ASSOULINE & BERLOWE
Pearson on Patents and Trademarks
Tips to Increase the Value of Your Intellectual Property
September 1, 2010- Vol 1, Issue 1
In This Issue
Supreme Court Rules on Business Methods
Featured Patent
Featured Trademark
A&B Opens Tampa Office
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Loren Donald Pearson
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Welcome to Pearson on Patents and Trademarks.   Every day I am asked questions about intellectual property.  Some are simple--what is the difference between (R), TM, and SM?  Some are complex--what is the impact of Bilsky on my business method patent?  The purpose of this weekly newsletter is to share my answers so that non-experts can increase the value of their intellectual property.   
US Supreme Courts Rules on Business Method Patents
 
US Supreme Court
US Supreme Court
In the Bilski case, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed that business methods can be the subject matter of patents.  The Court also affirmed the machine-or-transformation test as a way to qualify a business method as patentable subject matter.
 
Business method patents are a class of patents that disclose and claim new methods of doing business. This includes new types of e-commerce, insurance, banking, tax compliance, etc.
 
The machine-or-transformation qualifies a business method for patentability if it (1) is implemented with a particular machine, that is, one specifically devised and adapted to carry out the process in a way that is not concededly conventional and is not trivial; or else (2) transforms an article from one thing or state to another.  Although not fully compliant with the Supreme Court opinion, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Interim Guidelines on the machine-or-transformation test provide guidance.  Interestingly, the court held that this was not necessarily the only to show a patentable subject matter.  However, the court did not list any other way to show patentable subject matter. 
 
Contact Loren Pearson if you have any of these issues:
  • A unique way of doing business (i.e. a business method) that you need presented properly to the USPTO.
  • An issued business method patent with questionable validity in light of Bilsky.
  • A competitor with a business method patent that may no longer be valid.
Featured Patent--Zauner (US Patent No. 7,776,003)
U.S. Patent No. 7,776,003
Zauner 7776003
 
"You don't need to be a brain surgeon..."  But for this patent you do.  Dr. Alois Zauner is a neurosurgeon.  His research on diagnosing traumatized brain tissue lead to the invention of his, "Multimodal Catheter for Focal Brain Monitoring and Ventriculostomy."  The patent issued as US Patent No. 7,776,003.
 
This patent is great because the inventor discovered a trait of damaged brain tissue that impaired existing measurements and created a device that delivers improved diagnoses.  With good science as a foundation, the legal work of the patent becomes easy.
 
Working with inventors, especially physicians, who make medical devices that will benefit people is one of the most enjoyable parts of being a patent attorney.
Featured Trademark--UPTIME TECHNOLOGIES (U.S. Reg. No. 3,812,270)
 
Uptime Technologies
UPTIME TECHNOLOGIES
When an ongoing IT business decided to rebrand itself as Uptime Technologies, registering its trademark was an essential tool for protecting the entire brand.  When the owner considered the cost of logo design and creation, signage, websites, printed collateral, and advertising, the cost of the trademark became a no brainer.  The cost of the trademark was a fraction of the other expenses and protected the whole branding investment.
 
Assouline & Berlowe opens Tampa Office
 
Assouline & Berlowe, P.A. has opened a satellite office in Tampa Bay to represent clients in the Pinellas county and gulf regions. The address of the Tampa office is Grand Central Place, 442 West Kennedy Blvd., Suite 240, Tampa Bay, FL 33606. The telephone number is (813)600-1581.
 
Don't give away your business's most valuable asset.  Protect it's intellectual property.
 
For Patent Pending Pick Pearson!
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ASSOULINE & BERLOWE, P.A.
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Miami, FL 33133-5232
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TEL: (305)567-5576
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SKYPE: Loren.Donald.Pearson