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GEN-ERIC Patent News Tuesday, September 7,
2004
================================================== Use Quick Links
to Access any Area of Interest Headlines News Patents of the Day Access Official Gazette and
Notices Patents Available for Licensing Patent Related
Opportunities
Printer Friendly Version ================================================== HEADLINES (patents issued a few hours
ago..) The Brushing Habit Patent of the Day goes
to Unilever Home & Personal Care USA division of Conopco, Inc. of
Connecticut for a Toothbrush usage monitoring system
The Eternal Flame Patent of the Day goes to
an Independent Inventor from Arizona for a Decorative urn for use as a
lighted memorial
Index ================================================== NEWS P&G sues Coca-Cola for
patent violation http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20040903-063611-1335r.htm Cincinnati-based
Procter & Gamble Co. is suing soft drink maker Coca-Coca Co. for patent
infringement, the Cincinnati Post reported Friday. The consumer products company
says former partner Coke used P&G-patented preservatives in some Minute Maid
products. The case was filed this week in a Cincinnati federal court. P&G
also filed a suit against Coke in 2002 for adding calcium to its Minute Maid
brand orange juice. That suit is still in progress. In 2001, the two companies
had planned a joint snack-and-juice venture spinoff with products from both
companies, but Coke pulled out of the deal later in 2001. Index Pfizer Sues
Internet Sites Selling Lipitor http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=571&ncid=751&e=3&u=/nm/20040902/hl_nm/health_pfizer_lipitor_dc Pfizer
Inc., the world's biggest drugmaker, said on Thursday it filed lawsuits against
18 Web sites, charging them with selling illegal versions of its best selling
cholesterol medicine Lipitor. The New York-based drug maker said it is suing the
operators to combat Web selling of unapproved copies of Lipitor, marketed as
"generic Lipitor." The suits over Lipitor, the first prescription drug topping
$10 billion in annual sales, follow similar actions filed in April and May over
the drug. The most recent suits were filed in the U.S. District Court in
Delaware. The suits accuse 10 sites of patent infringement and seek injunctions
against further sale of the products. Index Novartis wins Lamisil
Patent Infringement Lawsuit Against Dr. Reddy's http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/040903/ukf005_1.html Novartis
announced today that it has prevailed in its US patent infringement lawsuit with
Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Limited of Hyderabad, India, regarding Novartis' widely
prescribed oral antifungal agent Lamisil TabletsŪ (terbinafine hydro-chloride).
Lamisil is the leading prescription treatment to effectively treat
onychomycosis, a fungal infection that commonly affects the toes or fingernails.
Dr. Reddy's Laboratories has withdrawn its challenge to a Lamisil patent held by
Novartis, conceding that it is valid, enforceable and had been infringed by Dr.
Reddy's Laboratories.
Index ================================================== PATENTS OF THE DAY
6,786,732
Toothbrush usage monitoring system
Abstract: A method
is proposed for analysing the usage of a toothbrush made by a subject. The
position of the toothbrush is monitored using a position sensor on the brush,
and the position of the teeth is monitored by a position sensor mounted in a
known fixed relation to the teeth. The resultant data is used to find the
relative positions of the toothbrush and teeth over time. Statistical analysis
of this data permits the identification of habitual brushing failures by
subjects of the toothbrush. The toothbrush may transmit the output of its
position sensor to a data analysis unit as a wireless signal. The toothbrush may
also be provided with further sensors, such as pH and pressure sensors, the
output of which is used in the statistical analysis to enrich the results.
Index
6,785,939
Decorative urn for use as a
lighted memorial
Background: The
devotion of a long term pet to its owner has created a corresponding interest in
providing a suitable and tasteful way of keeping the memory of the departed pet
fresh in the mind of the owner. While the display of a photograph serves as a
reminder, it is generally limited in evoking a memory beyond that of the
particular scene portrayed. A static display, such as a photograph or an
artifact associated with a particular event, lacks the emotional impact of a
memorial display containing the physical remains of the pet. The retention of
cremation ashes in the home environment is an ever increasing way of promoting
the feeling in the owners that the pet is still with the spirit in the home. The
coupling of a storage receptacle for the cremation ashes along with an active
display of light is thought to broaden and enhance the impact of knowing that
the remains of the pet rests therein. It is felt that the association of an
active light, such as a flame, with a suitable display structure that magnifies
the effect of the flame, not only draws attention to the urn but suggests life
itself. As a result, the pet owner having the ashes included in an active
display is continually reminded of an active pet and its activities throughout
its life.
Abstract: A decorative urn for storing
cremation ashes in a lighted two part container. The base section receives an
ash-containing receptacle and supported thereon is a top section including a
recessed wick structure and full reservoir. The sections are light transmissive
so that light from the wick imparts a glow throughout the urn.
Index ================================================== ACCESS OFFICIAL GAZETTE AND
NOTICES Access this week's Official
Gazette http://www.uspto.gov/web/patents/patog/week36/OG/index2.htm
Excerpt
from OG Notices
Rules of Practice Before the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences
Fiscal Year 2004 BPAI Dispositions by Technology Centers Ex Parte Appeals
Index ================================================== PATENTS AVAILABLE FOR
LICENSING
to Learn More or to List a Patent
Plug-and-play smart data
cable The invention includes a smart, plug-and-play cable capable of
transparently translating between two different communication protocols. The
cables are "plug-and-play" such that two devices can be coupled together for
communication without the requirement that the user perform any special set-up
steps in order for it to work. To implement this plug-and-play functionality,
the smart cable of the present invention determines which communication
protocols are required at each of its ports, and selects, activates, enables, or
downloads the appropriate communication protocol drivers to enable proper
operation.
Electric shaver having orbitally moving blades An
electric shaver includes blades which while rotating around their own centers
also orbit around another axis, thus providing that the blades sweep a large
area.
Implantable fuel cell This invention makes use of an
electrostrictive material to increase the efficiency of a fuel cell as used
for the production of power within a human.
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