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Question about patents - is the act of pinch-to-zoom patented or the implementation(the algorithms, type of hardware needed etc.) patented? If it is the act th

Question about patents - is the act of pinch-to-zoom patented or the implementation(the algorithms, type of hardware needed etc.) patented? If it is the act that is patented, then as others have mentioned, its not necessarily original. If the implementation is patented, could there be alternative implementations? Did Samsung even actually copy Apple's implementation(at an algorithm level)?

bluedanieru 14y ago
The first one.
taligent 14y ago
It's closer to the second one. The implementation. It's just that in some cases it can be difficult nee impossible to implement it any other way. I would recommend reading some patents. Most are far more specific than you realise.
- ajross 14y ago
  The text of the patents is specific. The fact that you see judgements like this implies that the interpretation (at least by this jury) is as broad as it seems to be. No where in that verdict do I see a narrow, careful reading of the technicalities of multitouch UIs. They got asked questions of the form "Did this device infringe?" and answered "Yup", almost without exception. Where exactly is the subtlety you're talking about?
panacea 14y ago
It's both the first and second, and neither at the same time. It's Schrödinger's Pinch. ... Making this comment pains me slightly. It's a comment I wouldn't have made on HN a year ago, pithy (I think) and slightly humorous, but I'm not bringing specific domain knowledge into the discussion to answer a question. It's the sort of comment I would have refrained from making on reddit many years ago when I first visited, when I encountered great commentary from knowledgeable participants on the topic at had, and lurked.
- efraim 14y ago
  Then why are you doing it?
  - deleted 14y ago
    [deleted]
- jcfrei 14y ago
  could you at least elaborate a bit more why they are both patented and not patented at the same time? resp. name your sources?
  - jlgreco 14y ago
    Presumably because either position can be argued for or against with more or less the same legitimacy. Only once a jury "opens it up" is the "real" meaning decided.
bane 14y ago
Even better yet, Samsung makes the hardware which is capable of detecting multi-touch gestures!
- lttlrck 14y ago
  and?

bluedanieru 14y ago

The first one.

taligent 14y ago

It's closer to the second one. The implementation. It's just that in some cases it can be difficult nee impossible to implement it any other way. I would recommend reading some patents. Most are far more specific than you realise.

ajross 14y ago
The text of the patents is specific. The fact that you see judgements like this implies that the interpretation (at least by this jury) is as broad as it seems to be. No where in that verdict do I see a narrow, careful reading of the technicalities of multitouch UIs. They got asked questions of the form "Did this device infringe?" and answered "Yup", almost without exception. Where exactly is the subtlety you're talking about?

panacea 14y ago

It's both the first and second, and neither at the same time. It's Schrödinger's Pinch. ... Making this comment pains me slightly. It's a comment I wouldn't have made on HN a year ago, pithy (I think) and slightly humorous, but I'm not bringing specific domain knowledge into the discussion to answer a question. It's the sort of comment I would have refrained from making on reddit many years ago when I first visited, when I encountered great commentary from knowledgeable participants on the topic at had, and lurked.

efraim 14y ago
Then why are you doing it?
- deleted 14y ago
  [deleted]
jcfrei 14y ago
could you at least elaborate a bit more why they are both patented and not patented at the same time? resp. name your sources?
- jlgreco 14y ago
  Presumably because either position can be argued for or against with more or less the same legitimacy. Only once a jury "opens it up" is the "real" meaning decided.

bane 14y ago

Even better yet, Samsung makes the hardware which is capable of detecting multi-touch gestures!

lttlrck 14y ago
and?