What grace period do inventors have for testing their creations before applying for a patent? The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to tackle the question and is expected to make a decision next year. According to federal law, an inventor cannot get an enforceable patent on an invention that has been "on sale" in the United States for more than a year before application for a patent. But what does "on sale" mean? The law's text is not explicit. Lower courts have ruled that "on sale" can begin whenever an inventor seeks or receives a commercial offer for the invention. Supreme Court justices will attempt to clarify the meaning in the case of Pfaff vs. Wells Electronics. Inventor Wayne Pfaff of Dallas contends that Wells Electronics Inc. of South Bend, IN, infringed his patent on a socket to hold semiconductor chips during testing. The U.S.Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled against Pfaff, because he had applied for the patent a year and 11 days after receiving an order for 30,100 of the sockets.
We looked at a number of sources to determine this year's greenest cars, from KBB to automotive trade magazines to environmental organizations. These 14 cars emerged as being great at either stretching fuel or reducing carbon footprint.
Researchers at MIT and Sandia National Labs have observed a reaction in lithium-air batteries that could help improve the design of these cells for electric vehicles and other applications.
Healthcare might seem to be an unlikely target application for the Internet of Things technology, but recent developments show small ways that big-data is going to make an impact on patient care moving into the future.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 3
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is
To save this item to your list of favorite Design News content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This
3 
