A couple of weeks ago I posted that myself and four of my colleagues had signed up to the IP Inclusive Senior Leaders' Pledge. We individually signed up to the eight commitments, and within them more specific commitments. This week we were delighted to honour some of these commitments, as we hosted students from The Sutton Trust at a virtual three day placement introducing them to the world of patents, and IP in general. During their time with us the attendees took part in a variety of...
The European Patent Office (EPO) has recently released its new Statistics and Trends Centre, which is a free service that allows interactive and searchable access to the data held in the EPO’s Patent Index. The new Centre allows you to visually explore and compare statistics across 35 fields of technology for European patent applications originating from the 38 EPO member states as well as from other countries with 1000 or more annual European applications (according to the first applicant's...
We know that it is important for senior leaders to not only say they support diversity and inclusivity initiatives, but to take actions to support diversity and inclusivity initatives. IP Inclusive's Senior Leaders' Pledge is one way in which those in senior, decision-making roles can show their individual commitment to taking actions. Boult Wade Tennant is aiming to create an inclusive environment where people feel valued and respected, connected to the firm as well as to their colleagues....
The Unified Patent Court (UPC) reminds me of a soap opera story line where you are always wondering if two particular characters will ever get together - there are usually a few near misses and a couple of badly-timed interruptions by others. The same is true of the UPC. It felt like UPC implementation was on the horizon a few years ago, and then it was rudely interrupted by both Brexit and German constitutional challenges. The latest episode in the UPC saga has seen the German...
People unfamiliar with the Patent system are often surprised about how long it can take to obtain a Patent. It is not uncommon for Patents to be granted 7-10 years after they were first filed and in some cases, it can take even longer. In the last 10 years, the European Patent Office (EPO) has had a significant backlog of Patent applications. Although that backlog is starting to be reduced, if there is a reason to speed up a specific Patent application (or a group of Patent applications), the...
I came across an interesting article published by the IEEE about the work of Edmund Edward Fournier d’Albe, especially his inventions to turn visual media (especially text) into audio and potentially provide a useful tool to people with a visual impairment. He called his device an "optophone" and from the perspective of the 21st century, we know that his invention was never the success that he had presumably hoped it would become. The article does not mention Fournier d'Albe's patents,...
Boult Wade Tennant LLP were delighted to host a session of the virtual AIPLA Women in IP Global Networking Event on 4 May 2021. We were pleased to welcome guests to a discussion on: ‘Power, Privilege and Responsibility’, a key theme in Michelle Obama’s book ‘Becoming’ on which this year’s event was based. The session involved discussion around three key questions: What initiatives have you or your organisation taken to promote or encourage people to consider or enter the IP profession? If you...
In celebration of World Intellectual Property Day today, I would like to take this opportunity to recognise the incredible women we have in IP, and particularly the women at Boult Wade Tennant. We have an excellent gender balance at Boult and our women have achieved success in a number of ways, including being in senior positions within the firm as well as outside the firm in relevant organisations, and winning prizes for achieving the highest marks in their qualifying exams. I am proud to...
Over the last week, Colin the Caterpillar has received plenty of attention in the UK media, following the launch of a trademark action by elegant middle class retailer Marks and Spencer against budget end Aldi. Colin is a classic children's birthday cake, and Marks and Spencer are presumably unhappy about the rather similar Cuthbert caterpillar cakes sold by Aldi, and perhaps about the caterpillar cake offerings by several other supermarkets. My colleague Donna Trysburg has already provided...
Marks and Spencer confirmed late last week that it had initiated legal action in the High Court against Aldi in connection with Aldi's Cuthbert the Caterpillar cake. It is understood the claim alleges infringement of M&S trade marks for the word mark COLIN THE CATERPILLAR and for a two dimensional image of the Colin cake within its packaging, as well as passing off, which can protect the look and feel of a product or its 'get up'. It is true that there are many other chocolate caterpillar...
Congratulations to Boult Wade Tennant’s Jade Watt, who was recently awarded the UK drafting prize for the highest mark in the UK 2020 drafting exam (FD2). This follows Jade’s success in the amendments paper of 2019, for which she obtained the prize for the highest mark. Jade’s achievement follows a long line of success for Boult Wade Tennant’s candidates winning the UK drafting prize. Previously, Joanna Peak, Jo Pelly, Matthew Spencer and Daniel Weston were also awarded this prize. This means...
My career in modelling was brief, but glamorous, at least I thought so. My PhD involved modelling plasma physics and chemistry in the beautiful aurora borealis. I then moved on to simulate plankton and the ocean carbon cycle as part of the UK Government’s early efforts in climate change research. Luckily, good looks didn’t matter too much, and I got to do plasma physics, satellite remote sensing, and program a Cray supercomputer, all without going anywhere near a catwalk. So on becoming a...
I take an interest in what patents reveal about possible future technology, especially in the consumer technology and automotive spaces. Today I have one from the world of bikes. This US patent, granted last week to Shimano, shows a bike with wirelessly controllable electric suspension and seat positioning. Might that be the future? Changing suspension settings and seat position wirelessly enables straightforward adjustment without interruption. The patent also discusses other electric...
In recent weeks, the European Patent Office has published data showing that companies, particularly small and medium enterprises (SMEs), that own registered intellectual property were outperforming those which did not. There has also been coverage in Forbes of the 3Doodler 3D pen and how a proactive intellectual property filing strategy ended up saving the business. These articles show the benefits of registered intellectual property protection for small and medium businesses. The UKIPO...
Love him or hate him, Elon Musk is certainly a character who has brought dynamism and fun (dare I say comedy?) to technology in the early twenty first century. From selling flamethrowers to promote his Boring Company, which aims to build vacuum tube hyper-loop transport systems the length of California, to launching a Tesla roadster into orbit, there is rarely a dull month. However, naming his own role in Tesla last week as “Techno-king” (hyphen added here for style) might put him on course...
