Patents Archives

USPTO Examination Procedure: An Overview

Once the United States patent application is filed, prosecution proceeds back-and-forth between the applicants and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). All applications that are received in the USPTO are numbered in sequential order and an Official Filing Receipt is issued. Within 18 months from the date of filing, the non-provisional application gets published. Examination of the patent application mainly consists of detailed study of the application for compliance with the legal requirements, and a search through U.S…

November 12, 2015 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, Patents 0Comment 719Views 0Like

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Hedy Lamarr and the Secret Communication System

Google Doodle paid tribute to a special lady on the 9th of November, 2015, on the eve of her 101st birth anniversary. It was none other than Hedy Lamarr, who is remembered for her on-screen as well as off-screen contributions. Hedy became famous for her controversial love-making scene in the Czech film Ecstasy, before becoming a Hollywood star, a successful career that extents from late 1930s to 1950s. I don’t really know how many of you have watched her movies,…

November 11, 2015 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, Patents 0Comment 1184Views 0Like

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Let’s keep that a secret, shall we?

Trade secrets have been in practice since long and are very different from patents. While patents require you to disclose your information in the application process that eventually becomes public, trade secrets allow you to actively keep the information secret. The protection from patents is limited (20 years) and demands a considerable budget to maintain the patent. However, after 20 years the invention is open to public use. Trade secret protection can potentially last longer, as long as you are able…

November 11, 2015 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, Patents, Trade Secrets 0Comment 720Views 0Like

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Social Media and Intellectual Property (IP): Part I- Protection and Ownership

Social Media comes with a bundle of tools that differentiate it from traditional print and electronic media. Among others, two unique elements of Social Media are: Tools for sharing and dissemination of content and information across the world; and tools to communicate and exchange information. These two elements make Social Media a much more powerful weapon than traditional media. Access to most social media platforms requires internet, of which there is no dearth in today's context. It is estimated that…

November 11, 2015 BananaIP Reporter Copyrights, Intellectual Property, Media and Entertainment Law, Patents, Social Media Law, Trade Secrets 0Comment 2916Views 0Like

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Cracker these Patents and have a Happy Diwali!

Diwali - the festival of lights, is one of the most brightest and sacred festivals in India. The festival transcends religion, especially when it comes to crackers and lamps! This day symbolizes the victory of spiritual goodness over darkness. There are many theories associated with Diwali such as the rising of Goddess Lakshmi from the sea, the happy return of Lord Rama to Ayodhya after 14 years of exile, killing of Narkasura by Lord Vishnu, birth of Goddess Kali and…

November 11, 2015 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, Patents 0Comment 1033Views 0Like

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VPATAPP – An Android based app for patent professionals

An android based mobile application called “VPATAPP” was launched in the third week of October. The app aggregates patent-related information and can be downloaded free of cost from the Android Playstore About the app: VPATAPP is a simple tool, which acts as a repository of all patents-related links and information, from around the world. Currently the app has only patent related resources. However, subsequent version may feature other forms of IP. This app has been designed primarily for patent professionals,…

November 7, 2015 BananaIP Reporter Patents 0Comment 753Views 0Like

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Simple Strategies to Fight your Filing Blues

We all know one can never enjoy something that one does not have. It is literally true in case of patents. Patent rights are territorial in nature and can only be enjoyed in countries where one has filed an application for patent protection. The most common question that floods any patent applicants mind is whether they should file for patent protection outside the native country. If the answer is yes, how should they do it and where should they do…

November 6, 2015 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, Patents 0Comment 582Views 0Like

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Erotic Patents – Sex Patents II

Following the earlier post in the series - Sex Patents 1, we bring to our readers a series of patents applied and granted, primarily in USA, with respect to love making, sex and eroticism. Please do not try them without appropriate research. All patents are not necessarily workable without due experimentation. Sex, Consent, Patents Consent is everything in sex. Here is a patent that enables one to capture consent before having sex. A device to record evidence of consent given by…

November 6, 2015 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, Patents 0Comment 1205Views 0Like

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The times, they are a-changin’

In a previous post, we informed our readers about the new, draft patent rules that have been proposed by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Government of India. The preceding post by Ms. Nisha Kurian presented an analysis of the proposed rules and sought to answer the question, if all measures to accelerate the patent registration process had been explored by the DIPP through these rules. While the proposed draft patent rules are likely to become effective from…

November 6, 2015 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, Patents 0Comment 588Views 0Like

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DIPP Draft Patent Rules

There has been a lot of commotion and discussion regarding the recent DIPP proposed amendment to the Patent Rules, 2003. To any agonized patent applicant, these suggested amendments are a relief from the tardy process of awaiting examination and grant for an application which in toto approximately takes 6-7 years. The entire process delays the enjoyment of the monopolistic right offered by a patent. Thus, the number of years that an applicant enjoys his patent right gets significantly reduced and…