Relative to your design, assuming it would pass the obviousness test
(or that is, passes because no-one is going down this road and it was
obvious they knew it was there), you could get a patent on it, if no
one, otherwise, had filed for such in any country. OK, I'm not a
lawyer, and I'm explaining this from the view point of a "common man"
who has been involved in patents.

Some time ago, I filed the paperwork for a patent involving the
coupling of more than one DC power generation unit (don't confuse
this with Generators vs. Alternators) to a common workload. Because I
was doing something incredibly simple, almost text book, I was able
to defeat an argument before it was raised by stating in my paperwork
that everyone trying this was going after very complex circuitry when
diodes would solve the problem of "Kirchhoff's law" and back flow of
current through the parallel generation units.

I abandoned this patent when I found that in the EAA chapter where I
was in TX, two different builders had done this without knowing that
other people were ignoring the simplicity....

What I was after was being able to have two or more
generators/alternators (any combination) of the same "power band"
(e.g., 12-14VDC, 24-28VDC, etc.) be able to power a load and have one
of the units fail and the other automatically pick up the load w/o a
pilot having to do anything. My thinking was, you lose an engine in a
multi-engine aircraft and you don't really want to be dealing with
rudder, throttles, props, and mixture along with flipping switches
for power.

This could also be an issue for emergency vehicles, fishing vessels,
etc. People dealing with a dead alternator/generator need the lights
in the dash to work while the other equipment is functioning (many
truck bed platforms have the original electrical wiring with
additional wiring for a HPO Alternator to drive pumps, lights, etc.,
and being able to handle the original power system's needs if that
alternator dies, would be nice...).

Back to the EAA guys: I could not go forward because their aircraft
were flying with this circuitry that predated my initial filing by
about 3 years. And my paperwork did what I really intended -- made
this non-patentable (this should have been done in the early '70s
with silicon diodes...)

So, I mentioned this so that you might want to do the research on
your "invention" and see if anyone has done the thing you are doing.
You may find that in your claims you have to be quite specific,
rather than being generic with multiple "sub-claims".

Again, I'm not a IP attorney, don't play one on TV and did not stay
in whatever that hotel/motel is that they talk about. Lastly, YMMV.

Regards, Steve Thompson


As with any legal matter, consult with an attorney who is qualified
and experienced with the specific field of practice you are dealing
with.

Also, be aware that if you have signed an IP (Intellectual Property)
agreement with your employer they may lay claim to your patent even
if it was not directly related to your work. Again, talk with an
attorney.

While we might have contempt for those that commit that occupation, a
good one looking out for YOUR interests is worth his weight in gold.
Unfortunately he'll bill you his weight in platinum!

Regards to All (even the attorneys on this list server), Brad Chubb


I have given disclosures to companies such as IBM before being
hired. NEVER heard from IBM legal about it. So they couldn't lay
claim to things I developed on the side. They could only assert a
claim on things they had me work on for them -- which is only
reasonable as an employee.

And now, we return you to your regularly scheduled work, hobbies,
and life.

Regards,
Steve Thompson


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