Pet Peeve: Patent Claims
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I have a new pet peeve: companies claiming to have a patent on something, but either they clearly do not (like Cloud9 claiming to hold the patent to Variable Process Foaming), or they won't tell you what it is. Many times it takes the form of "what we're doing is so unique that we have applied for a patent." Anyone can see patent applications online at uspto.org, and I have looked and looked for some of these patent applications without success. Point blank asking for the patent or patent application number inevitably meets with a stony silence. ...The world's only mattress with a U.S. patent pending design... Riiiight. ...our U.S. patent pending design allows you to remove and replace your memory foam... I doubt VERY seriously that anyone will be awarded a patent for a component mattress containing a removable layer of memory foam. There ARE some patents pending, but all are specific to some particular aspect of a component mattress, many having to do with various ways of creating a zoned mattress. Anyone can APPLY for a patent on anything they wish. Some patent applications are rather comical, and obviously filed for the sole purpose of being able to claim "patent pending." |
Re: Pet Peeve: Patent Claims
| Just because someone applied for a patent, it doesn't mean they have one, and even if they do, it doesn't mean the product is any good. So true! lol |