7 ms·

How the side door is patentable is beyond me. Apparently trucks have never had side doors before. The others just look generically futuristic & maybe aerodynam

How the side door is patentable is beyond me. Apparently trucks have never had side doors before. The others just look generically futuristic & maybe aerodynamic versions of a current semi.

LukeShu 8y ago
All 3 are design patents, which are patents on non-functional ornamental design of functional items. They aren't patenting side doors, they are patenting the way the side doors look.
- atonse 8y ago
  Still shouldn't be patentable. I understand if you're trying to prevent counterfeit. But Tesla trucks aren't trying to pass off as Nikola trucks or whatever vaporware that company has. Pure patent troll rubbish.
  - mark-r 8y ago
    Maybe rubbish, but if it's legal rubbish then there's a problem. Our patent system is screwed up beyond belief. I had thought that maybe design patents were a new thing, but a little research shows they aren't. The first was in 1842, and the Coke bottle in 1915 is a notable example. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design_patent https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design_patent The only ray of light is that a design patent is invalid if the design has a functional benefit.
    - TheAdamist 8y ago
      Invalid if functional? Can only hope that aerodynamic windshield patent is invalid for that reason then.
  - dragonwriter 8y ago
    The fact that Samsung phones were not trying to pass themselves off as Apple phones didn't protect them from being successfully sued over Apple design patents, so I'm not sure why the same thing would protect Tesla from Nikola.
    - jacquesm 8y ago
      They're both American companies this time around. If Apple had been Korean and Samsung American I would not have bet on the same outcome.
- NeutronStar 8y ago
  It doesn't even look the same, it's square and goes up to floor level for Tesla, Nikola's is round and doesn't go all the way down. And they barely patented it like a week ago. This is pure trolling.
  - dragonwriter 8y ago
    > And they barely patented it like a week ago. The patent applications were filed on Dec. 30, 2015. Patent applications aren't granted overnight.
    - jacquesm 8y ago
      For all the review they get they might as well be. I rarely see a patent where I think 'wow, that was deserved'. And when I do they are almost always on some deep technical subject that took a long time to research, validate and implement.

How the side door is patentable is beyond me. Apparently trucks have never had side doors before. The others just look generically futuristic & maybe aerodynamic versions of a current semi.

LukeShu 8y ago

All 3 are design patents, which are patents on non-functional ornamental design of functional items. They aren't patenting side doors, they are patenting the way the side doors look.

atonse 8y ago
Still shouldn't be patentable. I understand if you're trying to prevent counterfeit. But Tesla trucks aren't trying to pass off as Nikola trucks or whatever vaporware that company has. Pure patent troll rubbish.
- mark-r 8y ago
  Maybe rubbish, but if it's legal rubbish then there's a problem. Our patent system is screwed up beyond belief. I had thought that maybe design patents were a new thing, but a little research shows they aren't. The first was in 1842, and the Coke bottle in 1915 is a notable example. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design_patent https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design_patent The only ray of light is that a design patent is invalid if the design has a functional benefit.
  - TheAdamist 8y ago
    Invalid if functional? Can only hope that aerodynamic windshield patent is invalid for that reason then.
- dragonwriter 8y ago
  The fact that Samsung phones were not trying to pass themselves off as Apple phones didn't protect them from being successfully sued over Apple design patents, so I'm not sure why the same thing would protect Tesla from Nikola.
  - jacquesm 8y ago
    They're both American companies this time around. If Apple had been Korean and Samsung American I would not have bet on the same outcome.
NeutronStar 8y ago
It doesn't even look the same, it's square and goes up to floor level for Tesla, Nikola's is round and doesn't go all the way down. And they barely patented it like a week ago. This is pure trolling.
- dragonwriter 8y ago
  > And they barely patented it like a week ago. The patent applications were filed on Dec. 30, 2015. Patent applications aren't granted overnight.
  - jacquesm 8y ago
    For all the review they get they might as well be. I rarely see a patent where I think 'wow, that was deserved'. And when I do they are almost always on some deep technical subject that took a long time to research, validate and implement.