War-time Inventors Should Understand the Patents Laws
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How Inventors and Patentees are Affected by the 1942 Act Applying to the Patents and Designs Acts of Earlier•
Date
By
S. T. Madeley
T"passing of the end of the third year of our second world war finds us more and more turning to commercial motor Vehicles, yet we are to a greater degree hampered in our production of them through the calls made on
materials by munition work._ • We must, therefore, look increasingly • to our inventors.
Consequently„ the present is an appropriate time to consider how inventors and patentees of commercial vehicles are affected by the amendments applying to the Patents and Designs Act, by the Act of 1942, which is more particularly directed to Sections 18 (6), 29 and 91 of the old Act.
We know the ups and downs of the trade in our own country. It will be of interest to glance first at what has happened in the United States in the past 20 years or so. An accompanying table shows the annual numbers, as estimated by the writer, of the United States Patents relating to motor vehicles with five or more wheels and driven steering wheels, issued during the period 1920-41. '
Year. Patents. Year. Patents.
1920 s 1931 10
1921 5 1932 12 1 1933 6 12 923 6 1934 11 .1922 192.4 7 1935 TO
1925 a 1936 8
1926 9 1937 9
1927 a 1938 8
192.8 8 1939 10 1929 10 1940 10 1930 11 1941 14
The items against the period 1932-33 show the time-lag from the foregoing prosperous years.
A Typical U.S.A. Patentl Here is one representative example of the type of patent I have in mind.
United States Patent No. 2,267,562 (Higgins, assignor to the Four-Wheel Drive Auto Company, Cliftonville, Wisconsin). The vehicle has eight power-actuated rear wheels and two power-actuated front wheels. A driving-pinion set is combined with driven elements adapted for connection with the front and rear wheels, respectively. An operative connection of 1 to 4 between the elements is' provided by the pinion set. The front wheels of the vehicle are connected to the elements having the greater mechanical advantage.
Let us now consider United States patents more generally. They have several advantages. Their term is 17 years from the date of issue. They are not subject to annual fees, and they' are granted only after a wide novelty search and a thorough examination by the American Patent. Office . as to sufficiency and so on. However, they have the disadvantage that only Congress can extend their term. The cost of application and issue is about £12 at pre-war rates.
Canadian patents are similar, but the Appeal lies, to the Privy Council. -United Kingdom Patents have the advantage over the above in that they are extendable by the High Court, under Section 18 of ' the Acts. The limit is 10. years, under Section 18 (6) 1942, on the sole grounds of loss or damage due to war or hostilities—a great boon for, say, a chassis patent.
Section 9113 of the 1942 Act empowers the Comptroller, in" Convention " cases, to extend the time for . filing documents, paying fees, etc., where delay has arisen out of the war, say, for a vehicle-body patent. This is taken from the Patents, etc. (Emergency), Act, 1939, Section 6, which also, we may remember, covers the more general case of the "home grown" applicant.
By Section 91 (C) Applicants are protected where there has been an exchange of relevant information between contracting states.
While on the subject of the Emer gency Act, .let us not forget the Comptroller's powers" under sections 1 and 2 to revoke or vary or to grant an emergency licence, respectively, to a suitable non-enemy applicant under a patent owned by an enemy or an enemy subject. Section 4, we must remember, allows an enemy to apply for a patent under certain conditions (now n1uch restricted by the new Board of Trade licence) and keeps the Convention in force.
When we come to Section 29 of the 1942 Act, we find that the Government has not only wide powers as to the terms 'on which it would enter into a contract under a patent, which indeed it had under the old Act, but now has also well-defined rights as to disposal of surplus patented stock, Under the old Section, the Government had great latitude as to providing anticipatory material to invalidate a patent and so to control the bargaining for royalties. This is, of course, perpetuated. A patentee will not necessarily get a Government contract under his patent. In many Government contracts a contractor is not allowed to include an item for royalties, etc., in his account with the Government under a patent licence or agreement unless specifically agreed to beforehand; whilst his contract will relieve him of liability under such licence or agreement. Furthermore, he has to inform the Government of such licence or agreement and of any other patent or design he requires to use to carry out his contract.
Procedure if Disputes Arise In case of dispute the 'Government can always, under Section 29 (2), refer the question of. payment to the Court or to arbitration, which practic
• ally means to the end of the war. The Ministry Of Supply directs that all servants of the Crown may file patent applications "on their own," but must obtain permission from the heads of their departments before employing a patent agent.
Service men are still more strictly contfolled. King's Regulations, for example (1940 edition, appendix XX), compel a soldier after filing his application to send (in duplicate) to the War Office, through his Commanding Officer, copies of his specification, etc, whilst, by Section 6 he must get authority for employing a patent agent (which he should do or run seridus risks with his patent's value Sr validlty).
Obviously the Government is in, a strong position and an inventor should carefully study the relevant Acts and Regulations.
For our future's sake we must go on inventing and patenting. What we want is a sound post-war commission to make awards to inventors with no niggard hand.