“Indian patent statistics, Interesting Inventions, Blind Assistance Shoes, Smart cane to detect and notify obstacles, 2018 Patent Agent Examination final results declared, IIPLA 5th Dubai IP Congress 2019 concludes, DIPP hosts CII Partnership Summit, 2019, Apple loses $440 million patent battle, Qualcomm’s patent infringement suit against Apple not tenable says German Court , Oakley alleges design patent infringement, Orexo wins patent infringement battle against Actavis and other Weekly Patent News updates” presented by the Patent attorneys and experts of BananaIP Counsels, India’s leading Patent Firm.
Quote of the Week
“Inventors change the world more than the generals and statesmen.” – Paul Nizan, French Author and Philosopher.
Indian Patent Statistics
A total of 970 patent applications have been published in the 3rd issue of the Patent Journal, 2019. Out of the 970 applications, 75 applications account for early publications while 895 applications account for ordinary publications or publications occurring after the 18-month period. A total of 309 applications have been granted this week marking an increase of about 26.12%.
Early Publications
| City | Previous Week | This Week | Percentage of change |
| Delhi | 6 | 10 | 66.67% increase |
| Mumbai | 34 | 28 | 17.65% decrease |
| Chennai | 25 | 28 | 12% increase |
| Kolkata | 1 | 9 | 800% increase |
| Total | 66 | 75 | 13.64% increase |
Ordinary Publications
| City | Previous Week | This Week | Percentage of change |
| Delhi | 180 | 466 | 158.89% increase |
| Mumbai | 139 | 88 | 36.69% decrease |
| Chennai | 270 | 220 | 18.52% decrease |
| Kolkata | 8 | 121 | 1412.5% increase |
| 597 | 895 | 49.92% increase |
TOTAL PUBLICATIONS (Previous Week): 663
TOTAL PUBLICATIONS (This Week): 970
Percentage difference: 46.3% increase
First Examination Report (FER) Statistics
A total 1483 FER’s have been issued last week. Applicants and their agents can check if any of their patent applications have been examined by referring to the journal available here.
| City | No. of FER Issued |
| Delhi | 522 |
| Mumbai | 286 |
| Chennai | 493 |
| Kolkata | 182 |
| Total | 1483 |
PUBLICATIONS UNDER GRANT
| City | Previous Week | This Week | Percentage of change |
| Delhi | 68 | 137 | 101.47% increase |
| Mumbai | 32 | 39 | 21.87% increase |
| Chennai | 91 | 91 | No change |
| Kolkata | 54 | 42 | 22.22% decrease |
| Total | 245 | 309 | 26.12% increase |
Number of Applications published based on applicant city
Of the total 970 patent applications published in the journal last week, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Kolkata have contributed a total of 151 applications. The total applications from each of the previously mentioned cities are as follows – 84 applications from Chennai, 24 applications from Bangalore, 13 applications from Delhi, 9 applications from Hyderabad, 15 applications from Mumbai and 6 application from Kolkata.
| List of Cities | 1st January 2019 – 18th January 2019 | 12th January 2019 – 18th January 2019 |
| Delhi | 40 | 13 |
| Mumbai | 20 | 15 |
| Bangalore | 61 | 24 |
| Chennai | 181 | 84 |
| Hyderabad | 25 | 9 |
| Kolkata | 6 | 6 |
Total number of applications published by the Indian Patent Office from the 1st of January 2019 till date: 2532
- Early publications: 175
- Ordinary Publications: 2357
Total number of patents granted by the Indian Patent Office from the 1st of January 2019 till date: 789
- Delhi – 270
- Mumbai – 89
- Chennai – 275
- Kolkata – 152
Indian Industrial Designs Statistics
The designs office has registered a total of 199 designs this week. The total designs registered from the 1st of January 2019 till date now adds to a total of 478 applications.
Total designs registered in the previous Week: 142
Total designs registered this Week: 199
Percentage Difference: 40.14% increase
Total designs registered from the 1st of January 2019 till date: 478
Interesting Inventions of the Week
Invention 1 – BLIND ASSISTANCE SHOES
Patent Application No.: 201921000903
Applicant: Pooja Avadhut Kulkarni, et. al.
Abstract: “Present invention relates to blind assistance shoes. The proposed invention provides smart shoes with sensors embedded in them to guide a visually impaired person fluidly and to alert him/her of the obstacles that lay ahead of him in his path. The invention is aimed to develop an easy to use Android application to cater to the special needs, used to guide the person coextending the features of the smart shoes. In addition, guidance for proper direction also provided. Following invention is described in detail with the help of Figure 1 of sheet 1 showing block diagram of the system, Figure 2 of sheet 1 showing working flow diagram for right shoe and Figure 3 of sheet 2 showing working flow diagram for left shoe.” (The abstract has been provided as is and has not been corrected for errors)
Invention 2 – SMART CANE TO DETECT AND NOTIFY OBSTACLES
Patent Application No.: 201741024581
Applicant: Mrs. J. GNANA JESLIN
Abstract: “Visually impaired people find it difficult to move from one place to another, as they are unaware of the dangerous obstacles in their path. This smart cane uses a method which can detect and notify the obstacles to the user via earphone. It works by using an application in the user”s mobile phone. This smart cane consists of sensors that measure the distance between the user and obstacles or objects on the user”s path. It includes GPS to keep track of the user”s current location. The design and operation of this idea is to be implemented in such a way that it yields very high efficiency.” (The abstract has been provided as is and has not been corrected for errors)
Indian Patent Updates
2018 Patent Agent Examination final results declared
The Indian Patent Office declared the results of the Patent Agent Examination on 18th January, 2019. The Examination, conducted in two separate rounds, consisting of a written examination i.e. Paper I and Paper II was conducted in the month of October in 2018. According to the Official Notification, in total, 4373 applications were received. Among these, 1473 candidates cleared both Paper I and Paper II, making them eligible for the viva – voce. 1468 candidates appeared for the viva and 1358 candidates effectively cleared it. All qualified candidates can now register themselves as a Patent Agent by submitting an application through Form 22, and by paying a nominal fee. The list of all qualified candidates can be accessed here.
To all the new Patent Agents out there, a very hearty congratulations from all of us at BananaIP Counsels!
Patent Summits, Conferences and Seminars
IIPLA 5th Dubai IP Congress 2019 concludes
The 5th IP Congress organized by the International Intellectual Property Law Association (IIPLA) was concluded in Dubai on the 15th of January 2019. The program that lasted for two days witnessed the participation of several international IP firms and lawyers under one roof.
While, Ms. Vinita Radhakrishnan, Senior Partner at BananaIP Counsels delivered a talk on “Trade secrets versus Patents – A pharmaceutical perspective”, Mr. Gaurav Mishra, IP Manager at BananaIP Counsels was part of the round table discussion on “Protecting your IP : Pros & Cons of IP Rights”
DIPP hosts CII Partnership Summit, 2019
The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Partnership Summit, 2019 was recently organized by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion in collaboration with the Government of Maharashtra and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. While, Vice President, M Venkaiah Naidu, delivered the inaugural address and expressed his vision and spoke about the progress of the Nation, the Director General of WIPO, Francis Gurry, graced the occasion and provided various insights referenced to IP in India. The Summit also showcased the presence of a number of other foreign dignitaries from around the world. The 25th Summit, hosted in Mumbai proved to be a great platform for exchange of ideas and critical thinking. More information on the Partnership Summit can be found here.
Patent / Design Infringements, Disputes, Licensing and Settlement
Apple loses $440 million patent battle
A U.S. appeals court has upheld a $440 million judgment against Apple by “patent troll” VirnetX, an intellectual property licensing firm which has been battling Apple for years. VirnetX is sometimes labelled a “patent troll” because it holds extensive patent portfolios, but does not make a product. Instead, its income comes from licensing out its technology or suing large companies which unlawfully use its intellectual property. Other companies it has fought include Microsoft, Cisco, Avaya, and Siemens.
Qualcomm’s patent infringement suit against Apple not tenable says German Court
A patent lawsuit filed by Qualcomm Inc against Apple Inc was thrown out by a German court last week. The regional court in the city of Mannheim dismissed the Qualcomm suit as groundless in an initial verbal decision, saying the patent in question was not violated by the installation of its chips in Apple’s smartphones. Qualcomm has stated that it would appeal after winning a separate case before a court in Munich in December that enabled it to enforce a ban on the sale of older iPhones in Germany.
Oakley alleges design patent infringement
Sports apparel brand Oakley is reportedly suing a Colorado-based safety glass manufacturer Third Coast Products for design infringement of its glasses sold under the name of Luxottica. The Colorado-based company has been accused of infringing Oakley’s design patent through the sale of iLumen8 UV Safety Glasses.
Orexo wins patent infringement battle against Actavis
In a patent infringement suit between Orexo, a company specializing in the manufacture of pharmaceutical drugs, and Actavis, the United States District Court for the District of Delaware passed a non–appealable judgement indicating active infringement of the Orexo’s Patent No. – 8,940,330. Previously, in September 2018, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Court, had authenticated the patent as being valid. Orexo had instituted two other law suits, involving the same drug “Zubsolv” against Actavis charging the company of infringing two of its patents, namely – U.S. Patent Nos. 9,259,421 and 9,439,900. Both these suits have now been withdrawn after the current judgment.
Compiled by Vibha Amarnath & Gaurav Mishra
About BIP’s Patent Attorneys
Led by Senior Partners, Somashekar Ramakrishna, Nitin Nair and Vinita Radhakrishnan, BIP’s Patent Attorneys are among the leading patent practitioners in the country. They work with clients such as Mahindra and Mahindra, Samsung, HCL, Eureka Forbes, and Titan. They specialize in IT/Software, Electronics/Telecom, Mechanical, Automotive, and Bio/Pharma domains, and help clients with patent filing, prosecution, management and strategy in India, and across the world.
The weekly patent news initiative is a part of their pro bono work, and is aimed at spreading patent awareness. You are free to share the news with appropriate attribution and backlink to the source.
If you have any questions, you may write to BIP’s Patent Attorneys – [email protected];
