, director of statistics research at AT&T. “It was pretty obvious who the top teams were.”

Though leading, his team may not win. But the teams in close pursuit are similar collaborations of skilled researchers and engineers.

The Netflix contest has lured experts worldwide not only because of the prize money but also because it offered a daunting challenge. The contestants’ algorithms must find patterns nestled in a collection of more than 100 million movie ratings. What is learned in tackling such a large-scale data analysis and predictive-modeling problem could well be applied in many industries, like Web commerce or telecommunications. “It made sense for us both from the perspective of AT&T and scientific research,” Mr. Volinsky explained.

In the Netflix contest, the winning idea is simply the one with the highest score. But often, companies rely on a contributing crowd for ideas, though management then chooses. I.B.M., for example, conducts online brainstorming sessions it calls Jams — 13 over the last seven years.

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Hershey's: Confectionary IP

2009-07-13T11:35:00.004-04:00

Hershey's (Hershey, PA) has 46 U.S. patents and patent applications as of this moment (short URL = http://cli.gs/HersheyIP).

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is the largest North American manufacturer of quality chocolate and sugar confectionery products. With revenues of nearly $5 billion and almost 13,000 employees worldwide, The Hershey Company markets brands such as Hershey's, Reese's, Hershey's Kisses, Kit Kat, Twizzlers, and Ice Breakers.

This patent application caught our attention, Process for preparing a sugar coating on an irregular shaped confection from 1/31/2008, for irregular treats--

The present invention is directed to a process for forming a hard sugar coating on an irregularly shaped chocolate confection which tapers into a pointed tip on said confection on a non-base portion thereof, which comprises forming a rounded contour on the base thereof and applying at least two coating syrups and preferably three coating syrups onto the surface of the confections under specific conditions and optionally polishing said confection. The present invention is also directed to the product formed from the process.

The four inventors are--

Benjamin, Susan M. (Harrisburg, PA)
Bennett, Shawn M. (Palmyra, PA)
Bew, James C. (New Cumberland, PA)
Swank, Jordana L. (Hamburg, PA).

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

ExxonMobil: 13,453 Patents & Patent Apps

2009-07-06T18:22:00.007-04:00

ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) is the biggest company in the USA, with $443 billion in revenue, up 19% from 2007.

The Irving, Texas company has 13,453 U.S. patents and patent applications as of this moment (short URL = http://cli.gs/ExxonIP).

Their most recent patent is #7,464,756, Process for in situ recovery of bitumen and heavy oil from 12/16/2008, for pulling more useful "black gold" out of a given well--

A process is described for in situ recovery of bitumen or heavy oil from a reservoir having a horizontal injection well and a horizontal production well. The process includes a first phase in which steam and a heavy hydrocarbon solvent are injected into the reservoir, a second phase in which the steam and heavy hydrocarbon injections are transitioned to a light hydrocarbon solvent injection, and a third phase in which a light hydrocarbon solvent is injected without further steam or heavy hydrocarbon injection. A displacement gas may be added during any of the phases, and production of hydrocarbons continues throughout all phases. The process employs a high-production start-up phase, followed by lower cost phases which progress a depletion chamber within the reservoir.

The inventors are--

Gates, Ian Donald (Calgary, CA)
Gutek, Anthony Martin Harold (Calgary, CA).

ExxonMobil isn't just about fossil fuels-- in our hometown of Baltimore last month they announced support for an Electric Car Program.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Coleman Company Cooking In New Ways

2009-06-30T11:12:00.005-04:00

In 1900, W.C. Coleman needed money to finish law school, so he got a job selling lamps in what is now Kingfisher, Oklahoma. But shopkeepers in Kingfisher had just been burned by a lighting salesman with a sub-par product. So W.C. decided to sell a lighting service instead of the lamps themselves. He drew up contracts with a "no light, no pay" clause and, with the risk reduced, customers signed on.

Flash forward to today, and The Coleman Company (based in Wichita, Kansas) offers a broad array of outdoor gear, and sit atop 326 US patents/patent applications as of this moment (short URL = http://cli.gs/ColemanIP).

Eating out while camping has become more sophisticated. Witness their U.S. Patent Application 20090000493, ROTISSERIE OVEN FOR A GRILL from 1/1/2009--

A rotisserie oven. The rotisserie oven includes a cooking chamber, a spit, a motor assembly, and a fuel burning burner. The motor assembly rotates the spit about an axle. The spit is located horizontally in the cooking chamber so that any liquids dripping from any food on the spit do not fall on the burner. The spit may be removed and replaced by a grate and a heat shield. The grate is oriented horizontally inside the cooking chamber and the heat shield distributes heat from the burner evenly about the grate. The rotisserie oven may be configured to be removably attached to a grill.

The inventor is one Robert Mosher, who also has an earlier patent application entitled OUTDOOR GRILL WITH INTERCHANGEABLE MODULAR COOKING ASSEMBLIES.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Honda: Helping People Walk

2009-06-24T09:59:00.005-04:00

Honda has 19,476 US patents/patent applications as of this moment (short URL = http://cli.gs/HondaIP), and of course many relate to automobiles.

But Honda also hopes to help the geriatric and those with impaired leg muscles walk again.

Stride Management Assist, is a lightweight, wearable device designed for people with weakened leg muscles, but who can still walk on their own. It gathers information about the user’s walking motions from hip angle sensors. Based on the information, the CPU applies cooperative control and calculates the amount and timing of the assistance to be provided. With the device’s assistance, the user’s stride is lengthened compared to their normal stride and the walking pace regulated, therefore making it easier to walk.

Bodyweight Support Assist is also designed to help folks with weakened leg muscles, but also may be helpful during some physically demanding activities. It supports bodyweight to reduce the load on the individual's legs while walking, going up and down stairs, and while standing in a semi-crouching position. The load on leg muscles and joints (in the hip, knees, and ankles) is reduced. This device has an elegantly simple structure made up of a seat, frame, and shoes, and the individual can put it on by simply wearing the shoes and lifting the seat into position.

On June 23, 2009 Honda earned what appears to be a very important patent in the arena of exoskeletons titled Robot Hand, U.S. Patent 7,549,688--

In a robot hand , at least one finger link thereof is configured to comprise a first member , a second member adhered to a surface of the first member and a third member covering at least the second member and a rigidity of the second member is made smaller than the rigidities of the first member and the third member. With this, the flexibility of the finger is improved by the second member, thereby increasing the contact area between the third member and a held object, so that the object can be securely held.

The four inventors behind this patent are all from Japan--

Hayakawa, Masato
Fukushima, Takafumi
Kishimoto, Kazuhiro
Takahashi, Kazuyuki.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

The Patents of Drexel University

2009-06-19T09:07:00.004-04:00

Philly-based Drexel University was founded in 1891 as the Drexel Institute of Art, Science and Industry by Philadelphia financier and philanthropist Anthony J. Drexel to provide educational opportunities in the "practical arts and sciences" for women and men of all backgrounds.

Today Drexel has some 16,000 students, and 145 U.S. patents and patent apps, take a look at them here. [see all U.S. University Patent Portfolios here]

Most recently Drexel inventors won ALL-ELECTRIC PIEZOELECTRIC FINGER SENSOR (PEFS) FOR SOFT MATERIAL STIFFNESS MEASUREMENT from 6/11/09, U.S. Patent Application 20090145246--

A PEFS (Piezoelectric Finger Sensor) acts as an “electronic finger” capable of accurately and non-destructively measuring both the Young's compression modulus and shear modulus of tissues with gentle touches to the surface. The PEFS measures both the Young's compression modulus and shear modulus variations in tissue generating a less than one-millimeter spatial resolution up to a depth of several centimeters. This offers great potential for in-vivo early detection of diseases. A portable hand-held device is also disclosed. The PEF offers superior sensitivity.

The five inventors behind this patent are--

Shih, Wan Y. (Bryn Mawr, PA)
Shih, Wei-heng (Bryn Mawr, PA)
Markidou, Anna (Souni-Limassol)
Szweczyk, Steven T. (Springfield, PA)
Yengingil, Hakki (Philadelphia, PA).

Here's Drexel's Tech Transfer website.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our University Patent Portfolios here.

Woods Hole Institute IP

2009-06-16T07:47:00.002-04:00

The legendary Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute has a new robotic (no passengers) submersible called Nereus, and it just gave scientists up on land their very first look at a portion of what's called the "Challenger Deep" 35,768 feet (10,902 meters) way down in the Mariana Trench.

One of the last unexplored frontiers of Earth is the ocean deep, below four miles (6,500 meters), where the creatures get their energy not from sunlight, but from methane.

The WHOI mission is "... dedicated to research and education to advance understanding of the ocean and its interaction with the Earth system, and to communicating this understanding for the benefit of society." Founded in 1930 and based in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, the Institute is home to 148 scientists.

Woods Hole has 36 patents and patent applications in the USA (http://cli.gs/WoodsHoleIP as a short URL), including the important Systems and methods for tethering underwater vehicles from 1/8/09, U.S. Patent Application 20090007835--

Systems for tethering an underwater vehicles using a low strength optical fiber tether. The tether system includes, a mechanical fuse that prevents a high load from acting on and severing the tether that is attached to the underwater vehicle, thus allowing use of far smaller cables than typically used. Upon separation of the fuse, a cable payout system pays out an optical fiber that keeps the underwater vehicle, typically a robotic craft, in communication with the surface vessel. The relatively light weight glass fiber may be reinforced and extended to lengths greater than 40 km allowing deep-sea exploration at depths up to 11,000 m.

Nereus is powered by 4,000 lithium-ion batteries, just like those in a laptop computer, and most of its tether is a extraordinarily thin glass-and-plastic fiber-optic cable, or as it says above "thus allowing use of far smaller cables than typically used."

The four inventors behind this patent are--

Bowen, Andy (Woods Hole, MA)
Whitcomb, Louis (Baltimore, MD)
Yoerger, Dana (North Falmouth, MA)
Mccabe, Robert (North Falmouth, MA).

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our links to University Patent Portfolios with our partner Technology Transfer Tactics here.

ImageTree & The CIA

2009-06-11T11:54:00.006-04:00

In-Q-Tel, the Arlington-based venture fund backed by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), recently signed an investment and technology development deal with ImageTree, a Morgantown, W.Va.-based developer of software and technology used for forest management.

Deal terms were not disclosed but the U.S. intelligence community will gain access to the company's technology. ImageTree's technology platform, known as ForestSense, combines ground-based data with remote sensing imagery. While the resulting information most often is used in land management, ImageTree's IP can have a range of uses for governments.

It appears that their algorithms could help show patterns in imagery that document such ground characteristics as forests and vegetation, as well as man-made objects and roads, helping analysts gain insight into an area's activities.

ImageTree has 1 patent and 1 patent application today in the USA, see them here (short URL is http://cli.gs/ImageTreeIP).

Their patent is Method of Feature Identification and Analysis, U.S. Patent 7,212,670 from 5/1/2007:

A method for efficiently and accurately inventorying image features such as timber, including steps of segmenting digital images into tree stands, segmenting tree stands into tree crowns, each tree crown having a tree crown area, classifying tree crowns based on species, and analyzing the tree crown classification to determine information about the individual tree crowns and aggregate tree stands. The tree crown area is used to determine physical information such as tree diameter breast height, tree stem volume and tree height. The tree crown area is also used to determine the value of timber in tree stands and parcels of land using tree stem volume and market price of timber per species.

The five inventors behind this patent are--

Rousselle, Adam (Doylestown, PA)
Leppanen, Vesa (Chalfont, PA)
Mccrystal, David (Chalfont, PA)
Kelle, Olavi (Doylestown, PA)
Pliszka, Robert (Sellersville, PA) .

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our links to University Patent Portfolios with our partner Technology Transfer Tactics here.

National Jewish Health (Denver, CO)

2009-06-09T10:31:00.004-04:00

National Jewish Health is a research institute located in Denver, Colorado specializing in respiratory, immune and allergic research and treatment. It was founded in 1899 to treat tuberculosis, and is today considered one of the world's best medical research and treatment centers. It is a non-sectarian institution but received funding from B'nai B'rith until the 1950s.

NJH today has 124 Patents and Patent Applications in the USA, see them here (short URL is http://cli.gs/NJH).

Their most recent invention is Product and process for liquefaction of mucus or sputum, U.S. Patent 7,534,438 from 5/19/2009:

Disclosed are compositions and methods for decreasing the viscosity and/or cohesiveness of and/or increasing the liquefaction of excessively or abnormally viscous or cohesive mucus or sputum. The composition contains a protein or peptide containing a thioredoxin active-site in reduced state and optionally further contains a reducing system.

The inventor is Carl White.

NJH has an excellent Intellectual Property and Technology Commercialization Program-- find out more here.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our links to University Patent Portfolios with our partner Technology Transfer Tactics here.

Honda's Patents in Japan

2009-06-05T08:13:00.009-04:00

Honda Motor Company, Ltd. was founded in 1948 and is a multinational corporation headquartered in Japan.

The company manufactures automobiles, motorcycles, trucks, scooters, robots, jets and jet engines, ATV, water craft, electrical generators, marine engines, lawn and garden equipment, and aeronautical and other mobile technologies.

Honda today has 62,783 Patents and Patent Applications in Japan (they have patents in other countries, too, of course), see them here (short URL is http://cli.gs/HondaJapanPatents).

Their most recent invention in Japan is Car with Power Generator, Japanese Patent 2009044953 from 2/26/2009:

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the time taken from a request for the start-up of a power generator to the start-up of the power generator.

SOLUTION: The car is provided with a power generation system, having a power generator, a motor for starting the power generator, a power accumulator, a smoothing capacitor, a DC/DC converter, a battery contactor capable of connecting and disconnecting a power path from the power accumulator to the DC/DC converter, and an FC switch for starting a key cylinder and the power generator. The car has a controller 1 including a user operation judging section 101 for determining the state of a user operation switch; and a battery contactor control section 103 for allowing connection of the battery contactor, when the user operation determining section 101 determines that the user operation switch is in ON-mode as vehicle-running mode, and starts charging the smoothing capacitor.escribed herein are marine devices and methods that convert mechanical energy in one or more waves to mechanical energy that is better suited for conversion into electrical energy. The marine devices employ a mechanical energy conversion system that harnesses wave energy and converts it into limited motion that is suitable for input to an electrical energy generator.

Three inventors are listed on this IP:

Oshima, Kuniaki
Murakami, Giichi
Watanabe, Kazunori.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our links to University Patent Portfolios with our partner Technology Transfer Tactics here.

SRI: 182 Patents Today

2009-06-02T06:49:00.004-04:00

Menlo Park, CA-based SRI International was founded as Stanford Research Institute in 1946 by the trustees of Stanford University. The institute's establishment followed decades of cooperation between members of the Stanford community and U.S. West Coast business executives. SRI became independent of the university in 1970, and changed its name to SRI International in 1977.

SRI is a non-profit, and performs R&D for the U.S. government, business, and private foundation clients.

SRI today has182 U.S. Patents and Patent Applications, see them here (short URL is http://cli.gs/SRIpatents).

Their most recent invention is Wave Powered Generation, U.S. Patent 7,538,445 from :

Described herein are marine devices and methods that convert mechanical energy in one or more waves to mechanical energy that is better suited for conversion into electrical energy. The marine devices employ a mechanical energy conversion system that harnesses wave energy and converts it into limited motion that is suitable for input to an electrical energy generator.

Eight inventors are listed on this IP:

Kornbluh, Roy D. (Palo Alto, CA, US)
Pelrine, Ronald E. (Longmont, CO, US)
Prahlad, Harsha (Cupertino, CA, US)
Chiba, Seiki (Tokyo, JP)
Eckerle, Joseph S. (Redwood City, CO, US)
Chavez, Bryan (Palo Alto, CA, US)
Stanford, Scott E. (Mountain View, CA, US)
Low, Thomas (Belmont, CA, US) .

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our links to University Patent Portfolios with our partner Technology Transfer Tactics here.

Patent Faceoff: Canon vs. Xerox

2009-05-29T06:56:00.001-04:00

"Precision Optical Instruments Laboratory" is the predecessor of Canon Inc. and was founded in Tokyo in 1937 by Takeshi Mitarai, Goro Toshida, Saburo Uchida and Takeo Maeda.

Xerox was founded eariler, in 1906 in Rochester, New York as "The Haloid Company," which originally manufactured photographic paper and equipment. The company subsequently changed its name to "Haloid Xerox" in 1958 and then simply "Xerox" in 1961.

Xerox (short URL to their patents is http://cli.gs/XeroxIP) has far fewer worldwide patents/patent apps than Canon (http://cli.gs/CanonIP)-- that may surprise you, given the legacy of Xerox inventing.

Xerox's most recent patent is in the "Green" arena.

It's ENERGY-AWARE PRINT JOB MANAGEMENT from 5/28/2009 (United States Patent Application 20090138878):

A printing system and method for processing print jobs in a network of printers are disclosed. The printers each have high and low operational states. A job ticket is associated with each print job. The job ticket designates one of the network printers as a target printer for printing the job and includes print job parameters related to redirection and delay for the print job. Where the target printer for the print job is in the low operational state, the print job related redirection and delay parameters for the job are identified. Based on the identified parameters, the print job may be scheduled for at least one of redirection and delay, where the parameters for redirection/delay permit, whereby the likelihood that the print job is printed sequentially with another print job on one of the network printers, without that one printer entering an intervening low operational state, is increased.

The inventors are from France--

Christer Fernstrom
Christophe Mitenne.

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

Canon: 331,096
versus
Xerox: 106,793.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our links to University Patent Portfolios with our partner Technology Transfer Tactics here, and here it is as a Clig if you want to send it around: http://cli.gs/TTT.

Hairstylist/Inventor in Washington, D.C.

2009-05-25T15:20:00.009-04:00

This weekend the Washington Post covered a Hairstylist/Inventor: Tamara Chapman Dolton, founder of Office Cuts.

Washington Post

Tamara has one patent app and one patent--

1. US20070022561-- PORTABLE HAIRSTYLISTS' STATION AND METHOD
A portable hair stylists' station includes a case and a vacuum cleaner, the vacuum cleaner including a canister associated with the case and a hose connected to a suction opening of the canister.

2. 7,472,455-- PORTABLE HAIRSTYLISTS' STATION AND METHOD
A portable hair stylists' station includes a case and a vacuum cleaner, the vacuum cleaner including a canister associated with the case and a hose connected to a suction opening of the canister. A method for conducting a hairstyling business is also disclosed.

From the Post article:

At first, Tamara, who incorporated Office Cuts in 2002, had clients sit in a wheeled conference chair that she would borrow on-site. But she considers herself "an inventor, a solution finder," and she kept looking for the right equipment to create a portable hairstyling studio. So she fashioned a rolling suitcase filled with everything she needs: a hydraulic chair base, a drop cloth for the floor, a drape for the client, sanitary neck strips, an apron, tools, sanitizers, hair products, front and back mirrors and a small industrial vacuum with a hose that fits through a hole in the suitcase. A boat seat folds over the handle of the case. Tamara says the salon takes five minutes to set up.

Tamara applied for a patent on the rolling studio in 2005; the process took 3 years and a visit to the patent office. "I'm a very positive thinker," she said, adding that she told her skeptical patent lawyer, "I want you to write it as if you think you're going to get it." In the meantime, the Alexandria resident has built up her customer base: Office Cuts now has regular hours and serves 40 to 50 clients a month at eight Northern Virginia office buildings housing companies such as Mitre and Booz Allen Hamilton. To help her keep up with the demand, Tamara has hired two part-time stylists. "Our target is anybody who needs a haircut, and they're short on time."

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our links to University Patent Portfolios with our partner Technology Transfer Tactics here.

Patent Faceoff: McKesson vs. Cardinal Health

2009-05-22T07:23:00.005-04:00

San Francisco-based McKesson Corporation currently ranks 15th on the FORTUNE 500, and is a healthcare services and information technology company that has been in continuous operation for more than 175 years.

Dublin, Ohio-based Cardinal Health is an $87 billion global manufacturer and distributor of medical and surgical supplies and technologies, with customers located on five continents.

McKesson (short URL to their patents is http://cli.gs/McKessonIP) has 81 more patents/patent apps than Cardinal Health (http://cli.gs/CardinalHealthIP).

But Cardinal has the most interesting invention of recent vintage.

It's System and Methods for Determining Locations of Medical Devices from 5/07/2009 (United States Patent Application 20090115663):

The location of a medical device is determined by receiving one or more signals at the medical device transmitted by one or more beacons, respectively, at known locations. The one or more signals received at the medical device are sent from the medical device to a processor, which determines the location of the medical device based on the received one or more signals. One of the beacons may be a portable patient beacon, the location of which is determined when its signal is received by a medical device, the location of which was previously determined.

The inventors are all from California--

Houston Brown
Robert Butterfield
Daniel Brightwell.

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

McKesson: 181
versus
Cardinal Health: 100.

Safety-Kleen: 50 Patents

2009-05-20T11:06:00.011-04:00

Safety-Kleen was founded in Milwaukee in 1963 by Ben Palmer, and pioneered the practice of recycling the solvents used to clean auto parts.

The firm went public in 1979, and then enjoyed an astonishing streak of annual growth rates of 20% or more. Whenever significant competition popped up, Safety-Kleen acquired it.

By the end of the 1980s, it had 160 branches around the USA and owned 2,500 trucks and 350,000 cleaning machines, which handled dirty automobile parts, dry-cleaning solvents, flammable liquids, and other items requiring cleaning, recycling, or disposal.

By the early 1990s, Safety-Kleen employed nearly 7,000 people around the country and grossed nearly $800 million in annual sales. In 1991, the company opened a large oil-recycling plant in East Chicago, Indiana. The company's profits and rate of growth slowed sharply during the 1990s, partly because of environmental violations at one of its solvent-disposal plants in Puerto Rico. In 1998, it merged with Laidlaw, then slid into bankruptcy in 2000. Safety-Kleen emerged from Chapter 11 in 2003, and today is painting its positioning with a green brush:

"Safety-Kleen provides a broad set of environmentally-responsible products and services that keep North American businesses in balance with the environment."

Plano, Texas-based Safety-Kleen has 50 patents, see them here (and here's the short URL: http://cli.gs/Safety-KleenIP).

The first was in August of 1970, titled Washer for Parts and the Like, from inventor Gene Olson.

The latest was on Christmas Day last year, titled Movable Sink Parts Washer from five inventors--

The present disclosure relates generally to a movable aqueous- and solvent-based parts washer used to wash grease, oil, dirt, and other debris from mechanical parts using an cleaning solution, and more particularly, to a parts washer with a movable sink and movable lid pivotally connected to a hollow housing for facilitating the access within the housing for the replacement and maintenance of a cleaning solution reservoir. The third-generation washer is made of molded reinforced polymer in a shell configuration around a tilting reservoir. A pump is also pivotally connected below the sink to retract the pump during change operations of the cleaning solution reservoir. The device includes a molded sink with basin and reinforced pan with an interface to control the release of fumes between the sink and the pivoting lid. The parts washer also includes built-in light is placed in proximity to the work area on the underside of the lid for illumination during washing operations, a support frame for the sink for improved stability of the apparatus, and a latching mechanism equipped with a low fusible link for optimal fire protection response of the thermal fusible.

Today the firm has 4,400 employees and serves 330,000 customers in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our links to University Patent Portfolios with our partner Technology Transfer Tactics here.

Johns Hopkins: The U & APL

2009-05-18T09:47:00.006-04:00

Johns Hopkins has a LOT of patents. But they emanate from two very distinct places, the school founded in 1876 in Baltimore and the Applied Physics Lab in Laurel, Maryland.

However, they're not easily divisible given how their inventions are recorded with the U.S. Patent Office. Here's the whole list of patents and applications, a total of 1,632.

Here is the Hopkins IP as a short URL-- http://cli.gs/HopkinsIP.

The Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) is a not-for-profit center for engineering, research, and development. It's on a 399-acre campus, and home to 4,300 men and women. APL recruits the best and the brightest from top colleges, 68% of whom are engineers and scientists. The Lab works on more than 400 programs that protect our homeland and advance the nation's vision in research and space science, at an annual funding level of about $800 million. APL is also designated as a University Affiliated Research Center (UARC).

Johns Hopkins APL recently gave out some Invention awards. They recognized APL engineer Jack Roberts as a “Master Inventor,” joining 21 other past and current APL staff members who hold at least 10 patents. You can see Mr. Roberts' 10 patents here.

Roberts' latest invention (with two co-inventors) is United States Patent 7,413,809 issued on 08/19/2008 titled Impact resistant flexible body device--

An impact resistant device is provided comprising a flexible support matrix and a plurality of energy absorbing elements operatively connected to the support matrix, each element comprising at least one ceramic material and at least one strain rate sensitive material. The impact resistant device can be worn as body armor to protect the wearer from high velocity projectiles.

JHU APL has a superb Office of Technology Transfer, check it out on the web here.

NASA and their 3,000+ Patents

2009-05-14T12:10:00.004-04:00

NASA has patents-- 3,019 to be exact. Click here to see them all in the United States from the most recent, and here's the short URL if you want to pass it on: http://cli.gs/NASApatents.

On May 5, 2009, NASA earned U.S. Patent 7,529,633 titled Application of carbon nanotube hold-off voltage for determining gas composition:

Method and system for determining chemical composition of a single-component or multiple-component gas, using a discharge holdoff mechanism. A voltage difference V between two spaced apart electrodes is brought to a selected value and held, the holdoff time interval Δt(V;ho) required before gas discharge occurs is measured, and the associated electrical current or cumulative electrical charge is measured. As the voltage difference V increases, the time interval length Δt(V;ho) decreases monotonically. Particular voltage values, V_∞and V₀, correspond to initial appearance of discharge (Δt≈∞) and prompt discharge (Δt≈0). The values V_∞and V₀and the rate of decrease of Δt(V;ho) and/or the rate of increase of current or cumulative charge with increasing V are characteristic of one or more gas components present.

It's a complex patent, but just two California inventors are behind it:

John Schipper
Jing Li.

NASA's first patent was in March of 1973, U.S. Patent 3,719,891 for an Intruder Detection System:

An intruder detection system in which a transmitter transmits a frequency modulated and amplitude modulated signal to a remote receiver in response to a transducer, such as a geophone detector, picking-up seismic impulse created by one or more intruders. In this manner, an operator listening to the receiver can identify the number of intruders, and also can identify the movements of the intruder or intruders, such as walking, running and the like.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our links to University Patent Portfolios with our partner Technology Transfer Tactics here, and here's a Clig if you want to send it around: http://cli.gs/TTT.

Under Armour & Detachable Cleats

2009-05-12T10:46:00.003-04:00

Under Armour came to be when founder Kevin Plank was a football player with the University of Maryland. He got tired of having to change out of the sweat-soaked T-shirts he wore under his jersey, so he developed a type of moisture-wicking fabric for athletic performance and started the company in 1996.

Baltimore-based Under Armour's last invention was United States Patent Application 20090077833 issued on 3/26/2009 (Inventor Mark Michael Kokavec) , for a Detachable Cleat Arrangement:

A cleat arrangement is configured for use with an article of footwear comprises a receptacle, a cleat, and a retaining ring. The receptacle is provided in the sole of the footwear. The cleat includes a projecting member and a retaining surface. The retaining surface is configured to fit within the receptacle with the projecting member extending from the receptacle. The retaining ring fits over the cleat and engages the retaining surface of the cleat positioned within the receptacle and the projecting member of the cleat extending through the retaining ring. The retaining ring releasably engages the receptacle such that the retaining ring holds the cleat within the receptacle.

Under Armour (about $750 million in annual revenue) has 12 U.S. patents as of this moment, here they are as a short URL: http://cli.gs/UnderArmourIP. For more on making short URLs, visit http://cli.gs/fpo.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our links to University Patent Portfolios with our partner Technology Transfer Tactics here.

Creating Your Company's Patent Microsite

2009-05-08T09:12:00.017-04:00

It's easy.

First, go here on FPO: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/search.html.

Let's take PepsiCo as an example. In the big white searchbox we type: AN/"pepsico"

AN means Assignee Name-- the company that owns the patents.

Now we want US Patents and US Patent Applications, so we check the box next to US Patent Applications to get them, too. And we want a Sort Order of Chronological (that is, from most recent), so we click to fill that circle, and we click to turn Word Stemming off.

We then click SEARCH, and get (as of today) 304 patents, and the long URL is:

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/result.html?p=1&edit_alert=&srch=xprtsrch&query_txt=AN%2F%22pepsico%22&uspat=on&usapp=on&date_range=all&stemming=off&sort=chron&search=Search

Now, we go to http://cli.gs to create a short URL. If you become a registered user at Cligs [free], you can craft a "vanity URL"-- that is what we will do here.

At the top of the Cligs screen, you paste the long URL where it says Enter URL to shorten, and click Create Private Clig.

Then, if you're a registered user [free!], click on Edit this Clig.
Where it says Rename Clig to http://cli.gs/_____, pick a name. I chose to make the new, short URL-- http://cli.gs/PepsiPatents.

So there you have it: All the US patents/patents applications of PepsiCo =

http://cli.gs/PepsiPatents

As new inventions are earned by PepsiCo, this URL will automatically update. So if Pepsi wants to go to its website and proudly state:

Our Pepsi Patents

... then it's one-click access to all the current inventions of their firm.

Better, with Cligs you can see how many people then visit this custom URL-- for registered users [Cligs is free, just like FreePatentsOnline], Cligs shows you audience analytics.

Want to share this blog entry? Here it is as a Clig: http://cli.gs/Microsite4Patents

IBM: 39,062 Patents

2009-05-07T07:38:00.005-04:00

Big Blue has 39,062 U.S. patents and patent applications as of this moment.

See them all, from the most recent, with our handy short URL here: http://cli.gs/IBMpatents.

This one is interesting given the need for rapid alerting these days, U.S. Patent 7,529,850 called Method and system for rapid dissemination of public announcements from 5/5/2009:

The present invention provides a method and system for disseminating urgent public announcements over an IP-based network. One or a plurality of Internet- or Intranet-connected servers receive and store data identifying particular geographic locations to current announcements. The servers identify IP addresses of users making URL requests or requests for target applications (an access point by which a network-connectable mobile device is connected to an Internet- or Intranet-connected server), determine a location for each user from the user's IP address (or access point), and determine whether an IP address (or access point) of a user corresponds to a location for which an announcement has been posted. If the user is identified to a location for which a current announcement is available, the announcement is displayed to the user.

The announcement may be displayed by redirecting the user to a web page containing the announcement. Alternatively, the announcement may be displayed in a pop-up window or in a banner on a web page requested by said user. A banner displaying such an announcement may incorporate a link to permit the user to click through to a web page containing a more detailed version of the announcement.

The inventors are the Vermas: Dinesh and Paridhi.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our links to University Patents with our partner Technology Transfer Tactics here.

McCormick Spice & Their IP

2009-05-05T19:56:00.003-04:00

McCormick & Company was founded in 1889 in Baltimore, and moved to Sparks, Maryland in 1989. They're on the NYSE (MKC) logging about $3 billion in annual revenue.

The last invention for the leading spice company was United States Patent Application 20090104330 issued on 4/23/2009 (Inventor Dmitriy Zasypkin) , for a REDUCED SODIUM SALTY TASTE COMPOSITION, PROCESS FOR ITS PREPARATION AND FOOD SYSTEMS CONTAINING SUCH COMPOSITION:

A reduced sodium salty taste composition for reduction of sodium chloride in food contains sodium chloride, at least one of a food acid and a salt of a food acid, at least one of an amino acids and a salt of an amino acid, and can additionally contain potassium chloride, yeast extract, sweeteners, and flavors. A food containing the reduced sodium salty taste composition and a process for making the reduced sodium salty taste composition are disclosed.

The problem, of course, with small containers of spices is that folks keep them around for a l-o-n-g time. In 2007, the company started a new advertising campaign to encourage people to dispose of older packages of spices, by pointing out that any of their packages that list their address as "Baltimore, MD 21202" are over 15 years old.

McCormick has 46 worldwide patents as of this moment, here they are as a short URL: http://cli.gs/McCormickIP. For more on making short URLs, visit http://cli.gs/fpo.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our links to University Patents with our partner Technology Transfer Tactics here.

Scotts Fertilizer

2009-05-03T09:28:00.005-04:00

Marysville, Ohio-based The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE: SMG), together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture, marketing, and sale of lawn and garden care products in North America and the European Union. The company sells a line of granular lawn fertilizer and combination products, including fertilizer and crabgrass control, weed control, or pest control products; plant foods; and growing media products for indoor and outdoor uses, as well as grass seed products for the consumer and the professional users.

The firm has seven patents in the US, Europe and Japan, see them here.

The last was United States Patent Application 20080275115 issued in November 2008, for a Insecticidal Compositions Suitable for Use in Preparation of Insecticidal Granular Fertilizer and Insecticidal Formulations:

Insecticidal compositions suitable for use in preparation of insecticidal granular fertilizer and insecticidal formulations comprising a pyrethroid and a glycol present in a concentration of from 40.0% by weight to 99.0% by weight based upon the total weight of all components in the composition is disclosed.

Demand for fertilizer is down: consider Minnetonka, MN-based Cargill Inc., the largest privately held U.S. company, just said fiscal third-quarter profit plunged 68%. Net income dropped to $326 million in the three months through February from a record $1.03 billion in the same period a year earlier.

Cargill has 667 patents of their own, here they are as a short URL: http://cli.gs/CargillPatents. For more on making short URLs, visit http://cli.gs/fpo.

On Twitter, we're inventionsofman. And check out our links to University Patents with our partner Technology Transfer Tactics here.

University IP: Spotlight on MIT

2009-05-01T06:50:00.001-04:00

With our partner Technology Transfer Tactics, we've rolled out a comprehensive list of U.S. universities and their as-current patent portfolios. You're one click away from seeing a given school's U.S. patents and patent applications from the most recent.

Take a look, find your school.

Founded in 1836, Cambridge, MA-based MIT admitted its first students in 1865, four years after the approval of its founding charter. The opening marked the culmination of an extended effort by William Barton Rogers, a distinguished natural scientist, to establish a new kind of independent educational institution relevant to an increasingly industrialized America.

MIT has one of the most august IP portfolios on the globe, with a total of 894 U.S. patents and patent applications as of this date-- see them here from the most recent.

Most recently MIT won United States Patent Application 20090111734 for COMPOSITIONS AND METHODS FOR PROMOTING HEMOSTASIS AND OTHER PHYSIOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES on 4/30/2009:

Compositions that include nanoscale structured materials or precursors thereof (e.g., self-assembling peptides) are described. The compositions can include other substances (e.g., a vasoconstrictor). Also described are methods for using the compositions to promote hemostasis, to protect the skin or wounds from contamination, to decontaiminate a site upon removal of previously applied compositions that provided a protective coating, and to inhibit the movement of bodily substances other than blood. The compositions are also useful in isolating tissue, removing tissue, preserving tissue (for, e.g., subsequent transplantation or reattachment), and as bulking, stabilizing or hydrating agents. Medical devices that include the compositions (e.g., a stent or catheter), bandages or other wound dressings, sutures, and kits that include the compositions are also described.

The six inventors are from Massachussets and Hong Kong--

Ellis-behnke, Rutledge (Canton, MA)
Zhang, Shuguang (Lexington, MA)
Schneider, Gerald (Somerville, MA)
So, Kwok-fai (Hong Kong)
Tay, David (Hong Kong)
Liang, Yu-xiang (Hong Kong).

MIT is a leader in robotics, too-- take a look at their "Humanoid Robotics Group" lab here.

See our blog from the last seven days, we highlighted the IP of America's colleges & universities.

Here are MIT's patents as a short URL, for our friends using Twitter: http://cli.gs/MITpatents

We're on Twitter: www.twitter.com/inventionsofman

University IP: Spotlight on Emory

2009-04-30T07:39:00.001-04:00

Take a look, find your school.

Founded in 1836, Atlanta-based Emory University is ranked #18 among national universities (U.S. News & World Report).

Among the Faculty--

* Novelist Salman Rushdie
* His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama
* Former President Jimmy Carter
* Natasha Trethewey, 2007 Pulitzer Prize winner for poetry.

And Research (FY 2008)--

* $411.2 million in total research funding awards
* $387.5 million in health sciences research funding awards
* $300.2 million in federal research funding awards.

Emory's inventors have been busy, generating a total of 430 as of this date-- see them here from the most recent.

Most recently Emory won United States Patent 7,524,936 for Mitogenic oxygenase regulators on 4/28/2009:

The present invention relates to new genes encoding for the production of novel nox enzyme proteins involved in generation of reactive oxygen intermediates that affect cell division. The present invention also provides vectors containing these genes, cells transfected with these vectors, antibodies raised against these novel proteins, kits for detection, localization and measurement of these genes and proteins, and methods to determine the activity of drugs to affect the activity of the proteins of the present invention.

The inventors, both from Georgia, are:

David Lambeth
Gaungjie Chang.

A big reason Emory has IP muscle is its highly ranked graduate and professional schools-- read more here.

See our blog all this coming week, we'll be highlighting the IP of America's colleges & universities.

Here are Emory's patents as a short URL, for our friends using Twitter: http://cli.gs/EmoryPatents

We're on Twitter: www.twitter.com/inventionsofman

University IP: Spotlight on Va Tech

2009-04-29T07:33:00.000-04:00

Take a look, find your school.

Founded in 1872, the details about Virginia Tech--

Located in Blacksburg, Virginia
Nine colleges and graduate school
60 bachelor's degree programs
140 master's and doctoral degree programs
30,000+ full-time students
16:1 student-faculty ratio
Main campus includes more than 125 buildings, 2,600 acres, and an airport
Ranked 42nd in university research in the United States.

VT has more patents than there are days in a year, a total of 394 as of this date-- see them here from the most recent.

Most recently VT won United States Patent 7,524,535 for Method of protecting metals from corrosion using thiol compounds on 4/28/2009:

This invention relates to a method of coating a metal surface by applying a solution containing an alkanethiol compound and a solvent to a metal surface, allowing the formation of a self-assembled monolayer, which presents as a robust barrier to corrosion. The alkanethiol compounds have a general formula, R(CH2)nSH, where R represents methyl, carboxyl, hydroxyl, formyl, or amide; n is in the range of 7 to 21, preferably in the range of 12 to 18.

The four people behind this invention are:

Hyung-joon Kim
Jinmingl Zhang
Richard Gandour
Roy Hoan Zhoon.

VT has a Corporate Research Center, too, that's home to 100 companies. Check it out here.

See our blog all this coming week, we'll be highlighting the IP of America's colleges & universities.

Here are VT's patents as a short URL, for our friends using Twitter: http://cli.gs/VTpatents

We're on Twitter: www.twitter.com/inventionsofman

University IP: Spotlight on Yale

2009-04-28T06:19:00.002-04:00

Take a look, find your school.

New Haven, Connecticut-based Yale University comprises three major academic components: Yale College (the undergraduate program), the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and the professional schools. In addition, Yale encompasses a wide array of centers and programs, libraries, museums, and administrative support offices. Approximately 11,250 students attend Yale, and it was founded in 1701.

Yale has a broad and deep array of patents/patent applications, a total of 519 as of this date-- see them here from the most recent.

Most recently Yale won United States Patent Application 20090099097 for ENZYME INHIBITION on 4/16/2009:

Peptide-based compounds including heteroatom-containing, three-membered rings efficiently and selectively inhibit specific activities of N-terminal nucleophile (Ntn) hydrolases. The activities of those Ntn having multiple activities can be differentially inhibited by the compounds described. For example, the chymotrypsin-like and PGPH activities of the 20S proteasome can be selectively inhibited with the inventive compounds. The peptide-based compounds include an electron withdrawing group adjacent to the ring functionality, and the peptide include at least three peptide units. Among other therapeutic utilities, the peptide-based compounds exhibit anti-inflammatory and inhibition of cell proliferation, involving therapeutic applications for these compounds.

The four inventors for this IP are:

Craig Crews
Mikael Elofsson
Ute Splittgerber
Kyung Bo Kim.

Yale has a formidable Tech Transfer office. Yale has parlayed its intellectual property into more than thirty start-ups garnering over $3.3 billion in equity investment.

See our blog all this coming week, we'll be highlighting the IP of America's colleges & universities.

Here are Yale's patents as a short URL, for our friends using Twitter: http://cli.gs/YalePatents

We're on Twitter: www.twitter.com/inventionsofman

University IP: Spotlight on the University of Akron

2009-04-27T10:32:00.004-04:00

Take a look, find your school.

The University of Akron was founded in 1870 as Buchtel College, and has 26,000 students representing 44 U.S. states and 79 foreign countries. Located within metropolitan Akron, Ohio, the school has 80 buildings on 218 acres.

And the school, led by its 15th president, Dr. Luis M. Proenza, is an IP powerhouse, with 292 patents and patent applications to its name as of today-- see them here from the most recent.

Most recently UA won United States Patent Application 20090093585 for ABSORBENT NON-WOVEN FIBROUS MATS AND PROCESS FOR PREPARING SAME on 4/9/2009:

The present invention relates to liquid entrapping devices (e.g., absorbent non-woven fibrous mats) and to a process for preparing such devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to mechanically strong absorbent materials made from such liquid entrapping devices (e.g., non-woven fibrous mats) and to a method for preparing same. In one embodiment, a liquid entrapping device of the present invention comprises at least one hydrophilic elastomeric fibrous component (HEFC) and at least one wetting agent component. In another embodiment, a liquid entrapping device of the present invention comprise at least one hydrophilic elastomeric fibrous component (HEFC), at least one absorbent component, and at least one wetting agent component. In one instance, the wetting agent component of the present invention is contained on and/or within the fibers and/or nanofibers that form the liquid entrapping device (e.g., a non-woven fibrous mat) of the present invention.

Earned with SNS Nano Fiber Technology, LLC, the inventors are:

Daniel J. Smith
Horst Ring.

Not surprisingly, UA is at the top of Ohio public universities regarding Tech Transfer.

See our blog all this coming week, we'll be highlighting the IP of America's colleges & universities.

Here are UA's patents as a short URL, for our friends from Twitter: http://cli.gs/UofAkronPatents

We're on Twitter: www.twitter.com/inventionsofman

University IP: Spotlight on East Carolina University

2009-04-26T10:01:00.008-04:00

Take a look, find your school.

In 1907, East Carolina was founded to alleviate the desperate shortage of teachers in the eastern part of North Carolina. Their College of Education continues to supply the nation with some of its best educators, and now it has been joined by programs of high distinction in health care and the fine and performing arts. The university is no longer a small school but an engine of economic development and a hotbed of discovery-- witness their IP collection, currently 54 patents strong.

Today, East Carolina is a constituent institution of the University of North Carolina and offers 104 bachelor’s degree programs, 74 master’s degree programs, 4 specialist degree programs, 1 first-professional MD program, and 17 doctoral programs in their professional colleges and schools, Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences, and the Brody School of Medicine.

Most recently ECU won United States Patent 7,507,410 for Monoclonal antibody DS6, tumor-associated antigen CA6, and methods of use thereof on 3/24/2009:

The present application describes a monoclonal antibody selected from the group consisting of monoclonal antibody DS6, monoclonal antibodies that specifically bind to the antigen or epitope bound by monoclonal antibody DS6, and fragments of the foregoing that specifically bind to the antigen or epitope bound by monoclonal antibody DS6. Methods of use of such antibodies and the isolated antigen bound by such antibodies are also described.

The all-NC inventor team is:

Anne Elizabeth Kellogg
Diane A. Semer.

Take a look at the ECU page on Research and Graduate Studies, from where much of their discovery emanates.

See our blog all this coming week, we'll be highlighting the IP of America's colleges & universities.

Here are East Carolina's patents as a short URL, for our friends from Twitter: http://cli.gs/EastCarolinaUnivPatents

We're on Twitter: www.twitter.com/inventionsofman

The Patents of America's Universities, Starting with Penn State

2009-04-25T11:40:00.006-04:00

Take a look, find your school.

Now let's go to Happy Valley for a moment. Penn State, founded in 1855, was created at the request of the Pennsylvania State Agricultural Society. The goal was to apply scientific principles to farming, a radical departure from the traditional curriculum grounded in mathematics, rhetoric, and classical languages.

Flash forward to today, and Penn State has a total enrollment of over 84,000 across its 24 campuses, placing it among the ten largest public universities in the United States. Penn State offers more than 160 majors and administers a $1.6 billion endowment.

And IP? They've been very prolific, with 777 patents and patent applications in the USA. Here they are, listed from the most recent.

Most recently they won United States Patent 7,516,759 for Autonomous Moving Microstructures on 4/14/2009:

A microstructure includes a catalyst region, and a non-catalyst region proximate to the catalyst region. The catalyst region induces a chemical reaction of a fluid component when the microstructure is located within a fluid medium containing the fluid component. The chemical reaction induces relative motion between the fluid medium and the microstructure, which can be used to provide, for example, autonomous directional movement, rotation of microgears, microfluidic devices, and novel sensor configurations. In one example, a palladium catalyst is used, and the fluid medium is an aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide.

The all-Pennsylvanian inventor team is:

Walter Paxton
Ayusman Sen
Thomas Mallouk
Jeffrey Catchmark.

Given this broad and deep patent portfolio, the Penn State Tech Transfer office must be very busy.

See our blog all this coming week, we'll be highlighting the IP of America's colleges & universities.

Here are Penn State's patents as a short URL, for our friends from Twitter: http://cli.gs/PennStatePatents

We're on Twitter: www.twitter.com/inventionsofman

IP Newsflash Adds FPO SearchBox

2009-04-24T09:34:00.009-04:00

IPNewsflash.com is the 100th Website to Add the FreePatentsOnline SearchBox

The FreePatentsOnline SearchBox, which is available for free at www.citepatents.com, now has been provisioned now 100 times. The 100th website to add the widget is IP Newsflash, a popular news site about Intellectual Property based in Cologne, Germany, but with a worldwide audience. The Patent SearchBox is here: www.ipnewsflash.com/patent_search.php.

"What’s interesting about patent systems around the world is they not only indicate the company behind a patent-- called the Assignee-- but also the inventor, or inventors,” said Erik Reeves, CEO of FreePatentsOnline. “A patent’s Assignee may change over time, as a company is acquired or otherwise changes form. But the inventor is always honored; his or her name is engraved in granite for posterity. In our blog, we highlight inventors, and expose some of the inspiration behind their work.”

“We wanted to make it very easy for our users to initiate a patent search from our website,” said Rolf Claessen, CEO of IP Newsflash and a patent attorney with Freischem. “We added the FreePatentsOnline SearchBox in about thirty seconds by grabbing the HTML at www.citepatents.com, and our visitors have given us plaudits for making patent search easily accessible across the millions of U.S., European and Japanese documents at FreePatentsOnline.”

Any patent in the FreePatentsOnline database can be turned into a customized, virtual patent plaque with just a mouseclick. This is called the “Plaque It!” feature.

The company behind FreePatentsOnline is Patents Online, LLC. The firm also offers a property for power-users called www.sumobrain.com. It is completely free, too, and has additional features such as the ability to store up to 20,000 patent documents in named folders.

About IP Newsflash
IP Newsflash is an IP meta-information portal that browses your information channels for you and presents only relevant, recent and customizable IP information on a single page.

IP Newsflash is for time-hungry patent professionals who want to stay up to date but dislike the tedious task of browsing through countless sources of information.

This website brings to you news as well as notices and caselaw from the European Patent Office, the US Patent and Trademark Office, the Office for Harmonization for the Internal Market (European Trademark Office), the German Patent and Trademark Office, WIPO, the Japanese Patent Office, the Swiss Patent Office, the Chinese Patent Office, the European Court of Justice, the Court of First Instance (EU), the German Federal Patent Court, the German Federal High Court of Justice, the US Supreme Court, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on one single page.

255 Patents for Invisalign

2009-04-22T07:37:00.004-04:00

Santa Clara, CA-based Align Technology (NASDAQ: ALGN) offers:

"Your Invisalign treatment will consist of a series of aligners that you switch out about every two weeks. Each aligner is individually manufactured with exact calculations to gradually shift your teeth into place. And since your Invisalign system is custom-made for your teeth and your teeth only, with a plan devised by you and your dentist or orthodontist, you know you'll end up with a smile that truly fits."

The firm generates $300 million in annual revenue, and was founded in 1997.

They have a total of 255 patents, listed here from the most recent.

Zia Chishti, one co-founder, is credited for four of them.

Kelsey Wirth, the other co-founder, is credited for twenty of them.

In March 2009, they earned U.S. patent application 20090061382 , Tooth Movement Tracking System (inventor Huafeng Wen of Redwood City, CA).

A method for determining movement of a tooth model from a first position to a second position, comprising: marking one or more points on the tooth model at the first position using a laser; capturing a first image of the tooth model at the first position; identifying first locations of the points on the tooth model in the first image; capturing a second image of the tooth model at the second position; identifying second locations of the points on the tooth model in the second image; and determining a difference in the first locations of the points on the tooth model in the first image and the second locations of the points on the tooth model in the second image.

Since their start, Align has trained more that 55,000 doctors around the world, started more than 940,000 patients in treatment, and made about 42 million unique Invisalign aligners-- an IP as well as a commercial success story.

Have a Patent/Know About a Patent you want us to spotlight in our blog? Email plaque [@] freepatentsonline.com. And check out www.freepatentsonline.com: All the Inventions of Mankind

Quixote: Impact Cushions & More

2009-04-20T08:12:00.009-04:00

Chicago-based Quixote Corporation is a leading developer and manufacturer of energy-absorbing highway crash cushions, electronic wireless sensing and measuring devices, weather forecasting stations, computerized highway advisory radio, flexible post delineators and other transportation safety products and services. Since its 1969 founding it is estimated that its crash cushions have saved over 50,000 lives worldwide and prevented countless injuries.

Probably you've seen their ubiquitous yellow barrels and other impact-absorbers on highways around America. The firm generates about $100 million in annual revenue, and is QUIX on NASDAQ.

The firm has seven patents, see them here.

The last patent was #6,062,766 in the year 2000, for a Raised Pavement Marker:

A raised pavement marker includes a reflector assembly that is resiliently supported by a membrane, that in turn is supported by a frame. The reflector assembly includes a skirt that overlaps the membrane, thereby allowing large-area reflectors and low-angle ramp surfaces. A vent is formed between the skirt and the membrane, and this vent is resistant to clogging. Locating elements are placed on the frame of the pavement marker to assist in proper installation of the marker in a recess of a roadway, such that all portions of the frame are positioned below the surface of the roadway. Indentations allow the installer to gauge the level of adhesive in the recess.

More IP likely is on the way from Quixote, as they've moved from just low-tech crash barriers to adding weather and traffic sensors, with their Surface Systems division.

Have a Patent/Know About a Patent you want us to spotlight in our blog? Email plaque [@] freepatentsonline.com. And check out www.freepatentsonline.com: All the Inventions of Mankind

Cligs: Short URLs with analytics

2009-04-18T14:46:00.010-04:00

The question we get, more than any other, is how to shorten URLs from FreePatentsOnline.com.

We think the answer is www.cli.gs.

CONSIDER: Coca-Cola's most recent patent (Fixed Displacement Pump from 4/16/2009; about faster filling of bottles on the assembly line) is a string like this: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/y2009/0097998.html. Not too bad, but in the age of Twitter, shorter is better. With Cligs, it's: http://cli.gs/NpggE3.

Or all the 1,000+ patents of Atlanta-based Coca Cola, which would be a string like this http://www.freepatentsonline.com/result.html?p=1&edit_alert=&srch=xprtsrch&query_txt=AN%2F%22coca+cola%22&uspat=on&usapp=on&date_range=all&stemming=on&sort=chron&search=Search, except with Cligs it's: http://cli.gs/QJAR7Q.

This Coca-Cola query comes from our Advanced Search page here, where Assignee Name= Coca Cola (AN/"coca cola"), and we asked for all U.S. patents and patent applications, from most recent.

What sets Cligs apart:

Cligs keeps track of the following in real time:

Hits time: when your traffic came in.
Geographical location of your visitors: where are your visitors located?
Search engine bots: have the search engines found your links? They need to so they can count the link towards your ranking.
Social media monitoring: for both the short URL and its destination, Cligs tracks the following:
- Twitter mentions: Who tweeted about your link?
- Friendfeeed mentions: Who shared your link on Friendfeed?
- Blog links: Which blogs wrote about your short URL?
- Web links: Not just blogs, but all websites: who is linking to you?
- Blog comments: Who is writing about your short URL in blog comments around the web?
- Delicious saves: for the destination only, Cligs tracks who saved the link to their delicious account.
Referral statistics: which links actually sent you traffic? It is not enough just to know who links to you but to also know who sends traffic.

And only on Cligs can you provide alternative destinations URLs that different visitors from different countries are forwarded to. This means you can target your marketing and promotions on a per-country basis and capture the value of all the traffic going through your links.

Check out Cligs today-- know what Twitter users know already; shorter can be better.

Patent Faceoff: Samsung vs. Nokia

2009-04-17T06:18:00.002-04:00

Samsung (South Korea) is the world's single largest conglomerate. It was founded in 1938.

Nokia is a Finnish multinational communications corporation, headquartered in Keilaniemi, Espoo, a city neighbouring Finland's capital Helsinki, and was founded in 1865.

Samsung has a total of 115,399 patents as of today in the U.S., Europe and Japan-- they're all here, in chronological sort order.

Nokia has a totalof 36,780 patents in the U.S., Europe and Japan, listed here from the most recent.

Samsung's most recent invention is United States Patent Application 20090094644, METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PROVIDING SERVICE GUIDE IN A MOBILE BROADCASTING SYSTEM:

A method and apparatus for providing an SG [Service Guide] in a mobile broadcasting system are provided. The apparatus and method include a terminal for receiving a first SG, for acquiring reception information about a second SG from the first SG, if a service fragment list extracted from the first SG includes information about at least one second SG different from the first SG, and for receiving the second SG based on the acquired reception information.

The inventors are all from Korea--

Jung, Bo-sun (Seongnam-si, KR)
Lee, Kook-heui (Yongin-si, KR)
Hwang, Sung-oh (Yongin-si, KR)
Kim, Hyun-chul (Suwon-si, KR).

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

Samsung: 115,399
versus
Nokia: 36,780.

Have a Patent/Know About a Patent you want us to spotlight in our blog? Email plaque [@] freepatentsonline.com. And check out http://www.freepatentsonline.com/ : All the Inventions of Mankind.

The United Inventors Association & Patrick Raymond

2009-04-15T08:00:00.003-04:00

Patrick Raymond is the man behind U.S. Patent Application 20060272087, Shower Curtain Holder, which is from ShowerBow--

A shower curtain holder having a body having a bowed shape and a hook at its upper end which is adapted to engage a shower curtain rod. The holder is placed on the rod inside of the shower curtain. Its size and shape is such that the shower curtain is held away from the person taking the shower. The holder includes a counterweight near or at its top to help in keeping the holder, and thus the curtain as well, away from the person within the shower. Another shower curtain holder can have a member that may or may not flexible. The flexible member can have ends displaced at a distance on the shower rod. Also, the holder can include at least one of a counterweight system, a dynamic or adjustable counterweight system, or a weight offset from the center of the member.

There's a clever video on the ShowerBow site explaining the product.

Patrick is now the man behind the increasingly high profile United Inventors Association (UIA):

Since 1990, the United Inventors Association is the national membership organization dedicated to inventor education and support. As a 501(c)3 non-profit, the UIA offers non-commercial information to inventors and Certification to local support groups and invention service providers who comply with rigorous professional and ethical standards. We do not endorse any party, nor do we take part in commercial transactions between inventors and local groups or service providers.

From their website, big news for this month:

On April 24, 2009, the UIA will release a ground-breaking educational series covering every stage of the inventing process. Hosted by Steve Greenberg, this is your opportunity to learn from 16 of America's top invention industry experts who have collectively reviewed and launched hundreds of new products earning millions of dollars in sales!

Filmed at the Enventys Studios, this original UIA production entitled “What Every Inventor Needs to Know” is an insider’s look at achieving success, as well as a cautionary tale on what to expect -- and traps to avoid -- during the inventor's journey.

We're guessing that Inventor Raymond will take the UIA to the very center of the national stage in regards to helping inventors.

Have a Patent/Know About a Patent you want us to spotlight in our blog? Email plaque [@] freepatentsonline.com. And check out www.freepatentsonline.com: All the Inventions of Mankind

The E-Cigarette

2009-04-13T11:34:00.005-04:00

Electronic (smokeless) cigarettes are gaining the interest of consumers and regulators alike.

The maker of one e-cigarette, Smoking Everywhere (pictured above), claims:

"Fact: Smoking Everywhere electronic cigarette is the healthier way to smoke."

The FDA has opened an investigation and has refused to allow e-cigarettes, e-cigars and e-pipes to cross the border because they're considered new drugs that require FDA approval. The agency is under pressure from public health advocates, including New Jersey Democrat Sen. Frank Lautenberg, to take electronic cigarettes off the market until they are proved to be safe.

The key patent appears to be AN AEROSOL ELECTRONIC CIGARETTE, an EP application (EP20050729107) from December 2006.

The present invention relates to an electronic atomization cigarette which only contains nicotine without harmful tar. The electronic atomization cigarette includes a shell and a mouthpiece. The external wall of the shell has an air inlet. An electronic circuit board, a normal pressure cavity, a sensor, a vapor-liquid separator, an atomizer, a liquid-supplying bottle are sequentially provided within the shell, wherein the electronic circuit board comprises an electronic switching circuit and a high frequency generator. A stream passage of the sensor is provided on one side of the sensor, and a negative pressure cavity is provided in the sensor. The atomizer and the liquid-supplying bottle is in contact with each other. An atomization cavity is arranged in the atomizer. A retaining ring for locking the liquid-supplying bottle is provided between one side of the liquid-supplying bottle and the shell, and an aerosol passage is provided on the other side of the liquid-supplying bottle. The air inlet, normal pressure cavity, vapor-liquid separator, atomizer, aerosol passage, gas vent and mouthpiece are sequentially interconnected. The advantages of the present invention include smoking without tar, significantly reducing the cancerogenic risk, Furthermore, users still feel as if they are smoking and experiencing the same excitement, and the cigarette is no need to be lit and is no fire risk.

The inventor is Hong Kong-based Hon Lik, Chairman of Ruyan Holdings/Ruyan America.

EP PATENT

EP1736065A1

Hon Lik

It seems that Ruyan will be aggressive in asserting its patent rights, witness their February 2009 press release entitled Ruyan Asserts Patent Rights to E-cigarette in Key China Court Ruling.

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Patent Faceoff: Pfizer vs. Novartis

2009-04-09T06:39:00.002-04:00

Global pharma Novartis has 1,554 patents, see them all listed here from the most recent. Based in Switzerland, the firm has annual revenue of $43 billion.

NYC-based Pfizer, a key Novartis competitor, has substantially more patents despite being only slightly bigger ($48 billion in annual revenue)-- a total of 6,067 patents as of today-- they're all here, in chronological sort order.

Pfizer's most recent patent took almost four years to earn-- it was filed on 6/15/2005 and was published on 4/17/2009. It's U.S. Patent 7,514,464, Substituted Arylpyrazoles:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a combination product comprising a pyrazole derivative of formula (I) in combination with one or more biologically active compounds as described herein, particularly anti-parasitic agents. The compounds of interest of formula (I) are cyclopropylarylpyrazoles and, more particularly, the invention relates to 1-aryl-4-cyclopropylpyrazoles in which there is at least one fluorine attached to the cyclopropyl ring.

The inventors for Substituted Arylpyrazoles are in Sandwich, Great Britain:

Dennis Billen (Sandwich, GB)
Nathan Chubb (Sandwich, GB)
David Gethin (Sandwich, GB)
Kim Hall (Sandwich, GB)
Lee Roberts (Sandwich, GB)
Nigel Walshe (Sandwich, GB).

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

Pfizer: 6,067
versus
Novartis: 1,554.

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Pill Sensor: You Swallow It

2009-04-08T09:21:00.002-04:00

Take a look at U.S. Patent Application 20090088618 from last week, System and Method for Manufacturing a Swallowable Sensor Device:

Methods and systems for manufacturing a swallowable sensor device are disclosed. Such a method includes mechanically coupling a plurality of internal components, wherein the plurality of internal components includes a printed circuit board having a plurality of projections extending radially outward. A cavity is filled with a potting material, and the mechanically coupled components are inserted into the cavity. The cavity may be pre-filled with the potting material, or may be filled after the mechanically coupled components have been inserted therein. A distal end of each projection abuts against a wall of the cavity thereby preventing the potting material from covering each distal end. The cavity is sealed with a cap causing the potting material to harden within the sealed cavity to form a housing of the swallowable sensor device, wherein the distal end of each projection is exposed to an external environment of the swallowable sensor device.

The inventors are:

Michael Arneson (Finksburg, MD)
William Bandy (Gambrills, MD)
Roger Davenport (Plantation, FL)
Kevin Powell (Annapolis, MD)
Michael Sloan (Ellicott City, MD).

The background information in the patent filing is fascinating:

The population of the United States is aging. The first wave of the 78 million “Baby Boomers” is beginning to turn 60 years old. There has been an explosion in diabetes cases, estimated at 194 million cases worldwide today, and predicted to reach 350 million cases by year 2025. Obesity currently affects two thirds of the U.S. population. There is a rising incidence of cardiac problems for women (the number one cause of death for women). Hepatitis C will soon reach epidemic levels, infecting nearly 5 million people, more than the number of people infected with AIDS in the U.S. Thus, simple and easy diagnostic and treatment techniques are needed, especially because many of the diseases that afflict the population are chronic, requiring repeat testing and treatment over time. Such diagnostic and treatment techniques may be realized by using a swallowable sensor device that is ingested by a patient. The swallowable sensor device could be used to sense a condition and/or deliver medical treatment as it travels through the patient's gastrointestinal tract.

There's no Assignee listed for this patent but it's likely from what was Symbol Technologies' Innurvation division-- Symbol acquired Columbia, Maryland-based Matrics RFID, and Symbol in turn was acquired by Motorola.

And Schaumburg, Illinois-based, $30 billion in annual revenue Motorola (founded in 1928)? They have over 25,000 patents, see them here from the most recent.

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Discovery Calls Foul on Amazon

2009-04-06T09:51:00.002-04:00

This patent is now at the center of a dispute between Discovery and Amazon: Electronic book security and copyright protection system, from 11/20/2007 [inventors John Hendricks, Michael Asmussen and John McCoskey]. Hendricks is the founder of Discovery.

In March of 2009 Discovery Communications Inc. said the Kindle electronic book readers from Amazon.com Inc. violate an invention represented among their eleven current patents, listed here. Discovery sued Amazon in Delaware. Discovery spokeswoman Michelle Russo said the company is seeking "fair compensation" through damages, future royalty payments and legal fees but will not seek an injunction halting the sales of the very popular Kindle.

Here's the abstract from U.S. Patent 7,298,851:

The invention, electronic book security and copyright protection system, provides for secure distribution of electronic text and graphics to subscribers and secure storage. The method may be executed at a content provider's site, at an operations center, over a video distribution system or over a variety of alternative distribution systems, at a home subsystem, and at a billing and collection system. The content provider or operations center and/or other distribution points perform the functions of manipulation and secure storage of text data, security encryption and coding of text, cataloging of books, message center, and secure delivery functions. The home subsystem connects to a secure video distribution system or variety of alternative secure distribution systems, generates menus and stores text, and transacts through communicating mechanisms. A portable book-shaped viewer is used for secure viewing of the text. A billing system performs the transaction, management, authorization, collection and payments utilizing the telephone system or a variety of alternative communication systems using secure techniques.

Here's the whole lawsuit filing in pdf format (102 pages).

And John Hendricks is an inventor of some note, with 59 current patents, listed here.

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Patent Faceoff: Anheuser-Busch vs. Marlboro

2009-04-03T07:05:00.002-04:00

This week's Faceoff is about vices, cigarettes and beer. It's St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch versus Pittsburgh-based Marlboro (Philip Morris).

Marlboro has 40 patents, you can see them here from the most recent.

Anheuser-Busch has 197 patents as of this date, they're listed here.

On 1/8/2009, Anheuser-Busch inventors Matthew Call and Chris Luber earned U.S. Patent Application 20090008225 , Conveyor Apparatus and System:

Typical roller conveyors suffer from excess noise and frequent maintenance due to worn rollers and roller bearings. Continuous loop belt conveyors solve some of these problems, but still suffer from an inability to change the width of the conveyor belt without significant rework or adjustment. Although a narrower belt can be used without major adjustment, prior continuous loop conveyor systems still suffer from belt drift. To alleviate these problems, a belt conveyor system that easily adjusts to accommodate continuous loop belts of varying widths is provided. The system comprises a rigid conveyor frame having at least one pair of generally parallel side walls traversed by one or more support brackets. The support brackets are secured to the conveyor frame. Additionally, one or more belt guides, having at least one surface for guiding a conveyor belt, are secured to the support brackets. The system further comprises one or more belt supports each having a substantially horizontal surface for guiding the conveyor belt, wherein the belt supports are secured to the support brackets.

This patent is about more bottle throughput at the factory level.

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

Anheuser-Busch: 197
versus
Marlboro: 40.

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Delta & Their Jobox

2009-04-01T19:08:00.005-04:00

You may know Delta for their JOBOX.

Founded in the late 1940s in Jonesboro, Arkansas, the company originally made silos for the booming farming industry in the delta region of the Mississippi River. In 1961, Delta Consolidated Industries designed and manufactured the first steel truck box to address a rapidly growing demand for truck storage solutions. The firm specializes in tool storage solutions by being the first to address corrosion resistance and styling with the addition of the aluminum truck box and beveled edge lid design.

They have a total of eight patents currently, here they are.

Container with adjustable rotary lock is their most recent patent, from August 2008:

A rotary unit for use with a locking system includes: a base plate having a slot; a rotary member rotatably mounted with the base plate about a first axis of rotation, the rotary member including a plurality of fingers extending radially outwardly from a central portion thereof and an engagement portion fixed to the central portion; and a pawl member pivotally mounted with the base plate about a second axis of rotation and coupled with the connecting member. The pawl member includes an engagement projection that selectively engages the engagement portion of the rotary member to prevent rotation of the rotary member in a first rotative direction but permits rotation of the rotary member in a second rotative direction that is opposite the first rotative direction.

Here are the inventors, all from Arkansas--

Kurt Pfitzinger (Jonesboro, AR)
Bryan Anderson (Jonesboro, AR)
Kelly Jones (Elkins, AR)
Ron Eberwein (Jonesboro, AR)
Randy Key (Jonesboro, AR).

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Dr. Charles Simone & Super Energy Drink

2009-03-30T08:00:00.003-04:00

is a Medical Doctor, Medical Oncologist, Immunologist, and Radiation Oncologist. He's the author of Cancer and Nutrition, A Ten Point Plan for Prevention and Cancer Life Extension; The Truth About Breast Health and Breast Cancer, Prescription for Healing; and The Truth About Prostate Health and Prostate Cancer, Prevention and Cancer Life Extension.

Charles Simone graduated from Rutgers College of Medicine and also earned a Masters of Medical Science while investigating the cancer killing properties of plant herbals. After training in Internal Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic (1975-77), Dr. Simone was offered a position in the Immunology Branch and Medicine Branch and later in the Pharmacology Branch and Medicine Branch at the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland (1977-82). At the National Cancer Institute, he trained in medical oncology and immunology.

In 1982 he accepted a position in the Department of Radiation Oncology at University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA; and in 1985 began as Associate Professor, Department of Radiation Oncology and Nuclear Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia. Since 1988, he has been the Founder and Director of the Simone Protective Cancer Center.

Dr. Simone has three patents.

One is for a Rehydration Drink, earned in 1995:

A liquid composition to be used as a rehydration drink, particularly suited for the administration to people who do heavy work under severe conditions, e.g. at high temperatures, and to sportspeople and athletes, as well as to patients who exhibit dehydration symptoms due to severe illnesses such as diarrhea or vomiting, contains per serving unit water at least 1 to 100 g of at least one carbohydrate, such as glucose polymers, maltodextrin and fructose; 2 to 2500 mg of at least one electrolyte, such as an alkali and/or earth alkali salt; 0,1 to 750 mg of at least one ammonia neutralizer, such as D,L-magnesium aspartate, L-arginine and glutamate; at least one energy enhancer, such as members of the vitamin B group and branched chain amino acids; at least one antioxidant such as β-carotene, vitamin C, vitamin E and selenium; 1 to 30 mg of at least one membrane stabilizer, such as choline chloride, betaine chloride and methionine; and 1 to 200 μg of at least one neuromuscular function enhancer such as octacosanol.

This patent led to the creation and commercialization of Simone Super Energy Drink, promoted as follows:

Muscle Cramping and Pain are major enemies of an athlete. Nothing is more frustrating to a highly conditioned athlete than being unable to continue a competition because of cramping and fatigue.

NOW THERE IS A SOLUTION.
It’s an amazing new nutritional formula called SIMONE SUPER ENERGY Drink!

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Patent Faceoff: Gillette vs. L'Oreal

2009-03-27T06:41:00.001-04:00

Gillette owns a big chunk of the men's market (shaving) and was founded in 1901 in Boston. It is now part of P&G.

Gillette has 2,568 patents and patent applications in the US, see them here.

Paris-based L'Oreal was founded in 1907; it tilts towards women as the world's biggest cosmetics and beauty company.

L'Oreal has 1,892 patents in the USA, about 75% of the number that is currently claimed by Gillette.

Gillette's latest patent application has nothing to do with shaving, it's Fuel Sources, Fuel Cells and Methods of Operating Fuel Cells from 3/26/2009:

Fuel sources, fuel cells and methods of operating fuel cells are disclosed. In one aspect, the invention features a fuel source for a fuel cell, including a housing made substantially from a fuel-permeable material, and a fuel in the housing.

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

Gillette: 2,568
versus
L'Oreal: 1,892.

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Tata Motors

2009-03-25T10:53:00.001-04:00

Tata Motors Limited is India’s largest automobile company, with revenues of $8.8 billion in 2007-08. The company is the world’s fourth largest truck manufacturer, and the world’s second largest bus manufacturer. And it's the producer of the clever new Nano, pictured above and below, which sells in India for the equivalent of about $2,000.

The firm has these 14 patents from around the globe.

Most recently the firm earned Engine Protection System, European Patent Application EP2037110, from 3/18/2009 (Inventor: Narayanan Annamalai Sathiyasivan of Maharashtra, India):

This invention relates to Engine protection system which comprises at least one float sensor, auxiliary coolant tank, a relay, Fuel Injection Pump (FIP) solenoid switch and coolant level warning indicator wherein said float sensor is provided on an auxiliary coolant tank to sense the level of coolant inside the said tank. Said auxiliary coolant tank is provided to maintain sufficient coolant level inside the radiator. When coolant level inside the said auxiliary coolant tank drops beyond the specified safe limit then float unit of said float sensor moves down and completes the electrical circuit, because of which the FIP solenoid switch will cut off the diesel supply to the engine. After this even though the engine gets cranked but it will not start unless the level of coolant in a said tank resumes to the normal level. According to another embodiment the said FIP solenoid switch of diesel engine is replaced with electronic control unit for petrol engine.

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DEK Drain: Water Diversion System

2009-03-23T07:32:00.003-04:00

Inventor Keith Risser of Columbia, Maryland is the man behind DEK Drain, and this is the relevant patent (one of his three)--

Sub-deck drainage system or gutter comprising a trapezoidal shaped panel of thermoset, thermoplastic, or modified bitumen membrane (U.S. Patent 6415571, published 7/9/2002)--

Five examples of the system for waterproofing an outside deck, thereby improving the usefulness of the space below the deck, are disclosed. Both inflexible and flexible panels are used. All panels may be made of fire retardant materials. Examples of both types of panels are installed at the time the deck is constructed and fit between the joists. They consist of panels which may be used in conjunction with each other in order to protect decks of varying widths. The other examples are added to previously constructed decks. One example includes a clip strip which is attached to the bottom of the joists and panels which are attached to the clip strip. A trim piece completes the installation. A second example involves the flexible panel with provisions for connection to a mounting bracket installed between the joists. Another example involves a flexible panel which may be installed by the homeowner along the bottoms of the joists. In each system there are provisions for insuring that the system remains waterproof.

The problem Risser aims to solve is that traditional deck drainage systems can be difficult to install, require expensive materials, and can be leaky.

Risser's invention offers the following benefits:

Pre-fabricated; no measuring, sawing, or cutting
Easy to install; caulk-free, pre-measured complete with all hardware in place made from extremely durable materials
Automatically forms a properly pitched drainage channel
Limited lifetime warranty.

DEK Drain has an elegantly simple value proposition: Keep the area under your deck dry.

US PATENT

6415571

K. Risser, DEK Drain

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Patent Faceoff: Nike vs. Adidas

2009-03-20T08:13:00.002-04:00

Which firm is the patent leader in sneakers et al? We looked at all US patents, as well as those from Europe and Japan.

Adidas (based in Herzogenaurach, Germany ) has 499 patents today, they're listed here from the most recent. The firm generates about $16 billion in annual revenue.

And Nike? They have far more, a total of 3,775 as of this date-- here they are. Nike's revenue is slightly bigger than that of Adidas, about $19 billion per year.

Just last week, the Beaverton, Oregon company earned U.S. Patent Application 20090064538, ARTICLE OF FOOTWEAR WITH IMPROVED STABILITY AND BALANCE:

The stability and balance offered by an article of footwear is improved by including a rigid layer in an outsole assembly of the article of footwear. The rigid layer may include a material of at least a predefined rigidity. For example, an outsole may be fitted with a carbon fiber plate that maintains the shape and a flatness of the outsole assembly. The rigid layer may be attached to one or more other layers that may be configured for impact force attenuation and comfort. In one or more arrangements, the rigid layer may be sandwiched between two other layers. Alternatively, the rigid layer may be insertable into a layer of the outsole. A channel may cut into a layer of the outsole to distribute weight to an outside portion of the outsole. This distribution of weight to the outside portion of the outsole may improve stability and balance.

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

Nike: 3,775
versus
Adidas: 499.

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Dr. Robert Fischell

2009-03-18T08:00:00.002-04:00

Dr. Robert Fischell is one of America's most important inventors in the recent era. He is the man behind 212 patents, listed here.

He worked at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory full time for 25 years, and part time for another 13 years. Dr. Fischell invented the implantable insulin pump (became MiniMed, spun off from Pacesetter Systems, Inc. in 1985), many heart stents used to open clogged arteries (IsoStent, Inc. merged with Cordis, and in turn was purchased by Johnson & Johnson), and two feedback systems that give early warning of epileptic seizures (NeuroPace, Inc.) and heart attacks (Angel Medical Systems, Inc.).

Dr. Fischell donated $30 million to the University of Maryland College Park Foundation to create a bioengineering department and an institute for biomedical devices at the School of Engineering.

In 2005, he was awarded the TED Prize, and in accepting asked for help designing his portable Transcranial Magnetic Stimulator (TMS), a drug-less migraine treatment, pictured above.

Heart Stent

Here's his most recent IP, U.S. Patent 7494458, Means and methods for treating headaches, dated 2/24/2009 (one of the co-inventors is his son, David):

Disclosed is a system and method for treating headaches. The system employs a self-contained, battery operated, readily portable and easy-to-operate head-mounted magnetic depolarizer to generate a transient or time-varying high-intensity magnetic field into and around the user's head or neck. The magnetic depolarizer system can be used to depolarize the neurons of the brain and/or the trigeminal nerve. This type of neuronal depolarization has the capability for terminating migraine or other types of headaches.

Dr. Fischell's first patent was 46 years ago and has nothing whatever to do with healthcare. Published in 1963, it's titled: Energy absorption mechanism:

"This invention relates in general to energy absorption mechanisms, and more particularly, to an improved energy absorption mechanism for absorbing libration energy of a gravity oriented satellite."

Libration means "a real or apparent oscillatory motion, especially of the moon."

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Redbox: Eight Patents

2009-03-15T09:24:00.009-04:00

Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois-based Redbox has been growing fast thanks to convenience, low pricing and the decline of traditional video rental shops.

Each fully automated redbox kiosk holds about 700 DVDs, including 200 of the newest movie releases. Consumers use a touch screen to select their favorite movies, swipe a valid credit or debit card and off they go. The complete rental transaction takes about a minute.

Customers can keep the DVD for as long as they’d like for $1 per night plus tax, and return it to any one of Redbox’s 12,000 locations nationwide such as McDonald’s restaurants, Wal-Mart and Walgreens stores. After 25 nights, rental charges cease and the DVD is the customer’s to keep.

Redbox has eight patents today, they are listed here.

U.S. Patent 7234609 appears to be one of their foundational IP pillars. Issued 6/26/2007, it's titled Article dispensing system and method for same:

An article dispensing machine and article transport storage unit are shown that permit articles slated for inventory to be delivered in secure manner from a centralized inventory supply center to an article dispensing machine forming part of an article distribution system. The article transport storage unit is locked during transport from the supply center to the machine and does not become unlocked until fully installed within the machine.

US PATENT

7234609

Redbox

Redbox: delivering convenience to a convenience-obsessed America.

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Patent Faceoff: Boeing, Lockheed, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon

2009-03-13T07:17:00.004-04:00

We look today at four defense stalwarts--

As of March 13, 2009--

A recent Boeing patent relates to aerospace, but not perhaps the first area within aerospace of which you might think. This is U.S. Patent 7500430, Vacuum trash compactor apparatus from March 10, 2009:

The invention discloses differing embodiments of trash management systems and methods for the disposal and/or collection of trash. In one embodiment under the invention, a trash management system may include a mobile cart, a trash vessel connected to the cart, a piston adapted to compact trash within the trash vessel, and a passageway adapted to be connected to a vacuum trash disposal. The piston may be adapted to travel from one position to a second position, and back from the second position to the first position. This movement of the piston may be achieved utilizing multiple passageways which are each adapted to be connected to a vacuum source and a vent source.

The inventors:

Claflin, Shawn A. (Everett, WA)
Sauer, Steven H. (Seattle, WA)
Leblanc, Thomas L. (Mukilteo, WA)
Curtis, Vicki A. (Stanwood, WA)

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

Boeing: 9,640
versus
Lockheed Martin: 5,616
versus
Northrop Grumman: 3,390
versus
Raytheon: 5,927.

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Whatever Happened to Coleco?

2009-03-11T08:05:00.005-04:00

Coleco was founded way back in 1932, and famously released the Cabbage Patch Kids series of dolls which were wildly successful in the 1980s.

They entered the video game console market in 1982 with the launch of the ColecoVision. When the video game market hit the wall in 1983 due to the rise of home computers, Coleco introduced Adam both as a stand-alone system and as an expansion module to the ColecoVision. Adam failed, largely because it proved unreliable, and withdrew from electronics early in 1985.

In 1986, they introduced an ALF plush based on the furry alien character who had his own television series at the time, as well as a talking version and a cassette-playing "Storytelling ALF" doll. The runaway success of the dolls could not stem the tide of red ink that had begun with the launch of Adam. In 1988, the company filed for bankruptcy, and in 1989, Hasbro purchased Coleco's assets.

In 2005, River West Brands, a Chicago-based brand revitalization company, re-introduced Coleco to the marketplace. In late 2006, they introduced the Coleco Sonic, a handheld system containing twenty Sega Master System and Sega Game Gear games.

Companies come and go but patents are forever-- the former Hartford, Connecticut firm has these 86 patents, recorded for posterity.

One of the last inventions was back in 1989 called Conversing Dolls (U.S. Patent 4857030):

Two or more dolls with speech synthecizing systems appear to intelligently converse while signaling each other via a radio frequency transmission to indicate what has been spoken, and to request a response which is intelligent with respect to the synthecized speech of the first doll.

Here's the fascinating River West positioning--

River West Brands LLC identifies, acquires, redevelops, and monetizes iconic brand intellectual property that is significantly distressed. We seek to manage a portfolio of holdings in well-led enterprises formed around the foundation of great brands, great people, great partners, and great strategies. Our goal is to grow this portfolio through the continued success of our positions today, and the selective addition of new ones over time. We recognized the opportunity presented by dormant brands in 2001, and have been working to systematically transform these brands from orphans into valuable assets ever since. We are the first company ever to successfully acquire and exploit brands in this new emerging asset class.

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Aristotle's Baby Patent

2009-03-09T07:33:00.005-04:00

The Aristotle Corporation (NASDAQ: ARTLP), founded in 1986 and headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, is a manufacturer and global distributor of educational, health, medical technology and agricultural products. Over 80,000 items are offered, primarily through catalogs carrying the brand of Nasco (founded in 1941), as well as those bearing the brands of Life/form®, Whirl-Pak®, Simulaids, Triarco, Summit Learning, Hubbard Scientific, Scott Resources, Spectrum Educational Supplies, Haan Crafts, To-Sew, CPR Prompt®, and Ginsberg Scientific.

The firm has a very interesting patent, U.S. Patent 6699045 from 3/2/2004 titled: Infant simulation device and method therefore--

A device and method is provided for simulating the activities of an infant. The invention includes a mannequin having a simulator position therein for generating a plurality of simulated activities by the mannequin at preprogrammed timed intervals. Simulated duties such as diaper change, feeding and burping, and attention are generated by the simulator. A user must respond by inserting a proper response element into the simulator in order to terminate the simulated activity. Indicators are provided to inform of the user's abuse or tampering with the simulator.

The inventors are:

Daniel Christianson (Jefferson, WI)
Judith Johnson (Deerfield, WI)
Roger Lidicker (Fort Atkinson, WI)

The first claim is revealing:

We claim:

1. An infant simulation system, comprising: a mannequin; a control module associated with the mannequin and including an output arrangement for simulating one or more infant activities; a response arrangement operatively interconnected with the control module for terminating the one or more infant activities without terminating subsequent infant activities; and an operating arrangement associated with the control module, wherein the operating arrangement includes a series of programs, each of which corresponds to a predetermined schedule of the one or more infant activities, and a program selection arrangement for selecting at least one of the programs so as to operate the control module and simulate one or more infant activities according to the predetermined schedule of at least one of the programs.

And further, referencing the drawing above:

In a preferred construction, microcontroller 82 may be programmed for running four distinct event programs. Each event program consists of three types of programmed events: diaper change, feeding and burping, and attention. In the preferred construction, there are three programs that can be selected by an instructor plus a demonstration option.

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Patent Faceoff: Disney vs. McDonald's

2009-03-06T08:01:00.004-05:00

McDonald's is an Oak Park, Illinois company that has been around since 1955, and serving kids is a big part of their mission. You'd think they'd have a pretty big patent portfolio.

They do not-- just 19 patents, see them from most recent here.

Their last patent was back in early 2006, Automated Grill:

An automated grill automatically transfers frozen food from a freezer component to grilling component by an automatic loading device in response to a signal. Frozen food is loaded in a loading side in the freezer component. When the signal is received indicating that the food is to be grilled, food in a feeding side is raised and delivered to the loading device. When a sensor detects that food is positioned in the loading device, the loading device removes the food from the freezer component and into the grilling component. The food is then grilled as it travels between two substantially vertical grilling structures each surrounded by a conveyor belt. Preferably, the conveyor belt is made of a non-stick coated Invar. A lateral sensor detects and compensates for lateral movement of the conveyor belts. After the food exits the grilling component, the food slides onto a heated holding area for serving.

By contrast, Disney Corporation (Burbank, California), another kids-centric firm, has a very large patent portfolio-- a total of 401 patents as of this moment, listed here. Disney has been around longer, since 1923.

Many of Disney's patents of recent vintage relate to the web, but we especially like those that are about the amusement parks, like U.S. Patent 7392097, Automated attraction and ride maintenance verification system, from 6/24/2008:

A system for preventative maintenance of a ride or an attraction component at a venue. A validator establishes the identity of the ride or attraction component and a controller monitors the use of the ride or attraction component. The controller also manage the ride or attraction component's availability for patron usage and transmits this information to a system control panel. A blocking device controlled by the panel prevents patron usage of a ride or attraction component that is in non-compliance with pre-established operating standards.

There's a large cast of Florida-based inventors for this ride-related IP:

Schweizer, Kenneth William (Orlando, FL)
Bailey, Vincent Joseph (Kissimmee, FL)
Diaz, Ivan Rene (Orlando, FL)
Hutter, Rachel Strelecky (Orlando, FL)
Lake, Craig Forrest (Clermont, FL)
Orta, George Joseph (Eustis, FL)
Schaeffer, Mark (Clermont, FL)
Thomas, Johnie Larry (Orlando, FL)
Winkelbauer, Mark Thomas (Kissimmee, FL)
Seybert, John Howard (Montverde, FL)

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

Disney: 401
versus
McDonalds: 19.

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Coca-Cola: Over 1,000 Patents

2009-03-04T09:03:00.005-05:00

Atlanta, Georgia-based Coca-Cola Corporation (NYSE: KO) has a powerhouse inventions portfolio-- it is 1,178 patents-strong as of today, see them here.

Not a few patents for Coca-Cola relate to sugar and sugar substitutes.

Coke's most recent IP activity was U.S. Patent Application 20090053378, Sweetener Compositions Having Enhanced Sweetness and Improved Temporal and/or Flavor Profiles, dated 2/26/2009--

The present invention relates generally to improving the taste of sweetener compositions having enhanced sweetness. In particular, the present invention relates to compositions that can improve the tastes of sweetness enhanced sweetener compositions including at least one sweetness enhancer and at least one sweetener by imparting a more sugar-like taste or characteristic. In particular, the compositions and methods provide at least one sweetness enhancer, at least one sweetener comprising a carbohydrate sweetener, a natural-high-potency sweetener, a synthetic high-potency sweetener, or a combination thereof, and at least one sweet taste improving composition.

The inventors for this sweetener-improver are:

Indra Prakash (Alpharetta, GA)
Grant Dubois (Roswell, GA)
George King (Atlanta, GA)
Rafael San Miguel (Atlanta, GA).

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Western Union

2009-03-01T11:04:00.008-05:00

The telegram is passe but iconic American brand Western Union lives on, and today is far bigger than you might imagine.

Western Union (Englewood, CO) was founded in 1851 in Rochester, NY. It's now a public company (NYSE: WU) with 5,900 employees and $5.2 billion in revenue.

The firm has 1,047 patents-- check them out from the most recent here.

Western Union completed the first transcontinental telegraph line in 1861. The telegraph always was dominated by Western Union, which was long an industrialized monopoly. They were the first communications empire and a harbinger of communications as it is known today-- think about the decades-long passage from telegram-to-email.

In the present day, the firm is busy inventing anew: On 2/10/2009, WU received U.S. Patent 7487912 for Electronic Receipting by inventors Dean Seifert and Tim Keane, both of Dublin, Ireland [POS = Point of Sale]:

Certain embodiments of the present invention provide systems and methods for receipting transactions transacted at a POS device. More specifically, but not by of limitation, embodiments of the present invention provide methods and systems for electronically receipting POS transactions and, in some embodiments, of providing the electronic receipts to a destination selected by a party to the POS transaction.

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Patent Faceoff: Safeway vs. Kroger

2009-02-27T07:40:00.002-05:00

Kroger is a Cincinnati company founded in 1883. Listed on the NYSE (KR), the firm has annual revenue of $76 billion. And Kroger has 75 patents as of this blog post, you can see them here from the most recent.

Safeway? They're Pleasanton, CA-based, founded in 1912, with $44 billion in annual revenue-- their stock symbol on the NYSE is SWY. And they have just one more patent than Kroger, a total of 76 as of right now, the closest Patent Faceoff ever (every Friday in this blog we face off two like companies on IP). Here's the Safeway collection.

Safeway's most recent invention was 10/30/2008, U.S. Patent Application #20080270262, LOYALTY CARD BASED ALLERGY WARNING PROGRAM:

The present application discloses systems and methods for managing nutritional information which in some embodiments comprises a database coupled to a central processor, a storage module configured to store in the database a plurality of records comprising loyalty card data for products purchased with a loyalty card and nutritional information for products available for purchase with the loyalty card, and a plurality of records relating to after sale product information. These systems and methods may further comprise a data processing module configured to compare products purchased with a loyalty card with the after sale product information, and determine if there are conflicts and an output module for transmitting results, wherein the central processor is configured to generate a report based upon the information found in the storage module.

The inventors are: Kaushik Subramanian (Fremont, CA), Stuart Aitken (Pleasanton, CA) and Jonathan Quinn (San Mateo, CA).

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

Safeway: 76
versus
Kroger: 75.

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Harley-Davidson's 458 Patents

2009-02-25T07:09:00.004-05:00

Harley-Davidson (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) has 458 patents-- check them out from the most recent here.

The company was founded in 1903.

Many of their patents are about engine design, but their creative engineering minds also address comfort, and even storage.

Here's the summary from Flip Up Seat with Rear Seat Storage, U.S. Patent # 20090001780, from 1/1/2009,:

A seat assembly for a motorcycle includes a rider seat having a forward end and a rearward end, a mounting bracket pivotally coupling the forward end of the rider seat to a frame of a motorcycle, the rider seat being pivotable to raise the rearward end of the seat, and a support arm. The seat assembly further includes a rear seat support having a first end portion and a second end portion, the first end portion being pivotally coupled to the support arm and the second end portion supporting a rear seat. The rear seat support is pivotal from a first position in which the rear seat is hidden from view below the rider seat to a second position in which the rear seat can support a passenger. The seat assembly also includes a stop feature for supporting the second end portion relative to the support arm and a lock feature for inhibiting pivoting of the rear seat support.

This patent credits six Wisconsin inventors:

Clarkson, Douglas D. (Colgate, WI)
Giunta, Francis (Hartford, WI)
Zapushek, John B. (Racine, WI)
Mandery, Thomas (Waukesha, WI)
Smith, Brendon (Milwaukee, WI)
Rank, David (Menomonee Falls, WI).

Here's the old approach to storage, canisters straddling the rear tire-- this Harley-Davidson Electra Glide is a 1966 model.

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Land O'Lakes

2009-02-23T09:20:00.006-05:00

Land O'Lakes-- based, naturally, in Minnesota (St. Paul), where there are thousands of lakes-- was founded in1921 as a cooperative that had new ideas about producing butter.

Back then, most butter was made from sour cream and was sold in tubs. This new cooperative made butter from fresh, sweet cream and sold it in pound packages with individually wrapped sticks. It created the standard for butter quality and helped to implement grading regulations for the industry.

The original co-op name was Minnesota Cooperative Creameries Association. In 1924, the association decided to expand its butter market, and a search was made for an appropriate brand name and trademark. A contest was announced to choose a name.-- to tie in with the golden color of butter, $500 in gold was offered as prize money.

The now-famous Indian maiden also was created during the hunt for a brand name and trademark. Because the regions of Minnesota was the land of Hiawatha and Minnehaha, the notion of an Indian maiden took form.

In 1928, Land O'Lakes received a painting of an Indian maiden facing the viewer and holding a butter carton. Lakes, pines, flowers and grazing cows decorated the background. That painting inspired a new design for the butter carton, and remained until 1939, when it was simplified and modernized by Jess Betlach, a nationally-recognized illustrator. Fifty years later, with only minor changes, his design continues to represent Land O'Lakes products.

Land O'Lakes has a total of 57 patents today, take a look.

Their most recent patent was Food and feed compositions including resistant starch, United States Patent 7252836 from 8/7/2007:

The invention described in this application relates to a method of increasing the amount of weight gained by the mammal during a feeding period, to a method of increasing the amount of milk replacer consumed by the mammal during a feeding period, to a method of decreasing the amount of scour of the ruminant during a feeding period, to a method of decreasing the amount of respiratory distress of the mammal during a feeding period, to a method of feeding the ruminant, to a mammal ration, to a daily mammal ration, to a method of feeding mammals an animal feed that contains resistant starch, and to a method of increasing the feed efficiency of a mammal during a feeding period that entails feeding the mammal an effective amount of a fluid animal feed during the feeding period and feeding the mammal an effective amount of resistant starch during the feeding period.

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Patent Faceoff: Mattel vs. Lionel

2009-02-20T09:40:00.008-05:00

Lionel and Mattel move a lot of toys, trains and cars included. Lionel has been around since 1900 making model trains; Mattel's Hot Wheels product is 41 years old.

El Segundo, California-based Mattel has 1,703 U.S. patents-- here they are.

Chesterfield, Michigan-based Lionel has far fewer, just 821, but Mattel of course has multiple lines including Hot Wheels, Barbie and American Girl Dolls.

Dolls never go out of style, and Mattel's U.S. Patent 7479054 from 1/20/2009 is titled Flexible dolls and posable action figures:

An improved posable figure having extended life and resistance to failure, and being repeatedly posable in a realistic fashion. The posable figure has an inner skeleton including one or more primary members constructed of a bendable material such as metal wire, and an outer molded body covering constructed of a flexible substance such as an elastomer material. The inner skeleton also may include one or more secondary members molded over portions of the primary members, to limit flexion of the primary members and/or to connect the primary members to form an articulated structure.

The inventors are Mark Wittenberg and Ahmad Asbaghi.

US PATENT

7479054

Wittenberg/Asbaghi

It's worth noting that legendary Mattel designer Jack Ryan racked up 124 patents of his own.

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

Mattel: 1,703
versus
Lionel: 821.

Have a Patent/Know About a Patent you want us to spotlight in our blog? Email plaque [@] freepatentsonline.com. And check out http://www.freepatentsonline.com/ : All the Inventions of Mankind.

iRobot: The Living Room & The Battlefield

2009-02-18T08:06:00.005-05:00

Bedford, Massachusetts-based iRobot was founded in 1990 when Massachusetts Institute of Technology roboticists Colin Angle and Helen Greiner teamed up with their professor Dr. Rodney Brooks with the vision of making practical robots a reality.

Today, iRobot has grown to a $249 million public company (NASDAQ: IRBT) that employs over 400. The CEO is .

You may know them for their robotic vacuum cleaner, the Roomba. But the firm is big in defense too, witness their 109 patents today.

Take a look at Autonomous Mobile Robot, patent application 20080294288 from late last year:

A mobile robot is equipped with a range finder and a stereo vision system. The mobile robot is capable of autonomously navigating through urban terrain, generating a map based on data from the range finder and transmitting the map to the operator, as part of several reconnaissance operations selectable by the operator. The mobile robot employs a Hough transform technique to identify linear features in its environment, and then aligns itself with the identified linear features in order to navigate through the urban terrain; while at the same time, a scaled vector field histogram technique is applied to the combination of range finder and stereo vision data to detect and avoid obstacles the mobile robot encounters when navigating autonomously. Also, the missions performed by the mobile robot may include limitation parameters based on distance or time elapsed, to ensure completion of the autonomous operations.

In February of this year, iRobot got their ninth order under the $286 million xBot contract, bringing the current total contract value to approximately $80 million. The order calls for the delivery of 90 iRobot PackBots ($87K each).

The PackBot 510, employed in both Iraq and Afghanistan, was developed for reconnaissance missions and to identify roadside bombs, improvised explosive devices (IEDs), and other unexploded ordnance. The robot gives soldiers a tool to investigate suspicious objects from greater standoff distances, helping to keep them safe on the battlefield.

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Jack Cover, Taser Inventor

2009-02-16T08:59:00.006-05:00

Jack Cover, inventor of the Taser stun gun now used by thousands of police agencies as a better way to subdue suspects, died last week at 88.

His IP spawned TASER International (NASDAQ: TASR), the Scottsdale, Arizona-based company that now makes the stun gun. The firm currently lists 36 patents, many of them attributed to Mr. Cover-- they're listed here.

The CEO is Rick Smith.

The Taser shoots darts attached to wires that deliver electric shocks that temporarily subdue aggressive subjects. While the device has become a common tool for police officers, it has become controversial in some quarters because it has been linked to a number of deaths.

Cover, a one-time NASA scientist, began developing the Taser as a nonlethal weapon to combat the hijackings and riots that were happening in the 1960s.

The name T.S.E.R. came from his favorite childhood book, "Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle," one of a series of adventure stories by Victor Appleton.

"What an amazing thought, stunning people with blue balls of electricity," Cover told The Washington Post in 1976, recalling the book. He added that an "A" was added to the name of his invention because "we got tired of answering the phone 'TSER' for Tom Swift's Electric Rifle."

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Patent Faceoff: Maytag vs. Dyson

2009-02-13T09:20:00.002-05:00

There's no love lost between Maytag and Dyson, witness this lawsuit.

Benton Harbor, Michigan-based Maytag has 1,527 U.S. patents-- here they are.

Malmesbury, Great Britain-based Dyson has far fewer, just 70, but their legendary founder James Dyson has his name on a total of 103 patents.

Sir James Dyson's most recent patent is application 20090031524, Multistage Cyclonic Separating Apparatus, from 2/5/2009:

A cyclonic separating apparatus includes a first cyclonic separating unit including at least one first cyclone, a second cyclonic separating unit located downstream of the first cyclonic separating unit and including a plurality of second cyclones arranged in parallel, and a third cyclonic separating unit located downstream of the second cyclonic separating unit and including a plurality of third cyclones arranged in parallel. The number of second cyclones is higher than the number of first cyclones and the number of third cyclones is higher than the number of second cyclones, providing an apparatus which achieves a higher separation efficiency than known separation apparatus.

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

Maytag: 1,527
versus
Dyson: 70.

Have a Patent/Know About a Patent you want us to spotlight in our blog? Email plaque [@] freepatentsonline.com. And check out http://www.freepatentsonline.com/ : All the Inventions of Mankind.

Scuderi Engine

2009-02-11T07:11:00.001-05:00

The Scuderi Group, the West Springfield, Massachusetts-based developer of a new type of fuel-efficient internal combustion engine, raised over $20 million in additional private funding last month, in addition to $15 million already invested.

They have thirteen patents, take a look at them here.

The Scuderi Engine is a “split-cycle” design that divides the four strokes of a standard engine over a paired combination of one (intake/compression) cylinder and one (power/exhaust) cylinder. The company indicates that the design “could be the most significant improvement in engine efficiency in over 130 years.”

Here's the abstract from their invention Split-cycle engine with disc valve, U.S. Patent # 7481190 from 1/27/2009 by Salvatore Scuderi himself:

A split-cycle engine with disc valve includes a crankshaft, a power cylinder and a compression cylinder. A gas crossover passage interconnects the compression cylinder and the power cylinder. An air intake port circumscribes a periphery of the compression cylinder and defines an outer valve seat. An annular ring having a generally central opening is disposed between the compression cylinder and the air intake port and forms a washer valve for opening and closing the air intake port. A disc valve member is concentrically mounted over the central opening of the annular ring. The disc valve member includes a piston portion having a sidewall biased into engagement with the outer valve seat for controlling flow between the compression cylinder and the gas crossover passage.

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2009-02-10T16:05:00.006-05:00

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ShotSpotter

2009-02-08T10:43:00.011-05:00

Mountain View, CA-based ShotSpotter is the leader in gunshot and explosion location and detection systems for law enforcement, homeland security, and military. For over ten years, the company has been delivering patented [11 patents to date, see them here], wide-area acoustic surveillance systems capable of operating in diverse environments including urban communities, seaports and distribution gateways, university campuses, stadiums and convention centers, critical infrastructure, airports, and military bases.

The ShotSpotter GLS is deployed in over 30 cities and counties across the U.S. and is utilized by dispatchers, emergency personnel, investigators, and crime analysts to reduce and target gun violence. In addition to major metropolitan areas, the company's customers have included the FBI, US Attorney's Office, Department of Justice, US Joint Forces Command, US Air Force and the US Army.

The CEO is .

Here's their patent 7474589, Acoustic location of gunshots using combined angle of arrival and time of arrival measurements from 1/6/2009:

A gunshot location system computes candidate gunshot locations from angle-of-arrival information and time-of-arrival information provided by acoustic sensors. In addition to an angle, each sensor calculates an angular uncertainty from impulses received at four or more microphones having rotational symmetry. An intersection of one or more time-of-arrival hyperbolas with one or more angle-of-arrival beams is used to determine a candidate gunshot location. In simple environments, a location can be confirmed with just two sensors allowing sensor density to be significantly reduced, while in complex environments including reflections, blocking, and interfering acoustic events, the additional angle-of-arrival information improves location accuracy and confidence, allowing elimination of candidate locations inconsistent with the combined time-of-arrival and angle-of-arrival information.

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Patent Faceoff: Schlage vs. ADT

2009-02-06T07:44:00.002-05:00

Indianapolis, Indiana-based Schlage has 528 U.S. patents-- here they are. They're in security-- locks, the old-fashioned way. But they have some cutting edge technology, such as keypad locks you can control via a cell phone, like this one:

Boca Raton, Florida-based ADT has a different approach to security, more high tech, and along with subsidiary SimplexGrinnell has a compelling set of patents, too-- although far fewer, just 97.

ADT earned an interesting patent in late 2007 for Video Verification, #20070285511, relating to getting eyes-on-the-scene of an apparent alarm event before police dispatch:

A method, system and central monitoring station is provided for visual verification of an alarm system event in which image data corresponding to a plurality of images associated with the event is transmitted. The image data corresponding to the plurality of images is processed to create one or more processed images in which the one or more processed images are arranged to allow an operator to visually observe changes in the plurality of images. The one or more processed images are displayed.

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

Schlage: 528
versus
ADT: 97.

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MagicJack

2009-02-03T09:36:00.005-05:00

Meet MagicJack, a little $40 device that is shaking up the phone industry.

The Palm Beach, Florida company sits atop these five patents, credited to the inventor Daniel Borislow (also the founder/CEO of MagicJack).

The company was called a "Skype and Vonage killer" by CNBC.

A key patent application is #20070189270, dated 8/16/2007-- Network Adaptor:

The claimed invention consists of integrating a wireless client with a network adapter in a single device which allows a telephone to connect to a network access point for the purpose of establishing Voice over IP (VoIP) calls. The user can attach his telephone to the network adapter and place it anywhere within range of a wireless network and not be required to connect to a wired network via a cable. This allows the end user to place the network adapter and phone in a place without the restrictions of wires. Also, the network adapter could be used to transmit voice data over a broadband link and to transmit emergency calls over a cellular network.

US APPLICATION

20070189270

Daniel Borislow

The Boston Globe said: "... may provide the cheapest way for anyone to start making calls using an ordinary landline phone. It is definitely the easiest to use."

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Electric Car: Easy as A123?

2009-02-01T10:18:00.005-05:00

The major factor holding back electric cars? The battery. It needs to be lighter and yet more powerful for mass manufacturing.

In Hopkinton, MA, A123 Systems is on the case. Take a look here at their 22 patents.

Here's there most recent patent application, SEPARATOR INCLUDING ELECTROACTIVE MATERIAL FOR OVERCHARGE PROTECTION, from 1/29/2009 :

Porous separators for use in electrochemical cells and methods of their manufacture are provided. The separators are porous structures comprising an electroactive material and an electronically insulating structural material, wherein the electroactive material forms a percolating path in the separator.

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Patent Faceoff: Black & Decker vs. Stihl

2009-01-30T09:52:00.008-05:00

Towson, Maryland-based Black & Decker has 3,481 U.S. patents-- here they are.

Stihl, based in Waiblingen, German, has far fewer-- a total of 817 in the USA, listed here.

Black & Decker's most recent patent is Portable Work Bench, U.S. Patent 7,481,254:

An improved portable work bench includes a beam, legs for supporting the beam, and at least one bracket having first and second surfaces for contacting respective first and second sides of the beam, wherein the second surface is movable between a first position contacting the second side of the beam, and a second position not contacting the second side of the beam. A spring biases the second surface towards the first position.

So there you have it, for this week's Patent Faceoff:

Black & Decker: 3,481
versus
Stihl: 817.

Have a Patent/Know About a Patent you want us to spotlight in our blog? Email plaque [@] freepatentsonline.com. And check out http://www.freepatentsonline.com/ : All the Inventions of Mankind.