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LQ Patent: Autism Awareness – Colorful Puzzle Pieces

March 11, 2013 by Leave a Comment
autism-ribbon

A few years ago I drove into a busy shopping center parking lot and notice many cars with magnetic ribbons on the back that looked like puzzle pieces.  It came to my attention that the colored puzzle pieces on the ribbon was for Autism Awareness.  Those colored puzzle pieces stuck in my mind for a long time as I contemplated how the shapes and colors related to Autism. After much thought I invested the colored puzzle pieces on the ribbon and what it meant.  According to the Autism Society, “The puzzle pattern of this ribbon reflects the mystery and complexity of autism.  The different colors and shapes … [Read more...]

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LQ Patent: What Sun Tzu and Aristotle Knew About Winning in Business and in Law

March 4, 2013 by Leave a Comment
aristotle

 Inescapably, business and law are war. As business lawyers, we help clients defend against wrongdoing, protect resources, and exploit legitimate opportunities for victory. The most basic principle of winning is simple, yet profound. Sun Tzu knew it in ancient times. So did Aristotle, 2300 years ago. Ignore it, and you invite disaster. Skillfully apply it, and you gain exceptional advantage. “Where you have strength, attack. Where there is weakness, defend.” This guidance is timeless. Heed it, and learn how its subtleties resonate through every legal and business situation you manage. By my definition, … [Read more...]

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LQ Patent: Can Your Patent Survive Two Bites at the Apple? Two Patent Portfolios Fall to the Two-Prong Defense Strategy

February 25, 2013 by Leave a Comment
apple-with-bite

Two recent Federal Circuit decisions point to the current score: 0 wins - 2 losses, for two patent owners.  In both cases, a successful reexamination defense successfully supports the defense against patent infringement litigation. Accused infringer Arkema is now feeling pretty good about that big hole that reexamination burned in Honeywell’s 1234YF environmentally-friendly automobile refrigerant portfolio.  Meanwhile, Google blew up Function Media’s (FM’s) patent claims directed to online advertising.  The above graphic tells the story about what a successful reexamination can do to a patent that has as … [Read more...]

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LQ Patent: Autism Awareness

February 14, 2013 by Leave a Comment
rainbow

Through the years there are certain news events that people remember such as Pearl Harbor, 9/11, and most recently the Massacre in Sandy Hook.  Having been a teacher in a classroom, my thoughts went quickly to the terror, fear, and quick reactions that teachers had to shield the children.  In the past weeks stories have emerged about a boy and his friends that ran to a neighbors’ house to escape and the girl who played dead in the classroom; office personnel using the intercom system to alert classrooms along with the principal lunging toward the shooter and teachers shielding children with their own bodies.  … [Read more...]

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LQ Patent: When Should Inventors Call In The Engineer? 3 Power Tips to Successful Product Inventions

February 7, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Engineer

In the process of taking an invention from concept to market-ready product, an inventor is often faced with the decision of when to enlist outside help with their design. There are several reasons why engaging a competent engineering company can be critical to the success or failure of a product. First, the right engineering company will know how to use the best tools to formalize sketches and hand drawings into concise designs. Using computer-aid design (CAD) software, engineers can create 3D virtual models of the design.  Not only does the CAD model help the inventor see all the details of their product, but it … [Read more...]

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LQ Patent: How Compuserve Saves Newegg From Being Scrambled, The power of Non-Patent Literature (NPL)

January 30, 2013 by Leave a Comment
scrambled-eggs

In my experience, successful defenses to patent infringement often leverage a potent yet under-appreciated class of prior art we refer to as NPL (Non-Patent literature).  My sense is that NPL is frequently overlooked and under-utilized because it takes more effort, creativity, and an appreciation of technology history.  However, the benefits of finding the right NPL for your business can greatly outweigh the costs.  The consequences of failure to properly search and consider NPL frequently leads to misleading prior art search results, which translate into inappropriate investment in patent applications, over-paying … [Read more...]

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Featured Guest Contributor Article: Avoid Interrupted Sleep with the Activator Method of Chiropractic Medicine

December 11, 2012 by Leave a Comment
doctor

Approximately 50% of my patients 50 years old or older wake up multiple times during the night to go to the bathroom.  Most have been told it is due to their age.  The truth is there is a very effective, quick, painless, inexpensive, and drug-free chiropractic treatment called the Activator Method that has excellent results in reducing the number of times patients have to get up at night.  Many patients can quickly reach the point where they are sleeping through the night! Urinary urgency and frequency is a very common condition affecting a large number of people.  Urinary urgency and frequency can occur at any … [Read more...]

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LQ Patent: The Patent Bargain: It is just a matter of (anti-) trust?

December 4, 2012 by Leave a Comment
head-lightbulb-inside

Patents are a form of property, and in today’s technological world, patents can be quite valuable property indeed.  Society has long encouraged ingenuity.  The age old bargain goes as follows.  Government will grant a temporary monopoly to an individual if the individual will reveal his invention publicly (in the form of a patent disclosure).  Society benefits from such an arrangement because other technologists in related fields will learn how to manufacture the patented invention.  Some technologists will invent better ways to accomplish the patented invention’s goals by offering improvements to the … [Read more...]

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Austism Awareness: American Spirit

November 21, 2012 by Leave a Comment
row-of-USFlags

As the presidential election nears, the American Spirit is in the crisp air.  The children love to point out the American Flag as we drive through the roadways and we have spotted some American Eagles too! This past weekend our family had the pleasure of raking the crunchy fall leaves at the Fort Snelling National Cemetery as part of a service project with a group called The American Heritage Girls. American Heritage Girls have been around since the mid 1990’s and is endorsed by the Boy Scouts of America. The girls work for badges doing a variety of activities as a group and individually. The group does service … [Read more...]

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Featured Guest Contributor Article: Getting Electronic Based Products Ready for Production

November 14, 2012 by Leave a Comment
construction-workers

If you have a great idea and are looking forward to bringing it to the marketplace, there are several steps an engineering firm will need to take to help you get your product ready to be sold.  These steps are defined below. With incomplete accomplishment of any of these steps, the likelihood of failures in function, production, or field operation becomes more likely.  So let's look at each of the steps: Definition Phase It is imperative to have a summary document that discusses your idea and how you see it implemented.  The discussion needs to include operation and function, how the user interfaces with the … [Read more...]

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