The Innovative Lean Enterprise: Using the Principles of Lean to Create and Deliver Innovation to Customers by Sgroi Jr. Anthony

Author:Sgroi, Jr., Anthony
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Productivity Press
Published: 2013-09-02T14:00:00+00:00

106  ◾  The Innovative Lean Enterprise

Figure 6.1 Three-legged stool. (From Anthony Sgroi Jr.)

and leg elements of the claim, and then add the descriptive language that the legs are connected to the base for supporting the base. The claim may be incomplete if the descriptive language is missing. For example, the argument can be made that simply having a flat base and three legs does not provide enough information to describe the stool in its entirety.

Below is the example of a claim directed to a three-legged stool: Claim 1: A seating device, comprising:

a flat base, and

three legs supporting the flat base.

Barriers to Imitation  ◾  107

This claim covers any seating device containing a flat base and three legs; therefore, if another were to market a chair having a flat base and four legs connected to the flat base, this chair would infringe the stool since the chair has the flat base and at least three legs. If you recall, if a claim has elements A + B + C, a product having A + B + C + D would infringe the claim since a patent excludes others from A + B + C. Similarly, if a claim has elements A +

B + C + D + E, a product having A + B + C + D + E + F would infringe the claim, since a patent excludes others from A + B + C + D + E. In the case of claim 1, A is the flat base, B is leg 1, C is leg 2, D is leg 3, and E is the connection of the legs to the base. Therefore, a chair having four legs would infringe, as A is the flat base, B is leg 1, C is leg 2, D is leg 3, E is the connection of the legs to the base, and F is leg 4.

The goal of a good patent claim is to add enough information to define the invention over the prior art, but not too much information as to restrict the invention. We can see this in more detail with reference to claim 2

describing a four-legged chair with backrest, as shown in Figure 6.2.

Claim 2: A seating device, comprising:

a flat base,

a backrest connected to the flat base, and

four legs supporting the flat base in an elevated position.

In this example, a three-legged stool would not infringe this claim (claim 2) since the chair claim (claim 2) excludes others having a backrest and four legs. The stool contains fewer elements than claim 2, and thus does not infringe claim 2 of Figure 6.1.

Now in this case, claim 2 only covers chairs having four legs, a flat base, and a backrest connected to the flat base. Therefore, this claim is too descriptive, and it would be more beneficial if this claim could be written in a form to cover the three-legged stool as well. We can write a new claim that covers more potential infringing products for better protection for the patent owner.

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