3 ms·
It's a design patent, so yes. Previous use of an equivalent design on a TV show is a good as design anywhere else. On the other hand, if someone invents a work
by wanorris 15y ago
It's a design patent, so yes. Previous use of an equivalent design on a TV show is a good as design anywhere else.
On the other hand, if someone invents a working replicator, Star Trek will not count as prior art. :-)
- hugh3 15y agoOnly because the show didn't go into sufficient detail about how the replicator worked.
- stan_rogers 15y agoIt's just a serialized and retrieved transport. The key, as with the transporter, is in the Heisenberg compensators -- I have a feeling they may well be patentable under any system that allows patents.
- meric 15y agoUnless it was for a patent for the design of the said replicator...