Patents on the soles of your shoes...: March 2023

Friday, March 31, 2023

Oh, patents! Orbiter smart cushion

Designed by the same team who built wheelchairs for the renowned physicist Stephen Hawking, the Orbiter smart cushion, is intended to increase seating tolerance for wheelchair users, enabling users to live an active seated lifestyle. Using a combination of intelligent real-time pressure and movement sensing, together with responsive and quantifiable inflation/deflation of the air contained in five cushion bladders, the technology redistributes and balances the user’s weight. Zoned distribution and balancing of the users’ weight to eliminate direct pressure on sensitive areas, not only in view of accelerating the healing process of pressure injuries, but to also prevent new injuries from occurring at pressure points. In fact, the smart distribution and redistribution of air contained in the five cushion bladers also functions like a massage, effectively promoting muscle blood flow, while reducing pressure points, and resulting in an overall decrease in fatigue.

Thus, the cushion is not only designed to adapt to any shifts in user movement, for the purpose of supporting the user’s new position with an optimized redistribution of the air contained in the cushion bladders. The cushion also shifts the inflation/deflation of the bladder zones, in the absence of user movement, thus massaging the user’s muscles, promoting blood flow, and effectively preventing any new pressure sores from forming, at load-bearing points.

The Orbiter cushion is also app-controlled. The app enables users both to visualize the pressure map, and to set levels of firmness, according to region. The app might also be used to indicate zones of discomfort, and to alert caregiving personnel. Alternatively, the cushion might be controlled by caregivers. The cushion is also designed to automatically alert caregivers in case the user slips, is unresponsive to using the cushion, or for monitoring performance during off-load exercises. The cushion is also energy-efficient as it turns off automatically when the user is not applying any pressure.

A controller drives the operation of the pneumatic cushion, together with pneumatic solenoid valves and pumps, sheathed with rubber and foam to minimize noise, and vibration. An electric subsystem, coupled to the pressure data, handles errors in inflation/deflation that might occur, and includes an automatic diconnect.

Winner of an Innovation Award at SXSW 2023 in the Patient Safety Technology category, the Orbiter smart cushion, masterminded by the Australian firm Kalogon, is a patented invention. The UN World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) patent, WO2023003784A1, titled Individual pressure zone controlled cushion and support, was awarded on January 26th, 2023, to the four inventors: Tim Balz, Aaron Jones, Christian Balcom, and Connor Crenshaw.

Below, an image of the Orbiter cushion, together with the keyed patent Figure 4. The patent Figure 4 depicts a schematic view of the five bladders, forming regions inside the cushion. The hoses used to inflate and deflate the bladder regions with air are also shown. The bladders, together with intelligent distribution and re-distribution of air, function to both massage the user’s musculature, and to redistribute pressure on the user’s load-bearing points.

The video below compares the shifting distribution of the Orbiter cushion pressure map, with the static pressure points map of an air flotation cushion.

Included below, the abstract of the invention.

A cushion promotes healthy blood flow within the body when the patient is sitting/lying down. A pressure controlling support automatically balances user weight, detects application of user weight, or otherwise detects when the user is at-risk for pressure sores. Pressure is dynamically redistributed by inflation/ deflation of individual bladders, rebalancing user support. The cushion prevents the user from applying their weight to impede their blood flow at an at-risk location or from cramping their musculature. The cushion also massages the user's musculature, by moving a pressure difference about selected bladders, promoting blood flow and reducing seating fatigue. The cushion detects changes in pressure at each bladder, to detect/ predict user fidgeting/ movement and adjust pressure in response thereto, to support the user's new position. [Abstract WO2023003784A1]

References

Stephen Hawking
https://www.hawking.org.uk/

Kalogen (website)
https://www.kalogon.com/

SXSW 2023 – Innovation Award winner – Patient Safety Technology.
https://www.sxsw.com/news/2023/2023-sxsw-innovation-awards-winners-announced/

Wednesday, March 29, 2023

Trademarked - The Tory Burch logo

The Tory Burch logo might look like a Maltese cross. However, upon closer examination, the logo actually comprises two “T”s that are mirror images of each other, inside a circle. The two “T”s with their curved lines are further meant to evoke the curvature of domes found in Moorish architecture.

According to the Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS), at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), the Tory Burch Logo is trademarked as the "TT" word mark, No. 90741568, with a registration renewal date on Sept. 13, 2022, valid for 10 years. The registration description states:

"The mark consists of an upright "T" directly below an inverted "T" all surrounded by a circle."

References

Tory Burch
https://www.toryburch.com/

USPTO - Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS)
https://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=login&p_lang=english&p_d=trmk

Monday, March 27, 2023

Oh, patents! Tory Burch compact powder case

The compact powder case shown below is also part of the Tory Burch by Tory Burch perfume and cosmetics collection, designed by the Chad Lavigne Studio. The design of this compact powder case was also patented. The US design patent, USD724787S1, titled Compact, was awarded on March 17, 2015, to Chad Lavigne and Tory Burch.

The patent Figure 1 is included below, together with an image of the marketed compact powder case. The patent Figure 1 depicts a perspective view of the compact design. You will notice dotted lines on the drawing, indicating those portions of the design that are unprotected. Thus, it is only one side, comprising the lid and base, of the cuboid compact case design that is protected by this design patent. One side, comprising lid and base, that repeats around the compact case, excluding the clasp closure with the Tory Burch logo.

As a reminder, a US design patent only covers the ornamental aspects of an invention design, in contrast to a US utility patent, which covers how an invention works, or is manufactured. Thus, the Tory Burch compact design patent covers only what the compact case sides look like. Separate US utility patents would be needed to respectively cover such potential utility patent inventions as the tri-color cosmetics formulation of the powder, the workings of the hinge that joins the two parts of the compact case together, while allowing them to rotate, or the operation of the clasp that is used to keep the compact case closed.

References

Tory Burch (website)

https://www.toryburch.com/

Chad Lavigne Studio

http://www.chadlavigne.com/

Sunday, March 26, 2023

Oh, patents! Tory Burch lipstick case

Belonging to the Tory Burch by Tory Burch perfume and cosmetics collection, designed by the Chad Lavigne Studio, the design of the lipstick case shown below is also patented. The US design patent, USD737522S1, titled Lipstick case, was awarded on August 25, 2015, to Chad Lavigne and Tory Burch.

The patent Figure 1 is included below, together with an image of the marketed lipstick. The patent Figure 1 depicts a perspective view of the patented lipstick case design. Notice that there are dotted lines on the drawing, indicating those parts of the design that are unprotected by the design patent. As a result, only one side of the lipstick case is covered. A side of the case that actually mirror-repeats on the rectangular, cube-shaped lipstick case.

As a reminder, a US design patent only covers the ornamental aspects of an invention. This is in contrast to US utility patents which cover how an invention works or is manufactured. Thus, the Tory Burch lipstick case design patent covers only how the lipstick case looks. Separate US utility patents would be needed to respectively cover such utility patent inventions as the formulation of the lipstick, or the mechanism inside the case, enabling the lipstick “bullet”, stored in the case, to deploy and retract.

Reference

Tory Burch (website)
https://www.toryburch.com/

Chad Lavigne Studio

http://www.chadlavigne.com/

Saturday, March 25, 2023

Oh, patents! Tory Burch perfume bottle cap

Tory Burch the first Tory Burch perfume, launched in 2013 as part of a larger Tory Burch line of cosmetics, is conditioned in a perfume bottle that was awarded several patents. Designed by Chad Lavigne Studio, master of iconic packaging for cosmetics, the Tory Burch perfume bottle was awarded the US Design patent USD728367S1, titled Perfume bottle, on May 5, 2015. The patent was awarded to both Chad Lavigne and Tory Burch.

Below, the Figure 1 extracted from the patent, together with an image of the small, marketed 50 ml bottle of Tory Burch Eau de Parfum by Tory Burch. The Figure 1 depicts a perspective view of the perfume bottle. The broken lines on the drawing indicate those parts of the perfume bottle that are unprotected by this design patent. Thus, you will notice that USD728367S1, in fact only covers the sculpted four sides of the cube-shaped Tory Burch perfume bottle cap.

As a reminder, a US design patent only covers the ornamental aspects of an invention, whereas a US utility patent covers how an invention works. As a result, this Tory Burch perfume bottle design patent covers what the sides of the perfume bottle cap look like vs. any aspect of the chemical composition of the perfume, or of the manufacture of the perfume bottle caps.

References

Tory Burch (website)

https://www.toryburch.com/

Chad Lavigne Studio

http://www.chadlavigne.com/

Monday, March 20, 2023

Oh, patents! Halo smart safety collar for dogs

Begone leashes! The Halo smart safety collar for dogs lets your dog roam free, anywhere you go, camping or traveling, and at your residence, without the need for enclosures, or physical restraints of any sort.

Below, a Halo Youtube video for a quick preview of the Halo virtual fence and smart safety collar for dogs.

Using the Halo app, comprising a GPS-connected map, the user simply draws a virtual fence, marking a specific location, which is stored in the dog's Halo collar. The Halo smart collar comprises a power source, a memory, a processor able to geolocate its own position, and sensors to determine motion and direction, as well as a communication interface able to receive and send data. Depending on the position of the collar relative to the virtual fence, the Halo smart collar sends customized corrective feedback to the dog. Customized corrective feedback, such as escalating sound, pre-recorded message, vibration or stimulation, not only to prevent the pet from crossing the virtual perimeter of the area marked on the map, but also to lead the pet away from the virtual perimeter, back into the enclosed safe area. Using the Halo system, owners can store up to 20 virtual fences in the dog's Halo collar.

The Halo virtual fence and smart collar system is actually much safer for dogs, and more practical or versatile for owners, than any in- or over-the-ground fence systems, or existing user-activated corrective collar systems. Because the geolocated information of a specific virtual area and perimeter is stored inside the Halo smart collar, and the collar processes the pet's geolocation relative to the perimeter of the stored virtual area information, owners do not have to constantly keep an eye on their pets to activate the corrective collar, nor do the dogs have to stay within range of radiofrequency signals to obtain feedback.

The Halo virtual fence is also more practical than in-the-ground electrical fences, because no digging is required for installing wires, and no obstacles such as driveways need to be circumvented during installation. Plus the Halo virtual fence is not subject to the power outages of any hardwired fences, or to lawnmower accidents that risk severing wires.

The Halo virtual fence is also much safer for dogs than over-the-ground fences, considering over-the-ground fences have openings, can easily be jumped, and cannot be set up anywhere, on camping or wilderness trips. Finally, Halo system users living next to lakes are even able to mark a portion of a virtual fence perimeter in the water, allowing dogs to jump in, and out of the water, next to their docks.

Designed for dogs "any size, any age, any breed", who love to run wild in the great outdoors, the Halo smart collar was originally designed to prevent the staggering number of road accidents involving pets. The Halo smart collar also prevents some of the ten million pets lost each year, considering that the collar enables users to keep track of their dog at all times, via their app, and the geolocated information emitted by the collar.

Finally, several modes already exist for the Halo system, such as a beacon system mode to keep dogs away from a specific dangerous spot or area, or a virtual leash mode to keep dogs at a much closer range. To use the collar in all of its modes, the app also includes 20 hours of training with one of the expert founding members of the Halo team. The training is designed to coach dogs to respond to the two-step Halo collar feedback.

The Halo smart collar was a finalist in the line-up for an SXSW 2023 Innovation Award, in the Design category. The Halo collar is also a patented invention. The US utility patent US11330803B2, titled Corrective collar utilizing geolocation technology, was awarded on May 17, 2022.

The abstract of the invention is included below, together with the patent Figure 1. The Figure 1 depicts the diagram of an exemplary Halo system, designed to geolocate a pet, wearing the Halo smart collar, within a virtually fenced area, and to provide corrective feedback to the pet, via the Halo smart collar. Corrective feedback, first to alert the pet that it is approaching the perimeter of an area virtually fenced, and secondly to guide the pet away from the perimeter, back to the safe area that is virtually enclosed.

The Figure 1 depicts a user device 110, typically a mobile phone, smartwatch, tablet, or laptop, in communication with a collar 120, equipped with processing, geolocation, and communication capabilities. The communication capabilities of the collar 120 are designed to transmit geolocation, and other motion and direction data, to the user device 110, via a network 130. The collar 120, and the user device 110, are in communication with a Geolocation Service Provider Server 140, equipped with a processor 142, and a memory 140, able to accurately process the location data, communicated by the collar 120.

The disclosed technology includes a pet collar that can be configured to determine its geolocational position and evaluate that position with respect to the geo-fence of a predetermined, geo-fenced “safe” zone. If the collar determines that its position is inside a safe zone but is near the geo-fence, the collar may be configured to provide a warning correction. If the collar determines that it is outside a predetermined safe zone, the collar can also be configured to provide a stronger correction to discourage the pet from continuing away from the safe zone. The collar may also be configured to guide the pet back to the safe zone such as by varying the strength and/or type of correction provided based at least in part on the distance of the collar from the geo-fence. [Abstract US11330803B2]

References

Halo

https://www.halocollar.com/

SXSW 2023 - Innovation Awards Finalists

https://www.sxsw.com/news/2023/2023-innovation-awards-finalists-announced/

Sunday, March 12, 2023

Kickstarted - The Birdbuddy

If you like watching birds, and you would like to meet the guests up close that come to your bird feeder, then the Birdbuddy is definitely the smart bird feeder for you!

Winner of the Innovation Award, in the Artificial Intelligence category, at the SXSW™ Conference, held in Austin, TX, March 10 - 19, 2023, the Birdbuddy, with app, is a smart birdfeeder. The Birdbuddy is smart because the feeder not only takes beautiful, high-resolution, pictures and videos of your bird guests, the Birdbuddy is also designed to identify approximately 1000 species that are likely to drop in and feed. Vistor identification that comes with bonus information about each species. The Birdbuddy also sends you notifications when there is a guest feeding, and when the feeder sensor has detected that the bird seed level is low. The Birdbuddy even comes with an optional solar roof accessory for powering the camera, which is otherwise powered via battery or USB cable.

Below, one of the owner-uploaded YouTube videos of first and second Birdbuddy visitors.

The Birdbuddy app collects data on all Birdbuddy guests. Thus, for example, on March 12, 2023, the Birdbuddy statistics had already recorded a sum total of 42,590,015 photos taken, 502 spotted species and 52,605 active feeders. Bird guest information, which is collected in a database of bird migrations and populations, and then forwarded to experts to help them better understand and protect birds. The data is also visually processed on maps showing sightings in North America, in real-time, for all species combined, or per species, such as for the Northern Cardinal, or the Tufted Titmouse.

Masterminded by a bird-loving group of developers and engineers, hailing from Slovenia, the Birdbuddy was kickstarted at Kickstarter, where it is available for pre-order, as well as on the Birdbuddy website.

References

Kickstarter: Birdbuddy – A smart bird feeder.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mybirdbuddy/bird-buddy-a-smart-bird-feeder

MyBirdbuddy

https://mybirdbuddy.com/

SXSW 2023 Innovation Award Winners

https://www.sxsw.com/apply-to-participate/innovation-awards/#finalists

Wednesday, March 8, 2023

International Women's Day (IWD) 2023

In celebration of International Women's Day (IWD), on March 8th 2023, the theme selected at UNWomen was: DigitAll: Innovation and Technology for gender equality.

UNWomen Executive Director, Sima Bahous, noted that while technology and innovation are game changers, with the power to accelerate gender equality and the rights of all women and girls, access remained a significant source of gendered inequality. A digital divide that disproportionately excludes lo-income, rural, migrant, elderly, and disabled women and girls. Indeed, UNWomen reported, on February 23rd 2023, that:

Women and girls remain underrepresented across the creation, use and regulation of technology. They are less likely to use digital services or enter tech-related careers, and significantly more likely to face online harassment and violence. This limits not only their own digital empowerment but also the transformative potential of technology as a whole—over the past decade, women’s exclusion from the digital sphere has shaved $1 trillion off the GDP of low- and middle-income countries.

Thus, the UWWomen 2023 IWD platform for action called for:

Closing all gaps in digital access and skills
Supporting women and girls in STEM
Creating tech that meets the needs of women and girls
Addressing technology-facilitated gender-based violence

Below, the UNWomen IWD 2023 video summed it all up, while inviting:

…governments, activists and the private sector alike to power on in their efforts to make the digital world safer, more inclusive and more equitable.

References

Bahous, S. (March 8, 2023). Speech: Technology and innovation to accelerate gender equality and the rights of all women and girls.

https://www.unwomen.org/en/news-stories/speech/2023/03/speech-technology-and-innovation-to-accelerate-gender-equality-and-the-rights-of-all-women-and-girls

UNWomen (Feb. 23, 2023). Power on: How we can supercharge an equitable digital future.

https://www.unwomen.org/en/news-stories/explainer/2023/02/power-on-how-we-can-supercharge-an-equitable-digital-future

UNWomen - Glossary: Gender and Technology

https://tinyurl.com/2a2x45ct