4 ms·
> Why is this bullshit platitude always a response to anyone complaining about a patent? Because "the claims" define what the patent actually covers. Note tha
by anamax 14y ago
> Why is this bullshit platitude always a response to anyone complaining about a patent?
Because "the claims" define what the patent actually covers.
Note that the claims can't be read in isolation. The words in the claims get their meaning from the specification. For example, a claim could use the word "lawnmower" to refer to what you and I would call a banana by defining "lawnmower" appropriately.
Just looking at the claims is better than nothing, but is still basically useless.
- monochromatic 14y ago> For example, a claim could use the word "lawnmower" to refer to what you and I would call a banana by defining "lawnmower" appropriately. Yeah, a patentee can be his own lexicographer, but... I've never seen anything like this in practice, and I've read a lot of patents. Reading the claims in isolation generally gives you a pretty good idea of what the patent's about, once you get the hang of claim reading.