Oh, patents! BVLGARI® Serpenti (7)

Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

The US design patent, USD835541S1, titled Article of jewelry, was awarded on December 11, 2018, to Lucia Silvestri, BVLGARI®'s Creative Director for jewelry. The patented design covers the BVLGARI® Serpenti earrings designed by Silvestri. 

Included below, three patent figure drawings, respectively depicting a front view (Fig. 1), a right view (Fig. 5) and a bottom view (Fig. 7) of the Silvestri-designed BVLGARI® Serpenti earing. Three marketed embodiments of the design are also included. From top to bottom, the Silvestri-designed BVLGARI® Serpenti earrings, created: in rose gold, encrusted with full pavé diamonds and two rubellite eyes; in white gold, encrusted with full pavé diamonds and two emerald eyes; and in rose gold, encrusted with half-pavé diamonds and two malachite eyes. 

As a reminder: “a utility patent” protects the way an article is used and works (35 U.S.C. 101), while a “design patent” protects the way an article looks (35 U.S.C. 171) [MPEP Chapt. 1502.01; [R-07.2015]].

References

BVLGARI® (website)

https://www.bulgari.com/en-us/

MPEP – Chapt. 1502-01 – Distinction between design and utility patent

https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/s1502.html

Oh, patents! BVLGARI® Serpenti (6)

Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

Awarded the US Design patent USD835538S1, titled Article of jewelry, Lucia Silvestri is BVLGARI®’S Gem Hunter-in-Chief and Creative Director for jewelry. Silvestri is also one of the BVLGARI® jewelry designers. Among more than 1000 creations, Silvestri re-designed the BVLGARI® Serpenti collection. 

The patent figure drawing included below, together with three marketed embodiments of the patented design, are all BVLGARI® Serpenti pieces, designed by Silvestri.  

                                                  

As a reminder: “a utility patent” protects the way an article is used and works (35 U.S.C. 101), while a “design patent” protects the way an article looks (35 U.S.C. 171) [MPEP Chapt. 1502.01; [R-07.2015]].

References 

Abrams, C. (Aug. 16, 2018) A day in the life of Bulgari’s Creative Director Lucia Silvestri – Wall Street Journal.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-day-in-the-life-of-bulgaris-creative-director-lucia-silvestri-1534437861

Beckett, K. (Dec. 6, 2019) A Ruby Anniversary With Emeralds, Steel and Diamonds, Too. NY Times.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/06/fashion/jewelry-bulgari-lucia-silvestri-anniversary.html

BVLGARI® (website)

https://www.bulgari.com/

MPEP – Chapt. 1502-01 – Distinction between design and utility patent

https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/s1502.html

Oh, patents! BVLGARI® Serpenti (5)

Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

The BVLGARI® Serpenti collection includes necklaces. The US design patent USD779999S1, titled Article of jewelry, discloses the ornamental design of a BVLGARI® Serpenti necklace. The patent was awarded to Paolo Bulgari, great-grandson of the BVLGARI® [1] founder, Sotirio Bulgari [2]. The patent was filed on March 26, 2015, and granted on February 28, 2017.

Included below, the patent Figure 1, together with an embodiment of the patented BVLGARI® Serpenti necklace, with full pavé diamonds.  

As a reminder: “a utility patent” protects the way an article is used and works (35 U.S.C. 101), while a “design patent” protects the way an article looks (35 U.S.C. 171) [MPEP Chapt. 1502.01; [R-07.2015]].

_________

Notes
[1] The eponymous trademarked name BVLGARI® is spelled with the classical Latin alphabet.

[2] The founder Sotirio Bulgari was Greek. His family name “Bulgari” means “Bulgarian”.

References

BVLGARI® (website)

https://www.bulgari.com/en-us/

MPEP – Chapt. 1502-01 – Distinction between design and utility patent

https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/s1502.html

Oh, patents! BVLGARI® Serpenti (4)

Copyright ® Françoise Herrmann

Beyond watches, the BVLGARI® Serpenti collection includes different sorts of jewelry pieces. The US design patent USD606894S1, titled Bracelet, was awarded to Paolo Bulgari, great-grandson of the BVLGARI®[1] jewelry founder, Sotirio Bulgari [2]. The patent was awarded on December 29, 2009.

Included below, the patent Figure 1, together with an image of a marketed embodiment of the patented BVLGARI® Serpenti bracelet. The single-coil bracelet is designed in yellow gold, inlaid with diamonds.

                                       

As a reminder: “a utility patent” protects the way an article is used and works (35 U.S.C. 101), while a “design patent” protects the way an article looks (35 U.S.C. 171) [MPEP Chapt. 1502.01; [R-07.2015]].

Notes

[1] The eponymous trademarked name BVLGARI® is spelled with the classical Latin alphabet.

[2] The founder, Sotirio Bulgari, was Greek. His family name “Bulgari” means “Bulgarian”.

References

BVLGARI® (website)

https://www.bulgari.com/en-us/

MPEP – Chapt. 1502-01 – Distinction between design and utility patent

https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/s1502.html

Oh, Liz! BVLGARI® Serpenti (3)

Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

The watch pictured above is Elizabeth Taylor’s BVLGARI® Serpenti watch, which she is wearing in the picture next to it, in plainclothes, on the set of the Cleopatra movie, in Italy.

The Cleopatra movie was directed, in 1963, by Joseph Leo Mankiewicz, starring Elizabeth Taylor,  Richard Burton, and Rex Harrison, respectively in the roles of Cleopatra,  Marc Anthony, and Julius Caesar.  Cleopatra was the most expensive movie, then ever produced, and the movie that grossed the most earnings of that decade, in the USA, and Canada. It also received 9 nominations, at the 36^th Academy Awards ceremony.

According to Fasel (2013), speculation exists on how Taylor acquired the above BVLGARI® Serpenti watch; whether it was included as part of the contract for playing the role of Cleopatra, or whether it was gifted by Richard Burton. The sumptuous 65 Cleopatra costume changes of the movie, which earned the Best Costume Academy Award, included serpent accessories, in particular an upper arm cuff. Serpent accessories, which, according to Fasel (2013), might have contributed to the popularity of the BVLGARI® Serpenti collections.   

References

Fasel, M. (2013) BvlgariSerpenti Collection. Paris, France: Assouline.

Oh,patents! BVLGARI® Serpenti (2)

Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

The US design patent USD628092S1, titled Watch was awarded, in 2010, to Paolo Bulgari, great-grandson of Satorio Bulgari[1], founder, in 1884, of the eponymous BVLGARI®[2] brand.

The watch design disclosed in this design patent includes the popular “tubogas” strap. Tubogas, meaning “tube of gas”, comprises interlocking links that require no soldering. The links are slightly elastic, offering a perfect fit.  Thus, the watch disclosed in this design patent is part of the Bulgari Sepenti Tubogas collection. 

The figure drawing of the patented watch design, extracted from the patent cover page, is included below, together with one of the marketed embodiments of the design. A Serpenti Tubogas watch with stainless steel and 18k rose gold, double coil, bracelet, stainless steel case with diamond-set bezel, and guilloché-treated, silver opaline, watch dial. 

As a reminder: “a utility patent” protects the way an article is used and works (35 U.S.C. 101), while a “design patent” protects the way an article looks (35 U.S.C. 171) [MPEP Chapt. 1502.01; [R-07.2015]].

Notes

[1] The founder Sotirio Bulgari was Greek. His family name “Bulgari” means “Bulgarian”.

[2] The eponymous trademarked name BVLGARI® is spelled with the classical Latin alphabet.

References

BVLGARI®

https://www.bulgari.com/en-us/

MPEP – Chapt. 1502-01 – Distinction between design and utility patent

https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/s1502.html

Oh, patents! BVLGARI® Sepenti (1)

Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

The US design patent USD606886S1, titled Wrist watch, was awarded, in 2009, to Paolo Bulgari, the great-grandson of Sotirio Bulgari[1] [1857-1932], founder of the famous Italian brand BVLGARI®[2].

The Serpenti wristwatch design, disclosed in this patent, is one of many iterations of a collection that began in the 1940s. A collection that has shed its skin, almost every decade, one more popular Serpenti design, after another.

As a reminder: “a utility patent” protects the way an article is used and works (35 U.S.C. 101), while a “design patent” protects the way an article looks (35 U.S.C. 171) [MPEP Chapt. 1502.01; [R-07.2015]].

Below,  Figure 1 extracted from USD606886S1, together with a marketed embodiment of the patented design, in gold with inlaid diamonds, and mother of pearl. 

-----------

Notes

[1] The founder Sotirio Bulgari was Greek. His family name “Bulgari” means “Bulgarian”.

[2] The eponymous brand name BVLGARI® is spelled with the classical Latin alphabet. 

References

BVLGARI®

https://www.bulgari.com/en-us/

MPEP – Chapt. 1502-01 – Distinction between design and utility patent

https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/s1502.html

World AIDS Day 2019

Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

Just 40 years ago, AIDS patients were turned away at major hospitals, or they might be quarantined in broom closets, until they died. Nurses and doctors went to court, refusing to take care of  AIDS patients, much less touch them, love them or make them feel good, at a time when it was still unclear, exactly how AIDS was transmitted.

In 1983, a group of nurses and doctors changed the face of AIDS care and treatment at San Francisco General Hospital, opening what became known as Ward 5B. The documentary, titled 5B is the story of this ward, and the unconventional, groundbreaking means that were implemented to care for the patents, who walked in, mostly to die. 

Narrated in 2018 by the extraordinary nurses, doctors, staff and volunteers who founded the ward, in 1983, the documentary uses archival footage from the 1980s to chronicle victories and setbacks, at the height of the AIDS epidemic, prior to the discovery of ARTs (Antiretroviral therapies). A period of time when 3,000 people were diagnosed with AIDS, half of them dying, in San Francisco alone.

A must-see for anyone interested in the decriminalization of disease, and the humanization of care. Protocols for AIDS patient care and treatment, effective today, were developed in Ward 5B, forever changing the care, worldwide. 

Presented at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, co-produced by  Paul Haggis, Dan Krauss, Hayley Pappas, Rupert Maconick, Brett Henenberg, Guru Gowrappan, Brendan Gaul, and co-directed by Paul Haggis and Dan Krauss, the official trailer of the documentary 5B is included below.

References

UNFPA - United Nations Population Fund  - World AIDS Day 2019

https://www.unfpa.org/about-us
WHO - World AIDS Day
https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-aids-day

World AIDS Day - Rock the ribbon with us
https://www.worldaidsday.org/

Terminology – WOTTIES (3) Cambridge Dictionary WOTY 2019

Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

The Cambridge Dictionary WOTY* 2019 is upcycling.

Upcycling is defined as “the activity of making new furniture, objects, etc. out of old or used things or waste material.” (CambridgeDictionary WOTY 2019). The Upcycle Movement will add, to stress the difference with recycling, "in such a way as to create a product of higher quality or value than the original". An upcycled higher value or quality, such as sustainability, for which Forbes investment watch has noted that "87% of US millennial Internet users are willing to pay more". For example, Addidas upcycles ocean plastic waste, spinning it into the yarn that the company uses to knit sports shoe uppers. 

Cambridge Dictionary lexicographers recorded a 181% increase in the frequency of searches for the term upcycling, since it was added, in 2011, to the online Cambridge Dictionary. They also found that searches had doubled in the past year. A spike in usage attributed, on the one hand to the political connotations of the term upcycling, in regards climate change; and on the other hand, to the form of action that upcycling subsumes, which is perceived as highly desirable, and "feel good".

In fact, all of the terms on the Cambridge Dictionary shortlist of candidate WOTTIES** reflect the 2019 renewed interest in the politics of climate change, and youth-led commitment to action, as the following runner-up terms indicate.

• carbon sink noun

an area of forest that is large enough to absorb large amounts of carbon dioxide from the earth’s atmosphere and therefore to reduce the effect of global warming

• compostable adjective

something that is compostable can be used as compost when it decays

• preservation noun

the act of keeping something the same or of preventing it from being damaged

• plastic footprint

a measurement of the amount of plastic that someone uses and then discards, considered in terms of the resulting damage caused to the environment.

-----

For a primer on the WOTY upcycling, as one of several solutions to some of the root causes of climate change, consider the below video The Story of Solutions (2013), written by Annie Leonard and Jonah Sachs, directed by Louis Fox and produced by Free Range Studios. The Story of Solutions (2013) is one of the viral educational videos of The Story of Stuff Project, supported by the Tides Foundation.  

* WOTY - An acronym that stands for "Word Of The Year". It rhymes with "potty". 
** WOTTIES - Plural form of the acronym WOTY. 

Reference

Cambridge Dictionary’s Word of the Year 2019

https://dictionaryblog.cambridge.org/2019/11/04/cambridge-dictionarys-word-of-the-year-2019/
Petro, G. (Feb. 8, 2019) Upcycling your way to sustainability - Forbes Magazine
https://www.forbes.com/sites/gregpetro/2019/02/08/upcycling-your-way-to-sustainability/
The Story of Stuff Project
https://storyofstuff.org/
The Story of Stuff (2007) [21:16]
https://youtu.be/9GorqroigqM
La historia de las cosas (2007) [20:45]
https://youtu.be/ykfp1WvVqAY
The Upcycle Movement (Our Story)
https://theupcyclemovement.com/pages/our-story
Tides foundation
https://www.tides.org/

Terminology – WOTTIES (2) Collins Dictionary WOTY 2019 shortlist

Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

No less interesting than the WOTY* is the shortlist of WOTY candidates. In other words, the 2019 Collins list of potential WOTTIES from which the WOTY is finally selected, “winner of them all”. 

The following terms were shortlisted for the Collins Dictionary WOTY 2019 [Collins Word Lover’s blog(1)]:

• bopo (ˈbəʊpəʊ) noun also spelt BoPo: a movement advocating the view that people should be proud of the appearance of their bodies, or any aspect of this, especially size

• cancel (ˈkænsəl) verb: to publicly cease to acknowledge a person, organization, etc, esp on social media, in order to express disapproval of their activities or opinions

• deepfake (ˈdiːpˌfeɪk) noun, verb: (noun) a technique by which a digital image or video can be superimposed onto another, which maintains the appearance of an unedited image or video; (verb) to superimpose one digital image or video onto another so that it maintains the appearance of an unedited image or video

• double down (ˈdʌbəl daʊn) phrasal verb: to reinforce one’s commitment to a venture or idea in spite of opposition or risk

• entryist (ˈɛntrɪɪst) noun, adjective: (noun) a person who joins an existing political party with the intention of changing its principles and policies; (adjective) relating to the practice of joining an existing political party with the intention of changing its principles and policies

• hopepunk (ˈhəʊpˌpʌŋk) noun: a literary and artistic movement that celebrates the pursuit of positive aims in the face of adversity

• influencer (ˈɪnflʊənsə) noun: a person who uses social media to promote lifestyle choices, commercial products, etc to his or her followers

• nonbinary (ˌnɒnˈbaɪnərɪ) adjective. Also spelt non-binary: relating to a gender or sexual identity that does not conform to the binary categories of male or female, heterosexual or homosexual

• rewilding (riːˈwaɪldɪŋ) noun: the practice of returning areas of land to a wild state, including the reintroduction of animal species that are no longer naturally found there

Got a favorite?

* WOTY is an acronym that stands for Word of the Year. It rhymes with “potty”.

©Collins Dictionaries

                                 

  

References

Collins Word of the Year – The Collins word of the Year is ….

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/woty

Collins Word Lover’s blog

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/word-lovers-blog/

Collins Word Lover’s blog (1) - Nov. 7, 2019 – Collins Dictionaires  - Collins Word of the Year 2019 shortlist

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/word-lovers-blog/new/collins-word-of-the-year-2019-shortlist,580,HCB.html

Collins Word Lover’s blog (2) - Nov. 7, 2019 - Ian Brookes -  From ‘Brexiety’ to ‘prorogation’: How Brexit has changed the way we use language in 2019

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/word-lovers-blog/new/from-brexiety-to-prorogation-how-brexit-has-changed-the-way-we-use-language-in-2019,577,HCB.html

Collins Word Lover’s blog (3) - Nov. 7, 2019 – Collins Dictionaires - The rich tapestry of language provides a varied Word of the Year 2019 list

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/word-lovers-blog/new/the-rich-tapestry-of-language-provides-a-varied-word-of-the-year-2019-list,578,HCB.html

Terminology – WOTTIES 2019 (1) Collins Dictionary Word of the Year

Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

T’is the WOTY* season anew! The Collins Dictionary lexicographers have just named Climate strike as WOTY 2019. 

Climate strike, the winning Collins WOTY 2019, is defined variously as “a protest demanding action on climate change”, or "a form of protest in which people absent themselves from education or work in order to join demonstrations demanding action to counter climate change." (Collins Word of the Year)  

Although the term appeared in 2015, in connection with the Paris UN Climate Change COP21 (Conference of the Parties), Collins lexicographers registered a 100-fold increase of the term, in 2019. A surge in usage attributed to youth activism, led by the young 16-year old Swedish activist, Greta Thunberg.

Indeed, since 2018, following Thunberg's intervention (Thunberg, 2018), at the UN Climate Change COP24 meeting, in Katowice, Poland, hundreds of youth-led climate strikes have taken place, in more than 270 cities. Just this past Sept. 20th, 2019, on the occasion of the New York UN Climate Summit, youth strikes for climate change were attended by an estimated 4 million people, around the globe, from Mumbai to Manhattan (Kaplan, et al., 2019).

Collins dictionary lexicographers select the WOTY based on close observation of the Collins Corpus, a 4.5 billion word database, with a “huge range of sources of spoken and written English, including newspapers, radio and other types of media, from all over the world” (Collins Word Lover’s Blog).  A database where public submissions of new words are both welcome, and vetted, for inclusion. The sorts of considerations that are part of the Collins Corpus monitoring process include: frequency, breadth of usage, breadth of sources, and lifespan of the term. Terms are rarely removed. They are indexed as obsolete or archaic if they have dropped out of use, and old fashioned if their usage is dropping.

* WOTY is an acronym for “Word of the Year”. It rhymes with “potty”.

© Collins Dictionaries

Reference

Collins Word of the Year (portal) – The Collins Word of the Year is ….

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/woty

Collins Word Lover’s blog

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/word-lovers-blog/

Collins Word Lover’s blog–Nov. 2, 2016 – Collins Dictionaries - Collins Word of the Year 2016 Q & A

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/word-lovers-blog/new/collins-word-of-the-year-2016-q-a,326,HCB.html

Collins Word Lover’s blog–Nov.7 2019 - David Shariatmadar - These are strange, anxiety-inducing times – but there are reasons to be cheerful.

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/word-lovers-blog/new/collins-2019-word-of-the-year-shortlist,576,HCB.html

Kaplan, S., Lumpkin, L., and B. Dennis (Sept. 20, 2019) We will make them hear us: Millions of youth around the word strike for action
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2019/09/20/millions-youth-around-world-are-striking-friday-climate-action/

Thunberg, G. (2018) Full Speeh at UN Climate Change COP24 Meeting, in Katowice, Poland.

https://youtu.be/VFkQSGyeCWg

Oh, patents! Fendi® (5) Handag straps

Copyright Françoise Herrmann

Fendi® has created a large selection of handbag straps, both to accessorize and transform handbags into shoulder bags. Fendi® handbag straps are patented in the US design patent USD841985S1, titled Strap for bag. The patent was awarded to Maria Silvia Venturini Fendi. 

Below, the patent figure 1.2, showing the Fendi® handbag strap. According to the patent, the strap break lines, drawn on the patent figure 1.2, are meant to indicate the “indeterminate length of the strap”. The patent further specifies that the appearance of anything showing in between the break lines is beyond the ornamental design covered by the patent. 

As a reminder: “a utility patent” protects the way an article is used and works (35 U.S.C. 101), while a “design patent” protects the way an article looks (35 U.S.C. 171) [MPEP Chapt. 1502.01; [R-07.2015]]. 

Included below the patent figure 1.2, some of the varied, long and short, marketed Fendi® strap models, designed for the Fendi® Baguette, and many other Fendi® bag styles.

References

Fendi® USA

https://www.fendi.com/us

MPEP – Chapt. 1502-01 – Distinction between design and utility patent

https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/s1502.html