I was curious to see what inventions Elon Musk was directly involved (i.e. a noted inventor) in regarding TESLA. By being listed as a co-inventor of a patent application, others can tell what inventors had a part in developing the claimed technology in the patent application or subsequently granted patent. After a very brief review, [...]

I have recently started reviewing recently published patent applications for companies that seem to have interesting technology, such as Tesla, Apple, Microsoft Kinect, gaming companies, and IRobot. IRobot recently had a patent application published with the USPTO for a “Robot Confinement” system. This patent application US 20130103194 is directed towards confining a robot in a [...]

What is prosecution history estoppel? Prosecution history estoppel is the principle that statements used in communications between a patent attorney and a patent Examiner at the USPTO can and will be used against an Applicant if a patent is litigated. Patent history estoppel can be used against an Applicant to disavow claim scope through the [...]

Design choice rejections are rejections that an Examiner at the USPTO can make if the claimed invention merely includes “design choices” that are different from the prior art. However, even minor differences between acclaimed invention and prior art may be patentable. Patent law has held that in a proper obviousness determine, "whether the changes from [...]

Legalzoom or other legal companies that provide forms, templates, and other best practices documents that are a great resource for individuals and companies who desire legal protection at cheaper rates. In some circumstances, I do recommend people use Legalzoom for their legal needs, such as if they desire to have a simple will drafted, prenuptial [...]

There are several resources on the internet that are beneficial to patent attorneys, engineers, start-up companies, etc. that are new to patent law. I have included a link to each of the websites as well as a brief description of each website. References Beneficial to Start-Ups/Inventors New to Patents and/or Patent Law: 1.       IP WATCHDOG [...]

There are many differences between working at a larger patent prosecution firm (50+ lawyers, biglaw) and a small patent prosecution firm (1-3 lawyers, small law). Medium sized patent prosecution firms (10-30 patent lawyers) have many of the same issues as larger patent prosecution firms, just with clients with fewer demands for patents. Therefore, this blog [...]

Intellectual property rights are not vested in response to filing a patent application. By filing a patent application, a start-up company will receiving a filing date not patent rights. The filing date sets a cutoff date which any disclosures after cannot be used as prior art against the start-up during the process to be granted [...]