There is no reason in principle to exclude claims to computer programs from patentability under Art.52 where the claims to a method performed by running a suitably programmed computer or to a computer program to carry out the method are allowable. The question in each case is whether the technical effect produced by the invention … Continue reading Astron Clinica Ltd and others v The Comptroller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks: PatC 25 Jan 2008

The applicant sought patents for systems of document management. The applications had been rejected as being for computer programs as such. Held: The exclusion from protection created by the section was to be construed narrowly. In the absence of non-mental limitations, the product should not be excluded. Judges: Floyd J Citations: [2008] EWHC 649 (Pat), … Continue reading Kapur v Comptroller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks: PatC 10 Apr 2008

Appeal from refusal of patent under section 1(2)(c) Judges: Mann J Citations: [2006] EWHC 705 (Pat) Links: Bailii Statutes: Patents Act 1977 97 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Intellectual Property Updated: 01 February 2022; Ref: scu.380358

The inventor company appealed against rejection of its application for a patent for a computer program. Held: The appeal failed: ‘on the facts found by the Hearing Officer, the invention is no more than the computerisation of a process which could already be done without a computer. It has no relevant technical effect. Accordingly, the … Continue reading Lantana Ltd v The Comptroller General of Patents, Design and Trade Marks: CA 13 Nov 2014

Appeal from refusal of patent as a method for doing business and a program for a computer, as such. . .

Appeal from exclusion of patentability . .

IPO The application concerns game playing services in game machines, such as slot machines or video poker games. The thrust of the application is to enable game patrons to recover left-amounts which may arise from transactions involving different currencies. This is facilitated by software in the game machine’s logic modules. These left-over amounts can be … Continue reading IGT (Patent) O/140/13: IPO 27 Mar 2013

IPO The application relates to retrieving data from a remote computer using e-mail. A local computer sends a first e-mail containing machine-readable retrieval criteria and the remote computer responds with an e-mail containing the requested data. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within … Continue reading Lantana Ltd (Patent): IPO 4 Feb 2013

The application related to method of storing data in a computer. The method relied on de-duplication of the data such that only one copy of the data is stored. If an attempt is made to store a further copy of the same data then instead of storing that same data again, a pointer to the … Continue reading Quantum Corporation (Patent): IPO 14 Nov 2012

ICO The application relates to a method of providing a financial ‘risk score’ within the authorisation process of a wireless financial transaction. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely within excluded matter. He also considered the Court of Appeal decision in Symbian and concluded … Continue reading Bank of America Corporation (Patent): IPO 4 Oct 2012

IPO This application relates to a method and arrangement for investigating an unknown calling party that has sent a communication request to a called party, in order to provide information on the relationship between the calling party and the called party. The called party can then use this information to decide whether to accept the … Continue reading Telefonakiebolaget LM Ericsson (Patent): IPO 2 May 2012

IPO Excluded fields (refused) – The application relates to a method of retrieving financial information stored in a first database by using a second database, which contains data referencing the first database, as a dictionary or index. The Hearing Officer applied the Aerotel/Macrossan test and decided that the contribution made by the invention fell solely … Continue reading Bank of America Corporation (Patent): IPO 9 May 2012

IPO Excluded fields (refused), Inventive step – The invention relates to a computer-controlled system for ordering food and/or drink in a restaurant in which a projector mounted above the dining table is used to project plate shaped images of the actual food which can be ordered onto the surface of the table where customers are … Continue reading Compurants Ltd (Patent) O/187/12: IPO 4 May 2012

IPO The application relates to a method of predicting the behaviour of a process using a computer program. It was accepted that predicting the behaviour of a process is excluded under section 1(2) as being a computer program as such, unless the prediction is used for control or diagnostic purposes. Amendments to the claims were … Continue reading General Electric Company (Patent): IPO 20 Jan 2012

IPO The invention relates to a process control safety system and in particular to a method and apparatus for generating a script for use in writing data in a process control safety system. The claims address the interface provided to the user when changes to safety systems are required. A script is automatically generated as … Continue reading Fisher-Rosemount Systems Inc (Patent): IPO 10 Sep 2009

IPO The application relates to a computer-controlled interactive food and/or drink ordering system for direct use by a customer where the prices are varied according to demand. It is known for restaurants and bars to vary the prices of food and/or drink. For example, the application refers to a ‘happy hour’ as a time when … Continue reading Compurants Ltd (Patent) O/282/11: IPO 11 Aug 2011

IPO The application relates to a computer-controlled interactive food and/or drink ordering system that can generate and print the bill at the request of the customer. In conventional restaurants, when requesting a bill, customers usually need to attract a waiter which can take some time to do. There may also be a further delay before … Continue reading Compurants Ltd (Patent) O/284/11: IPO 11 Aug 2011

IPO The application relates to a computer-controlled interactive food and/or drink ordering system that can prompt a customer to place an order. In conventional restaurants, a waiter will present a customer with a menu and then return a few minutes later to take his order. On some occasions, the customer may not have made up … Continue reading Compurants Ltd (Patent) O/283/11: IPO 11 Aug 2011

IPO The application is concerned with a computer-implemented system and method for supply chain planning in which the user is provided with a visual representation of the supply chain network and a high level plan display. These are interactive and the user can switch between them – for example to determine the effect of a … Continue reading I2 Technologies US, Inc (Patent): IPO 7 Dec 2010

IPO The invention relates to the simulation and testing of programmable devices and associated programs designed to run thereon. Modelling the device and associated programs in this way helps to identify potential problems early on in the development life-cycle so that they can be overcome relatively easily and inexpensively by modification of the original design. … Continue reading Arm Limited (Patent): IPO 1 Feb 2010

IPO The invention concerns the ranking of Internet search results in the context of mobile phone access to Internet content with content providers paying to improve their position in the ranking of search results. The invention takes into account the quantity of data to be transmitted, the cost of transmission and the payment offered by … Continue reading Cvon Innovations Ltd (Patent): IPO 28 Jul 2008

IPO The invention provided, in a brokerage system which allowed a user to obtain digital content from third party providers via a networked system, a means to store information about the functionality and capability of one or more devices held by the user and supply the information to the provider so that the provider could … Continue reading ATT Knowledge Ventures, LP (Patent): IPO 2 Jul 2008

IPO The invention related to a gaming apparatus and method in which 2D image data was converted into a 3D video image and displayed on a non-planar 3D screen. The examiner had objected that the contribution of the invention was excluded under the above categories, but (although it was not apparent from the specification as … Continue reading IGT (Patent) O/149/08: IPO 23 May 2008

IPO The application related to a new way of providing a bonus when playing a gaming machine. Applying the Aerotel test the hearing officer held that, irrespective of whether the invention was claimed as a method of operating a gaming device or as the device itself, the contribution was a way of playing a game … Continue reading IGT (Patent) O/068/08: IPO 5 Mar 2008

Excluded fields (refused) – The application relates to apparatus and a method for processing payments between a business software system and a payment processor. More specifically it provides an intermediate payment processor that interfaces between the business system software and the payment processors and permits a business software system to be upgraded to support additional … Continue reading Everest Software Inc (Patent): IPO 18 Jan 2008

IPO The application relates to a method of enabling an application running on an operating system on a portable computing device to access files stored on removable storage medium. Memory on different devices is typically managed according to different directory structures. In practice, this means that a file request from a device running on one … Continue reading Symbian Ltd (Patent): IPO 20 Aug 2007

IPO The application relates to a method of operating a computing device to access data held in a dynamic link library (DLL) which has two parts, each part containing a number of functions. In operation, an executable program directly links to the functions in the first part through the ordinal numbers. To access the functions … Continue reading Symbian Ltd (Patent): IPO 30 Jul 2007

IPO The application is concerned with games such as poker in which a combination of cards makes up a winning hand, or slot machine symbols making a winning row. In the card variant, certain cards have associated with them other, different, cards; for example the seven of hearts could be associated with the ace of … Continue reading IGT (Patent) O/198/07: IPO 16 Jul 2007

IPO All three applications (which were unrelated) related to ways of determining the awards and bonuses to be paid to players of gaming machines, and were refused. Applying the four-step Aerotel/Macrossan test in the light of the recent judgments in Oneida Indian Nation and IGT( [2007] EWHC 0954, 1341) the hearing officer held that, irrespective … Continue reading IGT (Patent) O/184/07: IPO 4 Jul 2007

IPO The application is concerned with a method of operating gaming machines in which players are offered games in which they can exercise a level of skill, strategy or risk. A proportion of the award (whether won or lost) from this play is fed into a steadily increasing jackpot, and the player is then able … Continue reading IGT (Patent) O/167/07: IPO 13 Jun 2007

IPO In a computer networked system for monitoring gaming machines and tables in a casino, information on player activity is sent to casino employees on portable handheld computers linked to the system allowing them to monitor play, identify the location of players and make awards of free games, goods or services. The contribution was assessed, … Continue reading IGT (Patent) O/120/07: IPO 9 May 2007

IPO This application relates to an electronic gaming machine such as a ‘slot machine’ wherein players receive monetary awards which are displayed, for example, in the form of a three digit number. The player can then choose whether to keep the original award or to modify or gamble the award. A number of methods are … Continue reading IGT (Patent) O/099/07: IPO 5 Apr 2007

IPO This application relates to an electronic gaming machine such as a ‘slot machine’ wherein players begin the game by pulling an arm or pushing a button which in turn rotates a series of reels or an equivalent video representation thereof, if when the reels stop, a winning arrangement of symbols is displayed, the player … Continue reading IGT (Patent) O/097/07: IPO 5 Apr 2007

IPO Excluded fields (refused) – In a gaming machine, different results were classified into sets producing the same outcome, all results producing the same outcome being in the same set; the results were numbered and stored in a memory with the outcomes; and a processor randomly selected one of the outcomes and one of the … Continue reading IGT (Patent) O/077/07: IPO 15 Mar 2007

IPO Added subject matter, Excluded fields (refused) – The invention related to a trajectory-based game of chance for implementation on a video gaming machine. The claim related to a gaming machine but in the light of Aerotel/Macrossan [2006] EWCA Civ 1371 it was agreed that the contribution was a data structure including a probability distribution … Continue reading IGT (Patent) O/054/07: IPO 22 Feb 2007

PO The application relates to the purchase of products over the Internet, and provides a website interface that presents information regarding the price and delivery dates of a particular product against a list of retailers. This allows a customer to decide at a glance whether to trade off the cost of a product with it’s … Continue reading Fujitsu Limited (Patent): IPO 23 Feb 2005

IPO The two applications are concerned with networked interactive wagering on the outcomes of events, with particular emphasis on reducing processing delays to a minimum so that in circumstances where prices are changing continuously, a client is provided with the most up-to-date information before placing a bet. In refusing the application, the hearing officer found … Continue reading CFPH LLC (Patent): IPO 14 Dec 2004

IPO The invention relates to a computerised system for trading stocks, shares, currencies and the like. Offers of assets for sale and bids to buy were displayed on each trader’s workstation so that they were able to observe and participate in the market. Each bid or offer made could comprise shown and hidden portions, the … Continue reading CFPH, LLC (Patent): IPO 25 May 2004

OIP The invention concerns a computer-based system for a form of online betting in which the participants effectively bet against each other rather than a bookmaker. It is based on the use of ‘coupons’ which are created and traded in the system. A coupon is defined as having a set value if some future event … Continue reading Eventsmarket Pty Ltd (Patent): IPO 26 Mar 2004

IPO Excluded fields (allowed) – The applications relate to the use of parallel processing in active memory applications. Following the CFPH approach, the Hearing Officer was able to identify an advance in the art that lay outside the description of an invention in the sense of Article 52 of the EPC. However, he could find … Continue reading Micron Europe Limited (Patent): IPO 20 Sep 2006

IPO The claims related to an apparatus for gaming which was networked to a host computer and allocated players to levels each with an associated amount beyond which a player would be given an award. The nearest prior art was the applicant’s published application which lay in the section 2(3) field and had been refused … Continue reading Acres Gaming Incorporated (Patent): IPO 18 Sep 2006

ICO The application related to a networked gaming system which changed the game content and behaviour based on recorded data about players, thus allowing a casino operator to tailor the experience to an individual. Using the approach in CFPH LLP’s Appn [2005] EWHC 1589, it was not disputed that any advance lay in the feedback … Continue reading Acres Gaming Incorporated (Patent): IPO 3 May 2006

The applicants appealed against rejection of their claims for patents under section 1(2) of the 1977 Act. Judges: Lewison J Citations: [2009] EWHC 343 (Pat), [2009] Bus LR D51, [2009] FSR 19 Links: Bailii Statutes: Patents Act 1977 1(2) Jurisdiction: England and Wales Intellectual Property Updated: 23 July 2022; Ref: scu.317963

The court was asked: ‘When a claim defines an invention partly by reference to excluded subject-matter e.g. a business method, how do you search the prior art?’ The company appealed against rejection of its request for a patent. Judges: Peter Prescott QC Citations: [2008] EWHC 568 (Pat), GB 0311200 Links: Bailii Statutes: Patents Act 1977 … Continue reading In re IGT / Acres Gaming Inc: PatC 19 Mar 2008

Judges: Pumfrey J Citations: [2005] EWHC 2416 (Pat), [2006] RPC 293 Links: Bailii Statutes: Patents Act 1977 1(2) Citing: Appeal from – Shopalotto.Com Limited PO 14-Mar-2005 PO Patent Office – Ex Parte Decisions. . . Cited by: Cited – Cappellini and Bloomberg, Re PatC 13-Mar-2007 The applicants appealed rejection of their applications for patents. The … Continue reading Shopalotto.Com Ltd, Re Patent Application Gb 0017772.5: PatC 7 Nov 2005

Patent validity – not an invention. Judges: The Hon Mr Justice Laddie Citations: [2004] EWHC 482 (Pat) Statutes: Patents Act 1977 1(2)(d) Jurisdiction: England and Wales Intellectual Property Updated: 27 June 2022; Ref: scu.194465

A patent claim for an important protein called Tissue Plasminogen Activator was objected to on the basis of the obviousness of the gene sequence. Held: The court considered the categories of exclusion in the context of what was said to be a discovery – namely the gene sequence which caused TPA to be expressed. A … Continue reading Genentech’s (Human Growth Hormone) Patent: CA 1989

The court rejected an application for a patent for, inter alia, a ‘data processing system for making a trading market in at least one security in which the system proprietor is acting as principal’. Held: Falconer J said: ‘In my judgment, where an invention for which a patent is sought involves any of the matters … Continue reading Merrill Lynch’s Application: ChD 1988

A claim was made for a method of design in which certain calculations were to be carried out recursively, modifying the results each time until a particular criterion was satisfied. Though the method was susceptible of solution by computer, but the claim was not limited in this way. Nor was the claim limited to the … Continue reading Halliburton Energy Services, Inc v Smith International (North Sea) Ltd and others: PatC 21 Jul 2005

The applicant had devised a new and better algorithm for finding square roots. Having embodied the method in a read only chip which could be installed within a computer which could then apply the algorithm, he sought to patent it. Held: Allowing the appeal and finding that it was not patentable the court found the … Continue reading Gale’s Application: CA 1991

IPO The invention related to linking a software application that is pre-installed on a client device with a user account, thereby enabling certain acts to be carried out in relation to that application such as updating or reinstalling the application, or installing the application on another client device associated with the user account. A check … Continue reading Apple Inc (Patent): IPO 15 Mar 2016

IPO The application relates to a metering system to measure usage of renewable energy produced by a privately owned micro-generating unit. The micro-generating unit is part of a larger commercial installation which operates on the basis of ‘sharecropping’, where private users are allocated amounts of renewable energy based upon their investment into the scheme. The … Continue reading Sustainable Energy and Heating Systems Ltd (Patent): IPO 19 Aug 2014

IPO Excluded fields (refused) – The invention relates to a system for generating electronic security documents on a computing system. The invention provides a new method for generating and storing a security document in a multi-node network in which the document is assigned a unique document identifier including amongst other things a process identifier, and … Continue reading Recipero Ltd (Patent): IPO 23 Dec 2014

IPO The application relates to a method of computationally modelling production from a subterranean region with reference to a wellbore and surrounding formation, such as may be encountered in oil and gas exploration and production. The modelling typically provides simulations which predict the flow of oil, water and/or gas flow from a formation, using a … Continue reading Senergy Holdings Limited (Patent): IPO 4 Feb 2015

IPO The methods, systems and computer programs described in the application are concerned with the management of a supply chain and particularly with controlling access of trading partners in the supply chain to particular stages or ‘states’ of the supply chain, in particular the trading partner can view the transaction in a given state, the … Continue reading I2 Technologies US, Inc (Patent) O-417-10: IPO 1 Dec 2010

The application relates to a custom application builder for supply chain management. In particular a user wanting access to supply chain related data may build a ‘custom’ application using data in one or more particular ‘modules’, respective modules relating to subsets of data in the supply chain such as purchase order data, inventory data, forecasting … Continue reading I2 Technologies Us, Inc (Patent) O/416/10: IPO 1 Dec 2010

IPO The application relates generally to a program based supply chain management. Here the word ‘program’ is not used directly in relation to a computer program but the program is in this sense is rather a definition of a relationship between trading partners, e.g. such as a manufacturer and a vendor. The invention essentially restricts … Continue reading I2 Technologies Us, Inc (Patent) O/415/10: IPO 1 Dec 2010

IPO PCT application WO 2009/128847 entitled ‘Apparatus for playing wagering games’ entered the UK national phase as patent application GB1018115.4. This invention allows a player to play a wagering game at a machine in the casino using funds in a remote account. Specifically, it allows one or more players to use syndicate funds or, alternatively, … Continue reading WMS Gaming Inc (Patent): IPO 24 Jun 2013

IPO The invention relates to a data synchronization protocol, in which synchronization messages to be exchanged between a client and server comprise separate sync modes (e.g. fast, slow, reset) associated with different dataclasses of data to be synchronized. The sync modes may be provided in parallel and the data may be updated in parallel. This … Continue reading Apple Inc (Patent): IPO 6 Jun 2013

IPO The application relates to a method and apparatus for determining the competency of human language interpreters. More specifically the invention, which is computer based, evaluates the proficiency of language interpreters, including in terms of determining if they have knowledge of specific technical terms in a certain field, for example medicine. The invention seeks to … Continue reading Language Line Services, Inc (Patent): IPO 14 May 2013

IPO The application relates to transcoding a web site by storing information that is found on one page of the site, inserting it into the transcoded version of another page, and providing the result to a mobile communication device. The ‘stored information’ may be a street address, a map, a telephone number or a brand … Continue reading Afilias Technologies Limited (Patent): IPO 30 May 2013

A computer program modelling a crystal structure is not patentable; it was not a hardware function, and software is not capable of protection under Patents law. Aldous LJ repeated his concern at the so called ‘technical contribution test’ for patentability: ‘I, like Nicholls LJ [in Gale], have difficulty in identifying clearly the boundary line between … Continue reading In Re Patent Application No 9204959 by Fujitsu Ltd: CA 14 Mar 1997

Claim to Patent for Computer Chip was Valid The applicant had implemented an algorithm for solving square roots problems by embodying it within a computer chip. He appealed against refusal of the patent by the Patents Office. Held: The appeal succeeded. Aldous J said: ‘I have come to the conclusion that the ROM claimed cannot … Continue reading Gales Application: ChD 1990

The court should incline towards patentability in the case of computer programs: ‘I am anxious that these exclusions are not given too wide a scope. All modern industry depends upon programmed computers, and one must be astute not to defeat patents . .

It was claimed that the defendant’s computer software infringed the copyright in software owned by the claimant. A declaration was sought beacause of allegations that assertions about infringement had been made to third parties. Held: The declaration was refused. There was no explicit provision in copyright law for a declaration of non-infringement as was available … Continue reading Point Solutions Ltd v Focus Business Solutions Ltd and Another: ChD 16 Dec 2005

IPO The patent application relates to a golf putter having a measurement scale and sighting means to estimate the distance to the hole. The examiner had objected that new subject matter had been added contrary to section 76, that the invention lacked inventive step in the light of four prior specifications and that it was … Continue reading Hideaki Koiwai (Patent): IPO 31 Dec 2007

IPO In apparatus for electronic trading a spreadsheet application calculated a series of trading commands from incoming market data and stored them in a queue to be sent at predetermined intervals to an electronic trading system (ETS); since the commands might not be synchronised with market conditions by the time they were transmitted they were … Continue reading CFPH LLC (Patent): IPO 10 Aug 2007

It was known for casinos to issue their own identification cards for use by players of gaming machines, but the invention allowed information to be read from a pre-existing card such as a driver’s licence or credit card and used, without decrypting it, to identify whether the player had an account. The claims related to … Continue reading Acres Gaming Incorporated (Patent): IPO 11 Jul 2007

IPO Excluded fields (refused), Inventive step – The four applications all concerned gaming machines typically for use in arcades, in which there was a main game and a bonus game. The specific embodiments differed between the applications, but in all cases the inventions concerned the switching between the main game and bonus game and/or what … Continue reading IGT (Patent) O/211/06: IPO 27 Jul 2006

Appeal against refusal to admit supplementary statement of case. The claimant had, while employed by the defendant created a pump which came to be widely used in the management of diabetes. He was seeking recompense for his contribution. Judges: Mann J Citations: [2009] EWHC 3164 (Ch), [2010] RPC 11, [2010] Bus LR 761, (2010) 33(2) … Continue reading Shanks v Unilever Plc and Others: ChD 3 Dec 2009

Appeal from a decision rejecting a Patent Application in the name of Fujitsu Ltd. His grounds for rejection were that the subject matter of the application was not an invention for the purposes of the 1977 Act in that it was excluded as a result of the provisions of s. 1(1)(d) and 1(2)(d) as being … Continue reading Fujitsu Ltd, Re Patent Application No. 920495 2: PatC 24 May 1996

The patentee had invented a method for storing CDs. The patentee sought leave to appeal a finding that its patent was invalid, and if successful, to appeal a finding that the defendant’s apparatus was not infringing. Held: The application for leave to appeal did involve a judicial finding sufficient to satisfy the obligation under TRIPS. … Continue reading Pozzoli Spa v BDMO Sa and Another: CA 22 Jun 2007

Excluded fields (refused) – The invention related to providing a personalized advertising service through portable terminals such as mobile phones and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs). In the invention, if a particular user wishes a personalized advertisement to be delivered to other users or group members an advertising server can provide the personalized advertisement based on … Continue reading Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (Patent): IPO 17 Dec 2014

IPO The application relates to a method of generating a list of cancer drug treatment options based on the status of molecular markers derived from a sample of a tumor in a patient. It is claimed as a method of diagnosing cancer which comprises the steps of interrogating a computer-implemented database and producing a list … Continue reading The Rocket Science Group, Llc (Patent): IPO 7 Jun 2013

In each case it was said that the requested patent concerned an invention consisting of a computer program, and was not therefore an invention and was unpatentable. In one case a patent had been revoked on being challenged, and in the other, the appeal was against refusal. Held: Jacob LJ said: ‘the court must approach … Continue reading Aerotel Ltd v Telco Holdings Ltd and others, In re Patent Application GB 0314464.9 in the name of Neal Macrossan Rev 1: CA 27 Oct 2006