This is cool! As a big fan and frequent user of Google US Patent search, it is real nice to see Google opening up the world of patents in other languages. Sure, the translation may be bad/very bad to start but it will help a little. For the record.
Google said Thursday it has reached an agreement with European patent authorities to use its online technology to translate some 50 million patents.
Google Inc. (GOOG-Q586.294.130.71%) and the Munich-based European Patent Office will co-operate to use Google Translate technology to translate patents into 28 European languages as well as into Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Russian.
The deal with enable researchers and the curious to search for patents in the EPO’s three official languages — English, French and German — and translate them on the fly on the EPO’s website. The translations are to serve informational and research purposes only, and will not replace legal requirements for patents to be translated by professional translators.
March 13, 2011 Update: I’ve got confirmation from BoC on Friday afternoon the Guardian® (supplied by Securency International) is indeed the polymer substrate to be used in the new plastic banknotes. By the way, for some reason Securency International‘s website seems to be down for the last few days.
***
It was nice to have an informative phone interview with a Bank of Canada representative this morning about the newly announced plastic banknote (see my lengthy post here). As expected, I was unable to get an official confirmation of whether the Guardian® polymer substrate (supplied by Securency International) will be used. At the same time, I’ve now gathered enough evidences to convince myself that the Guardian® substrate or an enhanced version of it will be used in Canada. After all, the Bank confirmed that they are using “industry proven technology” (the keyword here is “proven”) and stated in its public release,
“As part of its ongoing technology research program with its partners, the Bank has developed some new security features and adapted other existing features for the Canadian context.” [K: so it can be an "enhanced" version if Securency want to do some more testing on the "improvements" first?]
It should be noted that I know banks don’t usually like to talk about their security systems in detail. Many banks still believe (falsely) that the less we know, the more secure their systems are. Not true! I believe that good security has to be based on solid science and careful implementations. And “security by obscurity” is never enough nor secure.
Enough from me, if you are technical and want to learn more, I’ve found some Securency patents for you to study and learn from. As I wrote in a 2006 article as a side comment,
“For the patent geek out there, [...] thanks to “2165 The Best Mode Requirement” of the MPEP, patent is required to disclose the “best mode” to make this device thus making the patent an interesting read.“
Knowing I won’t have time in the next while to write a more detail article about Honibe, let me share with you what I’ve found so far. Here are links to Honibe’s Canadian trademark (TMA729391) and patent (CA 2649936) for interested readers. I had tried but was unable to find Honibe’s US patent filings (to me, US patent is important to have since US is a much bigger market than Canada). For those that are new to patents, one can learn a lot about about a business from its patents (in this case, Honibe’s patent).
I was fascinated by the Park Assist technology when I first saw the system at Calgary Chinook centre’s new wing. I was told the system, when it is fully deployed, is capable of telling people where a car is parked given its license plate. According to Park Assist, its M3 Camera Vision System is “the world’s first single space camera guidance system” (press release). The following are two interesting interviews with Mr. Richard Joffe, Managing Director of Park Assist.
Speaking about parking technologies, feel free to check out “ParkPlus by Calgary Parking Authority – Reimagining the Wheels” for my review of the Calgary ParkPlus system and interview with Calgary Parking Authority General Manager Dale Fraser and Alderman Dale Hodges.
P.S. By the way, Park Assist will sometimes make mistake too as you can see in the following photo where the right parking spot is occupied but it still shows green.
Oracle is suing Googleoveruse of JavainAndroid. I wonder if Sun’s former CEO and GC were still in charge, would there be the lawsuit? If I were a betting man, I would say no.
“[...] a court overturned a group of patents on gene sequences linked to breast cancer and ovarian cancer, which Myriad uses in tests for those diseases.
Myriad Genetics sells a test for mutations on the two breast cancer predisposition genes, which are called BRCA1 and BRCA2, and says those mutations are connected to greatly increased risks of cancer. The company holds patents on several DNA sequences from the gene, but its patents were challenged a year ago in a lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union and other groups. On Monday, a U.S. District Court Judge ruled against the Myriad Genetics.”
“Welcome to the first issue of Inventors Eye, a new electronic publication by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Inventors Eye is for and about America’s independent and small entity inventor community. It is a community that has always been a vital and vibrant part of America’s invention heritage.
Inventors Eye will appear every other month. Each issue will feature information you can use, tips on working with the USPTO; events, organizations and meetings of interest to the community; issues that impact independent and small entity inventors; and stories about people like you who have become successful inventors.We also want to hear from you with your ideas for stories and features that will enable us to better serve you through this publication.”
By the way, as part of my management consulting services, I work with entrepreneurs with cutting edge patented technologies. Having good patented technologies don’t guarantee success but it is a good start.
“Microsoft Corp. has lost an appeal against a small Toronto company in a patent fight that cost the world’s biggest software maker $290 million (U.S.) and forced it to alter its ubiquitous MS Word program.”
Since 2003, versions of Microsoft Word, a word processing and editing software, have had XML editing capabilities. In 2007, i4i filed this action against Microsoft, the developer and seller of Word.
Avatar is an awesome film that looks great and, I think, is best seen in IMAX 3D. Now with a worldwide gross box office of $285 million as of December 22 according to LA Times report, are there some money to be made in buying IMAX stocks since Avatar IMAX 3D tickets seem to be the first ones to be sold out first?
Well, to make any informed investment decision, one should study the financial reports of a company and get to know about the industry first. In the case of IMAX, you can find many of the financial reports in the investor relations area.
One area that may send off additional signal is the insider trading activities of a company, that is whether the senior executives of a company are buying or selling stocks. Here is an insightful excerpt from September 2009 CNN Money article “Insiders sell like there’s no tomorrow” (emphasis added),
But against that improving backdrop, one indicator has turned distinctly bearish: Corporate officers and directors have been selling shares at a pace last seen just before the onset of the subprime malaise two years ago.
While a wave of insider selling doesn’t necessarily foretell a stock market downturn, it suggests that those with the first read on business trends don’t believe current stock prices are justified by economic fundamentals.
“It’s not a very complicated story,” said Charles Biderman, who runs market research firm Trim Tabs. “Insiders know better than you and me. If prices are too high, they sell.“
According to the IMAX’s insider trading records, you can find from Nov 23rd to Dec 22nd, 2009, there have been a number of insiders’ transactions. If you read the details, you will find almost all insiders have been selling IMAX shares including co-CEOs of IMAX, Mr. Richard L. Gelfond and Mr. Bradley J Wechsler. It is worth noting that Messrs. Gelfond and Wechsler have adopted “stock appreciation rights automatic exercise plans” on November 16, 2009 (rule 10b5-1 trading plans) so Mr. Gelfond can sell up to 720,000 shares in equal monthly installments over a 12-month period, and Mr. Wechsler can sell up to 900,000 shares, in equal monthly installments over a 10-month period. To be fair, if the combined 1.62 million shares were to be sold throughout the duration of the plans, Mssrs. Gelfond and Wechsler would “continue to own approximately 65% of their combined share ownership in the Company” as stated in the press release.
IMAX stock price has increased substantially in three months (US$9.00/Sept 23rd, 2009) and one month ($10.48/Nov 20th, 2009) to yesterday’s close of $12.79, which amount to increases of 42.1% in three months and 22% in one month respectively.
Many moviegoers, including this reporter, have been rightfully impressed by Avatar IMAX 3D and see tremendous potentials in IMAX 3D. Therefore it is not surprising to see people wishing to invest in IMAX as we can see from recent IMAX stock trading volumes,
1.93 million shares on Dec 11th, 2009, a day after the Dec 10th London premiere
1.29 million shares on Dec 18th, world premiere
1.08m on Dec 21st
1.62m on Dec 22nd
The above volumes are high when comparing to the average trading volume of 586,000 shares and the recent low of 58,387 shares on Nov 27, 2009 (data from Google Finance).
If you aspire to be a long term value investor like Warren Buffett, it is prudent to understand the industry and analyze a company’s financial reports first before making any investment decisions. For IMAX’s financial reports, you can find them in IMAX’s investor relations area. The annual reports and the “Management’s Discussion and Analysis” sections are good place to start reading.
(note: This article is cross-posted in examiner.com)
Here is an excerpt from the official news release (PDF) (emphasis added),
““We can now heal the breastbone in hours instead of weeks after open-heart surgery. Patients can make a full recovery after surgery and get back to full physical activities in days instead of months,” reports Dr. Paul W.M. Fedak, MD PhD FRCSC, a cardiac surgeon at Foothills Medical Centre and scientist at the Faculty of Medicine who pioneered the new procedure.
Over 20 patients have received the new technique in Calgary as part of a pilot study. Fedak and Kathryn King, RN PhD are the co-principal investigators on the study. King, a cardiovascular nurse scientist, is an expert in post-operative recovery after open-heart surgery. “We know that recovery from sternotomy is a multi-faceted process that includes not only healing of the breastbone but the ability to return to normal activities,” she says. “Being able to resume normal activities is a hallmark of a good recovery; this surgical innovation should enable that.”
[...] The encouraging results of this pilot study have prompted the Calgary researchers to establish a worldwide study to further investigate its benefits. The STICK Trial (STernal Innovative Closure with KryptoniteTM) aims to apply the technique in over 500 patients across the globe over the next 12 – 24 months.
[...] KryptoniteTM is approved for use in Canada (Health Canada), USA (FDA), and Europe (CE Mark). This pilot study has been supported in part by Doctor’s Research Group Inc.”
I like to thank Dr. Fedak for sending along the product monograph and his Oct 29, 2009 presentation about Kryptonite (TM). After watching the 30 minutes presentation including Dr. Fedak’s research findings, I now have a deeper understanding of the benefits of Kryptonite to open-heart surgery patients in their healing process. I’ve posted some selected screen captures from the presentation here, here, and here.
The following are some related news plus a link to the patent application of the adhesive.
Nov 15, 2009 Update: Here is an insightful comment from Patent Baristas on the Bilski case where Stephen listed some of the questions a few of the Supreme Court Justices asked at the oral argument.
Oral arguments in the case, “Bernard L. Bilski and Rand A. Warsaw v. David J. Kappos,” have been highly anticipated. Often referred to as the “Bilski” case, it was originally brought by an inventor who’d tried to win a business-method patent for a means to hedge against changes in commodity prices.
An array of technology giants, including Microsoft Corp. (MSFT 28.63, +0.11, +0.39%), IBM Corp. (IBM 124.03, +0.54, +0.44%) and others, have since taken a keen interest in the case, which could affect portions of their patent portfolios.
Microsoft, IBM and others operate impressive intellectual property operations, securing thousands of patents every year. However, the companies would also prefer to see some limits placed on the scope of what can be patented.
Noted examples of business methods that have won patents for their inventors — and ridicule from others for being overly broad – include a means to train janitors using video displays, and to entice customers to order more fast food. Technology companies generally see the granting of such patents as a threat to genuine innovation.
But a decision in the Bilski case may also cut into technology companies’ ability to patent software, legal experts say.
If the Supreme Court fully affirms a federal appeals court’s prior decision in Bilski, it could help invalidate many of the software patents now held by companies, and strike a blow at the intellectual property portfolios that underpin their business models.
“In this U.S. Supreme Court case, the Court was asked whether a patent holder can seek royalties from the downstream third-party purchaser. The Court concluded unanimously that it could not. Writing for the Court, Justice Clarence Thomas relied on the theory of “patent exhaustion,” which provides that a patented item’s initial authorized sale terminates all patent rights to that item, denying LGE royalties from companies down the line of commerce. The panel of experts discuss the decision, and the implications of the decision for patent law and licensing agreements.”
Until entrepreneurs have seen their patent(s) being challenged or infringed, they like to think having applied for a patent or having an issued patent means they are protected. Which is very far from the truth.
In some sense, the entrepreneurs’ technology or patent area may be very different from Sun’s but there are much core insight to be gained for those that are willing to learn.
To provide a deeper insight into ParkPlus, I’ve also taken time to interview CPA’s general manager Mr. Dale Fraser and Calgary Alderman Mr. Dale Hodges, two of the participants in the creation of the ParkPlus system.
The Business of Parking
You may not realize this but Calgary Parking Authority is a completely self-funded operation. In 2007, after expenses, CPA actually *paid* a total of $17.9 million to the City of Calgary (an $1.9 million increase from $16 million in 2006).
Now, observant readers will notice that old style parking meters sometimes got vandalized or money stolen. To give you a rough idea of the monetary impact, CPA’s meter repairs, parts, and overtime costs have totaled more than several hundred thousand dollars since 2006. I will mention how ParkPlus addresses these challenges in “The Technologies” section.
The ParkPlus system can also reduce parking enforcement cost ($6.3 million in 2007) by making parking enforcement more efficient. And ParkPlus has the potential to increase revenue from parking operations and enforcement by increasing tickets purchased (because it is more convenient for people to pay by credit cards or cell phones) and issuing more parking tickets to violators (with photos as proofs). (note: As a driver that doesn’t enjoy being ticketed, I am torn to call “issuing more parking tickets” a “benefit“!)
Most inventors are very sure that their patents are solid and will give them “world” protection. Of course, looking at patent protection objectively, patent strength varies in degree (from real solid all the way to some invalid patents) and there is, strictly speaking, no such thing as a “world patent“. At the end of the day inventors still need to pay and apply to obtain patents from each and every countries that they want patent protection (in this brief entry, I won’t go into the details of PCT or talk about Japan). And inventors sometimes do “unintentionally” claim they have a patent when they only have a patent application (quite a difference between the two).
With the labour shortage in Alberta and other provinces and the desire to cut cost by grocery chains like Safeway and Loblaw, these chains are installing more self-checkout systems. And there is even a Wikipedia entry dedicated to self-checkout and here is the explanation in the benefit section,
“The benefit to the customer is in the reduced checkout time because stores are often able to efficiently run two to six self checkout units where it normally would have had one cashier. Some customers appreciate the ability to not have to deal with anyone, giving an illusion of privacy and anonymity, when in fact the self checkout attendant can track the progress of customers on all machines via a separate terminal known as a RAP (Remote Attendant Post).
The benefit to the retailer in providing self checkout machines is in reduced staffing requirements since one attendant is all that is required to run 4 to 6 checkout lanes at one time.”
Now, let me jump right into the purpose of creating the Reimagining the Wheels series by sharing with you some of my observations that may improve the current U-Scan self-checkout systems.
Cashier at Remote Attendant Post (RAP)
Install a webcam overlooking the scale (with sufficient resolution) to provide a photo snapshot or video feed to the RAP (Remote Attendant Post).
With a photo of the item (e.g. a vegetable that users couldn’t find a code for) on the scanner/scale, the experienced cashier at the RAP (Remote Attendant Post) can even help enter the correct item code for the customers at the RAP. Thus reducing the trips to the customer checkout post and increasing the efficiency.
With photos or video feed of the items, the attendant at the RAP will be able to keep an eye on all checkouts and reducing the number of mis-identified items (pure unintentional mistakes) and cases of frauds (intentional mistakes).
I find the pictorial selection menu poorly designed and sometime frustrating to use to pick the correct fruit or vegetables. One way to start solving this problem is by keeping track of the statistics of the precise time customers spent to find the correct “code/picture” for an item. Items that take particularly long implies the menu system is deficient and confusing to the customers and are good candidates to be looked at and improved upon.
Note that for every items, we have the data of exactly what the customer bought as it should be the items the customers finally selected (OK reliable) or one that an attendant helped customer picked (more reliable).
In conclusion, there is a wealth of information already floating in the system. The trick is to capture them and analyze them. By adding photos capture (with a webcam) and time stamps of the various actions by the users. These data can be extremely valuable in the right hands to fine tune the system to provide better users’ experiences at the Self-checkout systems.
I hope you had some fun reading my first Reimaging the Wheels posting. Feel free to share your feedback, ideas and experiences here. Many thanks.
P.S. During my research, I found this 2004 news item that Optimal Robotics (original maker of U-Scan) sold the U-Scan business to FuJitsu for over US$35 millions.
P.P.S. For verification purpose, the key ideas presented in this posting are time stamped here.
Cyberbullying should be criminal offence: teachers (with video) – Teachers and parents should teach about the ills of cyberbullying. And student offenders should be reprimanded both at school and by parents. But making cyberbullying a criminal offence is an ill-conceived idea. Most of the student offenders will likely be underage and governed by the Youth Criminal Justice Act anyway, thus making cyberbulling “criminal” may be the wrong approach to deal with it. My suggestion is to make “Cyberbullying” socially unacceptable behaviours as shown by their peers or more senior students at school.
RT @emmgryner: OMG just got off the phone w @Cmdr_Hadfield who signed off saying "see ya when I get back to Earth"...and I got chills 6 days ago
RT @WilliamShatner: I watch @Cmdr_Hadfield 's Space Oddity video last night and I have 2 words for him: "SHOW OFF!" I'd even look good floa… 6 days ago
RT @emmgryner: I am going to bed blown away by all the feedback and love re @Cmdr_Hadfield's Space Oddity. So proud to be a part of it. Wow… 6 days ago
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