<div>Several of us feel strongly about how software patents obstruct research.</div>
<div> Interested to hear your thoughts on what the community could do to stymie this practice or circumvent fuzzy generic patents ?</div>
<div> </div>
<div>1. Can we maintain a list of list of candidate patents where alternate methods are sought ?. </div>
<div>See <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marching_cubes">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marching_cubes</a></div>
<div>Marching tetrahedrons came out of such a response from the computer graphics community.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>2. Several applicants seek to patent specific applications of published techiniques. </div>
<div>Are there patents obvious ?. What can we do about them ?</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Hope we can identify some actionable baby steps..</div>
<div> </div>
<div>regards,</div>
<div>ak<br></div>
<div class="gmail_quote">On Mon, Nov 23, 2009 at 6:39 AM, Luis Ibanez <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:luis.ibanez@kitware.com">luis.ibanez@kitware.com</a>></span> wrote:<br>
<blockquote style="BORDER-LEFT: #ccc 1px solid; MARGIN: 0px 0px 0px 0.8ex; PADDING-LEFT: 1ex" class="gmail_quote">As Bill and Michael have pointed out,<br><br>The "Experimental" exception for the exclusive rights of Patents<br>
(in the US) applies only:<br><br> "for amusement, to satisfy idle curiosity,<br> or strictly for philosophical inquiry."<br><br>See:<br><br><a href="http://www.bakerbotts.com/infocenter/publications/detail.aspx?id=b7930f1d-b945-4f95-b825-fa9ac70c16af" target="_blank">http://www.bakerbotts.com/infocenter/publications/detail.aspx?id=b7930f1d-b945-4f95-b825-fa9ac70c16af</a><br>
<br>and<br><br><a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=-gLuY2rBU9oC&pg=RA2-PA9-IA466&lpg=RA2-PA9-IA466&dq=for+amusement,+to+satisfy+idle+curiosity&source=bl&ots=qQdZEW6lDu&sig=VyoBqK6AHJ4iEUKsRbyeXPJLjBg&hl=en&ei=idoJS4zHDpCZlAeYhaGhDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CBAQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=for%20amusement%2C%20to%20satisfy%20idle%20curiosity&f=false" target="_blank">http://books.google.com/books?id=-gLuY2rBU9oC&pg=RA2-PA9-IA466&lpg=RA2-PA9-IA466&dq=for+amusement,+to+satisfy+idle+curiosity&source=bl&ots=qQdZEW6lDu&sig=VyoBqK6AHJ4iEUKsRbyeXPJLjBg&hl=en&ei=idoJS4zHDpCZlAeYhaGhDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CBAQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=for%20amusement%2C%20to%20satisfy%20idle%20curiosity&f=false</a><br>
<br><br>A part from that,<br>you are not allowed to:<br><br> * Use<br> * Make<br> * Sell<br> * Offer for sale<br> * Import<br><br>any embodiment of an invention that is protected by a Patent,<br>without the permission of the Patent holder.<br>
<br><br>More on the Research Exemption for Patents at<br><br> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Research_exemption" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Research_exemption</a><br><br><br>Note also that Patents have only national jurisdiction.<br>
That is, the patent in question here:<br><br> "A method and apparatus for identifying scale invariant features in<br> an image and a further method and apparatus for using such scale<br> invariant features to locate an object in an image"<br>
<br> <a href="http://www.google.com/patents?vid=USPAT6711293" target="_blank">http://www.google.com/patents?vid=USPAT6711293</a><br><br>only apply to the United States.<br><br><br><br>Therefore, if you are outside of the US, you can make, use,<br>
sell, and offer for sale any implementation of this US patented<br>method.<br><br>Beware however,<br>that is common for companies to patent the same invention<br>in multiple countries. Therefore, you still have to check with<br>
the patent database of your respective country.<br><br><br>For more on Patents and how they obstruct the progress of science<br>and technology you may want to read.<br><br>"Patent Failure"<br>"How Judges,Bureaucrats, and Lawyers Put Innovators at Risk"<br>
by James Bessen and Michael J. Meurer<br>Princeton University Press<br><a href="http://www.researchoninnovation.org/dopatentswork/" target="_blank">http://www.researchoninnovation.org/dopatentswork/</a><br><br>and<br><br>
"Math you can't use:"<br>"Patents, Copyright, and Software "<br><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Math-You-Cant-Use-Copyright/dp/0815749422" target="_blank">http://www.amazon.com/Math-You-Cant-Use-Copyright/dp/0815749422</a><br>
<br>and<br><br>"The Public Domain"<br>"Enclosing the Commons of the Mind"<br>by James Boyle<br><a href="http://www.thepublicdomain.org/" target="_blank">http://www.thepublicdomain.org/</a><br><br><br><br>
BTW,<br>The US Supreme Court is currently reviewing the criteria that the<br>US Patent Office should use for granting patents.<br><br><br>From the Wall Street Journal:<br><br><a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704431804574537481229336114.html" target="_blank">http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704431804574537481229336114.html</a><br>
<br><quote><br><br>The most telling moment in the Bilski argument was when Justice Breyer<br>asked how the balance should be struck between granting patents for<br>methods that applied to machines as opposed to methods that apply to<br>
how information is used. "I don't know," he answered. "And I don't<br>know whether across the board or in this area or that area patent<br>protection would do no harm or more harm than good."<br>
<br>Likewise, Justice Sotomayor said she couldn't predict the result if<br>the court tried to clarify what can be patented and what can't. "I<br>have no idea what the limits of that ruling will impose in the<br>
computer world, in the biomedical world."<br><br>Such humility is rare at the Supreme Court, but as the justices come<br>to a decision in this case, they should remember above all that legal<br>uncertainty about intellectual property has real costs. For now, the<br>
most innovative parts of our economy bear the burden of uncertainty,<br>with no one knowing for sure who owns what rights to which ideas,<br>inventions or discoveries.<br><br></quote><br><br><br>It is not surprising that Patent Systems were abolished in several<br>
countries in the past: for example in The Netherlands in 1869.<br><br>By the time of the American Revolution; England was the only country<br>where a Patent system was in place. It was common knowledge that<br>the creation of Monopolies was detrimental for the Economy, particularly<br>
for a market economy.<br><br><br><br>In August 1813, Thomas Jefferson wrote:<br><br>"I am informed, that England was, until we copied her, the only<br>country on earth which ever, by a general law, gave a legal right to<br>
the exclusive use of an idea. In some other countries it is sometimes<br>done, in a great case, and by a special and personal act, but,<br>generally speaking, other nations have thought that these monopolies<br>produce more embarrassment than advantage to society; and it may be<br>
observed that the nations which refuse monopolies of invention, are as<br>fruitful as England in new and useful devices."<br><br><a href="http://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/a1_8_8s12.html" target="_blank">http://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/a1_8_8s12.html</a><br>
<br><br><br> Regards,<br><br><br><br> Luis<br><br><br>----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<br>On Fri, Nov 20, 2009 at 2:33 AM, Michael Mai <<a href="mailto:Michael.Mai@zeiss-oim.de">Michael.Mai@zeiss-oim.de</a>> wrote:<br>
> See <a href="http://www.cmake.org/Wiki/ITK_Patent_Bazaar" target="_blank">http://www.cmake.org/Wiki/ITK_Patent_Bazaar</a> for answer.<br>> Summarized: Unfortunately no, even non-commercial research have to obey patents.<br>
><br>> Michael<br>><br>> -----Ursprüngliche Nachricht-----<br>> Von: <a href="mailto:insight-users-bounces@itk.org">insight-users-bounces@itk.org</a> [mailto:<a href="mailto:insight-users-bounces@itk.org">insight-users-bounces@itk.org</a>] Im Auftrag von Rupin<br>
> Gesendet: Freitag, 20. November 2009 00:44<br>> An: <a href="mailto:insight-users@itk.org">insight-users@itk.org</a><br>> Betreff: Re: [Insight-users] SIFT/feature based registration in ITK?<br>><br>> Are you not allowed to use patented methods for non-commercial research !?!<br>
><br>> Rupin<br>><br>> On Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:45:22 -0800, Torsten Rohlfing<br>> <<a href="mailto:torsten@synapse.sri.com">torsten@synapse.sri.com</a>> wrote:<br>><br>>> Another reason for lack of motivation to implement SIFT in ITK might<br>
>> also be that SIFT is patented.<br>>><br>>>> Someone mentioned off list that they are slowly working on writing<br>>>> SIFT for ITK - has there really been no past effort like this? Is the<br>
>>> idea that ITK deals mainly with medical images and intensity based<br>>>> registration is typically fine for those?<br>>>><br>>>> Thanks,<br>>>><br>>>> David<br>>>><br>
>><br>><br>><br>><br>> --<br>> Using Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: <a href="http://www.opera.com/mail/" target="_blank">http://www.opera.com/mail/</a><br>
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