New - Innovation Gadfly

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Inventor Able to Overcome Muscular Dystrophy, But Not the PTAB

Randy Landreneau /

- New -

March 29, 2024

Gene Luoma is a prolific inventor with roughly a dozen patents. He grew up on a farm in rural Minnesota, where money was tight. If he wanted something, he often had to make it. In his teens, Gene’s muscles started to weaken. He had muscular dystrophy, and it would worsen as he grew older. But […]

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The Great Equalizer: Reflecting on My Role in Award-Winning Film

Molly Metz /

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March 26, 2024

I have experienced firsthand the highs of success and the lows of participating in our country’s broken patent system. “The Great Equalizer,” a documentary I had the privilege to be a part of, directed by Pritchett Cotten and led by Luke Livingston, has just won an award for “Best Direction” from the Political Film Festival. […]

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Patent Injustice: A Revolutionary Solution for Toxic Gas Leaks Was Invalidated

Randy Landreneau /

- New -

March 22, 2024

For any serious problem, a solution has usually been invented to fix it. One such problem is toxic gas leaks from oil pipelines, derricks, and refineries. These leaks are usually invisible to the naked eye and contain toxic, cancer-causing gases like Ethylene. Until recently, the technology used to find these leaks was called a “sniffer.” […]

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The Electronic Frontier Foundation: the Lobbyists Destroying US Innovation

Paul Morinville /

- Corruption -

March 20, 2024

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation. 501(c)(3)s are largely prohibited from lobbying for candidates or legislation, even though a small portion of a 501(c)(3)’s resources can be used to lobby for legislation. The EFF lobbies a lot on many issues. Among those issues, for many years, the EFF has lobbied heavily […]

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Multi-Billion-Dollar, Life-saving Inventor Invalidated

Randy Landreneau /

- Corruption -

March 18, 2024

Not that long ago, replacing a heart valve required a complicated surgery. You had to have your chest opened, and your heart stopped. You had to be in pretty good shape to be allowed to receive this surgery, and even so, approximately 20% of the recipients died from the surgery. Things are quite different now […]

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Another Approach to Protecting Inventors’ Rights

Cheryl Darrup and David Newhoff /

- Copyright -

March 12, 2024

Gearheads and grease monkeys (and those who love them) have been drawn to Clock9nine’s stunning works of applied art, crafted from vintage automotive parts. It all started in 2020 when founder Matt Zufelt pulled the old nylon-toothed gear set out of his ‘78 Lincoln Continental while rebuilding the engine. “It looked so cool,” he couldn’t […]

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USPTO Obviousness Guidance: An Opportunity for Inventors

Molly Metz /

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March 4, 2024

Recently, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued updated guidance to agency employees on the proper application of obviousness doctrine when determining patent validity. As a representative of America’s inventor community who has strongly opposed certain developments at the USPTO, I want to express my gratitude to Director Vidal for her work in clarifying […]

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Down But Not Out, IPwe Looks to Restructure

Matt Moyers /

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February 21, 2024

A Shoutout to IPwe IPwe was capitalism at its most pure, and it was a noble and honorable effort by Erich Spangenberg, founder of IPwe, to attempt to build a better marketplace for patents. After years of using his asymmetrical edge in the patent system to accrue hundreds of millions in patent licensing and litigation […]

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Hopelessly Inexperienced PTAB Judges are Destroying U.S. Innovation

Paul Morinville /

- New -

February 19, 2024

In December 2023, the Senate IP Subcommittee held a hearing on the Promoting and Respecting Economically Vital American Innovation Leadership Act, S.2220 (PREVAIL), which affects the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). The PTAB is an appalling failure, invalidating 84% of the patents it fully adjudicates, thereby unleashing massive predatory infringement of small entity patents […]