USPTO Monthly Review - November 2018

Today’s topic, how does a country become more innovative, is an important one. As a preamble, I first believe that innovation is a critical component of a country’s development, and a key driver of job creation and economic growth. And second, I believe that IP is a necessary component for sustained innovation. But to understand what I think are some of the key ingredients of innovative success for the future, it’s worth taking a brief look at the past. And I particularly want to go back in time 125 years; back to 1893. This was a time when most of land transportation was still by horse and buggy; when there were no airplanes and no telephone systems to speak of. And this was a time when most of the world still had no electric power and this meeting would have most certainly been conducted by candlelight. It was at that time, over the course of six months in 1893, that more than 27 million people from around the world came to Chicago, when the United States hosted the World's Columbian Exposition — an astounding display of mechanical and cultural innovations.

Read the full remarks from Director Iancu.

Backed by our patent system came unprecedented development. For the American patent system democratized invention. Anyone could participate. No need to be friends with the Crown. No need to be wealthy or to have a patron or, frankly, any funds at all. Our founders purposefully ensured that our system would be open to all. Anyone could invent in America and everyone was incentivized by our constitutional patent system to do so. And incentivized they were. And invent they did. And the results have been remarkable.

Our constitutional patent system has given rise to a spark of ingenuity and development the magnitude of which humanity has never before known. Electricity and the telephone; the automobile and the airplane; recombinant DNA and DNA synthesis; the microprocessor, genetics and cancer treatments. And so much more. And all of it done with American patents.

Read the full remarks from Director Iancu.

On September 14, 1964, the freighter “Al Kuwait” capsized in the fresh-water harbor of Kuwait with a cargo of approximately 5,000 sheep on board. This was a very big deal to the residents of Kuwait because it happened right in the middle of their main source of water, and the idea of having thousands of decomposing carcasses in the water supply would make anyone concerned!

Obviously, the ship had to be raised in order to save the water supply, but nobody was sure how to do it quickly and without causing further damage. Bringing in cranes would have taken too long, and with such methods there is a significant risk that the ship would break. On top of it, a Danish company insured the ship, and they were on the hook for significant loss. So they asked an inventor named Karl Kroyer for assistance. Kroyer and his team came up with a method of raising the ship by filling it with buoyant balls fed into the ship through a tube. Did this crazy idea work? You bet it did!

Read the full remarks from Director Iancu.

Our commitment to customer service includes having a user friendly and valuable website. To that end, you may have noticed the USPTO.gov homepage has a new look and improved features. For starters, if you are one of the 20 percent of users who visit USPTO.gov on a mobile device you should find the homepage easier to read and navigate.

Of course, we didn’t stop at mobile compatibility. If you are an independent inventor, entrepreneur, or a junior attorney, our “New to IP” section is for you. It links to practical and important basic educational resources about the USPTO. For visitors who know exactly what they are looking for, we have expanded the “Quick Links” section and renamed it “Find it Fast.” This feature provides direct links to our most popular Patent and Trademark Tools. A “Find it Fast” button also appears at the top of every subpage.

Read the blog by Chris Shipp, Chief Communications Officer

To be a technology executive these days is both challenging and exhilarating. More and more, chief information officers (CIOs) and chief technology officers (CTOs) are shaping the technology agenda, driving new IT investments, and fine-tuning teams. With vast amounts of data and new digital tools, CIOs and CTOs are helping guide transformational change in the digital age.

It is no secret that diversity is essential for innovation. While progress continues on this front, a gender gap remains in the tech industry. Through initiatives and partnerships like All in Stem and Camp Invention, the USPTO encourages girls and young women to pursue STEM careers. I caught up with the USPTO’s Acting Deputy CIO Debbie Stephens to talk about what inspires her and some new items on the IT agenda.

Read the blog by Adrienne Cox, Office of the Chief Information Officer

The United States Patent and Trademark Office is one of those amazing places in government you may not be familiar with. The Patent Examining Corps, in particular, is filled with over 9,000 scientists, engineers and other professionals who labor every day to reward our nation’s drive for creativity and innovation and in turn contribute to the development of our economy.

I was born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico. At the urging of my parents, I decided to seek my college degree in the mainland U.S. where I obtained a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Florida Tech. I certainly did not know much about the Patent Office until they came to visit my school campus about 29 years ago. I signed up for an interview and shortly afterwards, got an offer. Getting a job at the USPTO was, of course, the first opportunity this agency would give me but it would not be the last. At that point, I knew one thing, I was heading to Washington D.C. to begin my career at the USPTO!

Read the blog by Nestor Ramirez, Technology Center Director

On October 11, as part of the USPTO Speaker Series, Director Iancu interviewed Dr. Lonnie Johnson, holder of more than 100 U.S. patents, spacecraft systems designer, energy innovator, and inventor of the Super Soaker®. Johnson worked on the stealth bomber program while serving in the U.S. Air Force. Later, he joined NASA as a nuclear engineer and earned awards for spacecraft system design. His Super Soaker® has received multiple industry awards, including Outdoor Toy of the Year.

Watch the recording of the event.

On October 8, the Elijah J. McCoy Midwest Regional Office, along with the USPTO’s Office of Education and Outreach participated in the CSforALL Expo and Summit. The CSforALL 2018 Summit is designed to amplify the work of stakeholders engaged in building K-12 computer science education in the U.S., both in and out of school. At the event, the Regional Director Damian Porcari presented the USPTO’s new inventor trading card to Luis von Ahn, founder of reCAPTCHA and co-founder and CEO of Duolingo.

Watch the recording of the summit.

USPTO Director Iancu tells AIPLA annual meeting: ‘It is a new day at the PTAB’
by Gene Quinn, IP Watchdog

Using Technology to Promote High-Quality Patents with the USPTO, MIT Media Lab, and Google
by Mark Chandler, Cisco Blogs

Nobel winner overcame personal loss, cancer, and being a woman
by Maggie Fox, NBC News

Final Rule Package: Phillips Standard to be Used by PTAB in IPR Claim Construction
by Dennis Crouch, PatentlyO

New Patent Office guidelines bolster intellectual property owners’ position
by Michael Rosen, American Enterprise Institute

Long live American ingenuity
by Andy Sherman, The Hill

Trademark Alert: Unauthorized Changes to Trademark Applications and Registrations
by Gene Quinn, IP Watchdog

Foreign Trademark Filers Soon May Need U.S. Lawyer
by Peter Leung, Bloomberg Law

Artificial Intelligence: Experts Tackle Challenges, Ethics — and What Is It, Anyway?
by Payton Potter, Dallas Innovates