Post by mirium on Sept 6, 2009 16:32:00 GMT -5
Ran across an article that was annoyed with Congress (what else is new?) for not giving the Patent Office enough money (okay, that's unusual) to hire competent patent examiners. One example given was Patent 6,329,919, "System and Method for Providing Reservations for Restroom Use"especially on airplanes. It belonged to IBM -- a company known to have a keen interest in waste management. Here's the patent (it takes a while to load): patimg1.uspto.gov/.piw?Docid=06329919&homeurl=http%3A%2F%2Fpatft1.uspto.gov%2Fnetacgi%2Fnph-Parser%3FSect1%3DPTO1%2526Sect2%3DHITOFF%2526d%3DPALL%2526p%3D1%2526u%3D%25252Fnetahtml%25252FPTO%25252Fsrchnum.htm%2526r%3D1%2526f%3DG%2526l%3D50%2526s1%3D6329919.PN.%2526OS%3DPN%2F6329919%2526RS%3DPN%2F6329919&PageNum=&Rtype=&SectionNum=&idkey=NONE&Input=View+first+page
(You use the gold dots at the left to go to the next page, there's arrows on them if you look hard enough.) The guy particularly liked Figure 3B, which demonstrates how first class passengers and frequent flyers jump to the front of the line and, as he put it, "The rest of you, whether aged, infant or infirm, just have to hold it in."
The Patent Office, to its credit, said "wait a minute..." on its own initiative after the patent issued and told IBM they were going to think this one over again, and IBM withdrew the application.
Not that weird patents are new. Andrew Jackson, the guy on our money, invented Eye Protectors for Chickens. www.colitz.com/site/730918/730918.htm Horatio Caine, eat your heart out.
(You use the gold dots at the left to go to the next page, there's arrows on them if you look hard enough.) The guy particularly liked Figure 3B, which demonstrates how first class passengers and frequent flyers jump to the front of the line and, as he put it, "The rest of you, whether aged, infant or infirm, just have to hold it in."
The Patent Office, to its credit, said "wait a minute..." on its own initiative after the patent issued and told IBM they were going to think this one over again, and IBM withdrew the application.
Not that weird patents are new. Andrew Jackson, the guy on our money, invented Eye Protectors for Chickens. www.colitz.com/site/730918/730918.htm Horatio Caine, eat your heart out.