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Patent Examiners Flee USPTO
john-da-luthrun writes "Soaring numbers of patent applications for software and business processes is not only leading to the ludicrous patents for the likes of Amazon and Microsoft. The stress of dealing with vast numbers of applications is leading to an exodus of patent examiners from the USPTO, reports FCW.com. A US Government Accountability Office report (PDF) says that the USPTO has made progress in hiring examiners, 'but challenges to retention remain'. The IP Kat blog quotes Jason Schulz of the EFF, who comments that 'The incredible surge of patent applications, especially in the software and internet business method arena, is just crushing them, and the management problems are rising to the surface with greater visibility for those reasons. Where anything under the sun is patentable, it puts an unbelievable amount of pressure on the patent office'."
Some suggestions to help ease the tensions over at the USPTO:
Hope this helps.
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~ |rip/\/\aster /\/\onkey
My friend just took a job there. Priceless!
(Yes, I realize you can't patent an instance of an object, especially a celestial object. If you're the type of person constantly pointing out flaws in other people's jokes, I'll bet you don't get invited to a lot of parties.)
"Live as if you'll die tomorrow." Ridiculous. You could die later today.
Careful what you ask for. Look around at the people you work with... Do you really want Naked Fridays? - Tiki
Just pounding the rubber stamp on any piece of paper that comes into your office sounds like the easiest job on the face of the earth.
1. Send one million rubber stamps maked "approved" to India
2. Ship all the applications to India
3. Stamp Away!
Also,
I've been dying for someone to "hack" the patent system and using different words patent the same idea twice (or have two people approved for the same idea).
meh
The USPTO management is not concerned about the loss of human examiners. Trials of their new Pitney Bowes Stampmaster 5000-EX have shown that a fully automated application processing machine can rubber-stamp applications at a rate exceeding that of 1800 human examiners using old-fashioned hand stamps and inkpads. Current plans call for phasing out the examiners completely over the coming months.
"Microsoft has received a patent for Communications. We are now no longer
allowed to communicate without a license."
There is a commotion outside.
"What's that sound?"
The door explodes inward and the room is immediately filled with smoke and
overrun with stormtroopers.
A large and ominous voice booms out.
"You are forbidden to communicate."
I am stunned! I don't know what to think!
Then just as suddenly the first wave of stormtroopers are felled, one by one in
an unimaginably short flash of time.
"Don't know what to think a voice says?"
I look up and see Jeff Brazos towering above the carnage.
"That's fine by me. I just patented Thought!"
"Can there be a Klein bottle that is an efficient and effective beer pitcher?"
Here's your chance to get employed at a place that can use your skills and can't outsource your job that easily.
You can't talk about Wikipedia's flaws on Wikipedia
Where anything under the sun is patentable, it puts an unbelievable amount of pressure on the patent office
That's it! Patent the Sun! Such a method of gigantic energy transfer must be patentable, since it is so unique and original.
there are patent applications coming into the USPTO in torrents
They're using BitTorrent to upload patent applications now? Cool!
"Little does he know, but there is no 'I' in 'Idiot'!"
Who decides what is a reasonable period time?
This is an easy one for Congress: Just copy the "reasonable time" limit from the copyright laws.
So you'll have to produce a working model within 70 years of your death.
Those who do study history are doomed to stand helplessly by while everyone else repeats it.