Patent on Wireless Transfer of Pupil Data

hjayres writes: "London based Company Bromcom has a patent on 'wireless pupil data transfer' and is suing companies they feel have broken this patent. If a school wants to use the government grants available to reduce truancy by wireless linking pupil attendance records on PDAs and handhelds have to first pay Bromcom for the licence. Is this potentially more damaging than BT's Hyperlink scam? This also includes open source Learning Management Systems that are used over Wireless. The Patent applies in the USA."

Comments

Re:Greedy Corp Bully Robbing Schools of Grant$

[DrSkwid]

I think morse code kind of predates ethernet!

Airport

[Perdo]

Since my one of my schools has been using 3 airport base stations and numerous airport cards to exctend the lan into portable classrooms, I guess we are in violation of this patent. All the airport equipment cost under $3000 compared to over $10000 for the lowest bid to cable these classrooms that will be moved or ripped out by next summer because of permenant construction. Frankly, this company can go fork themselves.

This is potentially a direct attack on Apple since they have the greatest marketshare in schools and certainly pioneered 802.11b in the classroom.

When I first saw the headline...

[Dimwit]

When I first saw the headline, I thought it meant "pupil" as in "eye"...

And I though...I have to pay if I want wireless transmission of pupil data? So if I don't pay, what, do I have to jam fiber optics into both eyes?

Thoughts...

[JMZero]

I think patents should be about protecting specific ways of doing something. For example, you should be able to patent a "fork" but not "using a tool to get food to your mouth".

This patent is very much of the latter sort.

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Re:Thoughts...

[Yottabyte84]

I think patents should be about protecting specific ways of doing something. For example, you should be able to patent a "fork" but not "using a tool to get food to your mouth".

It's a matter of inovativeness. I should be able to patent, say, transmission of text data within a TV signal, but not using said data to, say, transmit tv listings for that channel.

This patent is roughly equivalant to patenting transmission of medical imagery over the internet.

Re:Thoughts...

[JMZero]

I don't think you should be able to patent "transmission of text data within a TV signal", but you should be able to patent the way you did it (and the specifics should be fairly narrow).

I think patents should be about protecting the work involved in researching and implementing a solution to a problem. You shouldn't be able to patent every solution to a problem. EG: you can patent your new photocopier that does this and this, but you can't patent the idea of making copies of paper documents. You can patent your compression algorithm. You can't patent "compressing video data using an algorithm".

Likely there's problems with this idea of patent law, I'd be obliged to hear anyone's thoughts...

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Re:Thoughts...

[Yottabyte84]

Hmm, I aggree with you. I wish I'd thought of that.

Re:Thoughts...

[JMZero]

You have basically pegged the way patent law actually is in the US. Their claims don't claim "transferring student data via RF", they claim something much narrower, namely their particular method of collecting and reporting student attendance data. Your examples of how it should be are actually the way the system is intended to work. Occasionally overbroad claims are patented, but that is why we have infringement suits and invalidation proceedings--to filter out the bad ones that make it through. If people want a better filter (i.e., better PTO), then give'em more money. Then they can hire PhDs and give them enough time to actually search the art carefully.

Sounds great - us Canadians just assume the US patent office must have dumb rules, as all we hear about are the dumb ones that get through.

I guess it's probably a harder job than we give them credit for, given the breadth of patentable work. Perhaps, as you say, more funding (or perhaps management reform?) is the answer.

Thanks.
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Routing

[isorox]

Dont send them over the internet, it might get routed via 801.11b, or even IP over Avian Carrier!

Re:Not exactly PDAs

[Yottabyte84]

its patent [delphion.com] relating to the transfer of pupil data in education by radio

PDAs and handhelds primarily use infrared which is different.

The only diffrence between the 2 is wavelength and frequency (which is only one thing since ethier one can be used to find the other). It's all just elecrtomagnetic radition.

Re:Greedy Corp Bully Robbing Schools of Grant$

[The Evil Beaver]

Still, if it's already in use, then you're not supposed to be able to patent it. If you apply for a patent and then start rolling it out (patent pending) that's okay, but if it's already in use as wide as it is now, for almost any length of time, then you can't go out and get a patent.

This is another scam. IMHO, the new BT.