"The balloons typically hover at about 100,000 feet for about 24 hours."
Actually not quite...
The balloon flights actually only last about two hours and then the balloons break. In fact the balloon flights in question are done world wide at 0000 and 1200 UCT (Used to be GMT). They record temperature, humidty, air pressure and by triangulating from the ground tracking antenna you can calculate upper level winds.
I'm actually being generous with the length of flight. The time of year has a lot to do with the length of flight. The calculated height of the flight is related very much to the air pressure and for a flight to be valid it generally must be below 100 millibars. (The higher the balloon the lower the millibar reading). A flight reaching 3 millibars is around 120,000 ft. Summer flights usually have balloon bursts below 15 millibars. In winter early bursts, above 100 millibars, can require a second release, provided it happens within a given time window. The weather instrument package is called a radiosonde. Two types of upper air balloon a generally used for launching off the surface. For calmer winds a soft cheap latex balloon called a Kaysam is used and for adverse wind conditions or launch from a ship at sea a severe weather balloon called a Totex is used. (Totex is more rugged and more expensive)
They say they plan to hitch a ride on the existing balloons. The short duration is going to be a problem. The balloons expand as they rise and then go BOOM
I worked as an Aerological Observer for Environment Canada at a variety of Arctic Weather stations for about six years sending these suckers up there! There are long duration high altitude balloons out there, but the upper air program the article refers to doesn't use them, and the balloon shown in the photograph is of the variety to quickly put a few "holes" in the flight duration claim!
1. Send cease and disist letters on behalf of PanIP to Microsoft, Sun, Adobe, Ebay, etc. drawing their legal department's attention to the PanIp web page.
2. Contact your congressman, state senator etc. Give them something to champion.
3. Send info to the big networks and cable news services. (You might also want to include them in step 1)
4. Contact the small business lobby groups and if your not already a member join and then have them sue both PanIP and the Patent Office. PanIP for conspiracy to commit fraud and the Patent Office for gross negligence. (There is plenty of documentation in the public domain about who invented the web, SGML, HTML, HTML forms, etc. to prove that the patent office didn't exercise proper due diligance when granting the patent or that PanIP knowingly witheld information showing that PanIP did in fact not invent what they claimed to have invented.)
5. Find out who the principals of PanIP are and send out inflamtory demands on their behalf to the hacking community.
6. Find out where PanIP's offices are and then you and your friends can "injure" yourself on their premises. There are a lot of injury lawyers who will take your case for a cut of the insurance money. Then use the insurance claim to fund your countersuit.
7. Contact the FBI etc. because as far as you and your collegues have discovered, they are a front for the Al Quaida terrorism network. (Well, dont you feel terrorized!)
Bottom line is not to be intimidated. I have been on both sides of lawsuits and the onus is still on the plaintiff. Make them prove they invented the technology and that their patent was not obtained fraudulently "to the strictest proof thereof"! Don't worry about cost. Get creative and start up a legal fund. I'm sure there will be enough industry interest to drum up support. ALWAYS COUNTERSUE!
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Actually not quite...
The balloon flights actually only last about two hours and then the balloons break. In fact the balloon flights in question are done world wide at 0000 and 1200 UCT (Used to be GMT). They record temperature, humidty, air pressure and by triangulating from the ground tracking antenna you can calculate upper level winds.
I'm actually being generous with the length of flight. The time of year has a lot to do with the length of flight. The calculated height of the flight is related very much to the air pressure and for a flight to be valid it generally must be below 100 millibars. (The higher the balloon the lower the millibar reading). A flight reaching 3 millibars is around 120,000 ft. Summer flights usually have balloon bursts below 15 millibars. In winter early bursts, above 100 millibars, can require a second release, provided it happens within a given time window. The weather instrument package is called a radiosonde. Two types of upper air balloon a generally used for launching off the surface. For calmer winds a soft cheap latex balloon called a Kaysam is used and for adverse wind conditions or launch from a ship at sea a severe weather balloon called a Totex is used. (Totex is more rugged and more expensive)
They say they plan to hitch a ride on the existing balloons. The short duration is going to be a problem. The balloons expand as they rise and then go BOOM
I worked as an Aerological Observer for Environment Canada at a variety of Arctic Weather stations for about six years sending these suckers up there! There are long duration high altitude balloons out there, but the upper air program the article refers to doesn't use them, and the balloon shown in the photograph is of the variety to quickly put a few "holes" in the flight duration claim!
Watch the investor's money go BOOM!
1. Send cease and disist letters on behalf of PanIP to Microsoft, Sun, Adobe, Ebay, etc. drawing their legal department's attention to the PanIp web page. 2. Contact your congressman, state senator etc. Give them something to champion. 3. Send info to the big networks and cable news services. (You might also want to include them in step 1) 4. Contact the small business lobby groups and if your not already a member join and then have them sue both PanIP and the Patent Office. PanIP for conspiracy to commit fraud and the Patent Office for gross negligence. (There is plenty of documentation in the public domain about who invented the web, SGML, HTML, HTML forms, etc. to prove that the patent office didn't exercise proper due diligance when granting the patent or that PanIP knowingly witheld information showing that PanIP did in fact not invent what they claimed to have invented.) 5. Find out who the principals of PanIP are and send out inflamtory demands on their behalf to the hacking community. 6. Find out where PanIP's offices are and then you and your friends can "injure" yourself on their premises. There are a lot of injury lawyers who will take your case for a cut of the insurance money. Then use the insurance claim to fund your countersuit. 7. Contact the FBI etc. because as far as you and your collegues have discovered, they are a front for the Al Quaida terrorism network. (Well, dont you feel terrorized!) Bottom line is not to be intimidated. I have been on both sides of lawsuits and the onus is still on the plaintiff. Make them prove they invented the technology and that their patent was not obtained fraudulently "to the strictest proof thereof"! Don't worry about cost. Get creative and start up a legal fund. I'm sure there will be enough industry interest to drum up support. ALWAYS COUNTERSUE!