Oh, patents! Daniel Rozin’s Mechanical Mirrors

Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

Usually, patents and art invoke two very different creative processes. Patents disclose inventions, which are required to be both useful and to fulfill certain conditions of patentability [35 USC 101], such as novelty [35 USC 102], and non-obviousness to those skilled in the art [35 USC 103]. All of which conditions and definitions are specified in the separate branch of Patent Law, set forth in the US Federal Code Title 35 (USC 35) and in the US Code of Federal Regulations Title 37 (CFR 37). Prior to being patented, inventions are also filed and subjected to a lengthy examination process at a government patent-granting agency, such as the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), in the United States, the European Patent Office (EPO), in Europe, regrouping countries party to the European Patent Convention, or other national Patent Offices, such as the Japanese Patent Office (JPO), or the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CIPA). 

Once granted, a patent then confers to the inventor(s), heirs or assignees, the right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or importing the invention, without prior licensing, or agreement with the inventors, heirs or assignees. Such patent rights are also granted for a certain period of time, usually 20 years for a US utility patent [35 USC 154], and 15 years for a US design patent [35 USC 173], contingent upon the payment of yearly maintenance fees, per the provisions of the US Federal Code Title 35, Article 41 [35 US 41].

Art, by contrast, is unregulated, unbound to the provisions of the Law, or the conferral of rights, and without utilitarian requirements, to name just a fraction of the more obvious differences. In rare instances, however, such irreconcilable differences in the creative process of art and patented invention come together, in an interesting reciprocal dynamic. Indeed, this is precisely what drives Daniel Rozin’s mechanical mirrors.

Rizon, an Israeli-American artist and NYU professor, whose art installations each depict different sorts of mirrors, (i.e.; surfaces where people are reflected), relies on patented inventions to make the installations work [Rozin, NYU]. Thus, Rizon is both artist and inventor, drawing on a combination of sensors, motors, custom software, video camera and computers to create his interactive digital art, each installation functioning as a mechanical mirror. All of the pieces are explorations at the intersection of viewer participation and image creation, powered by patented mechanical engineering, informing art. No one could otherwise conceive of wood pieces (whether round or square) or fluffy toys, functioning as mirror surfaces, capable of reflecting viewers, much less make all of the pieces of the installation actually work together as a mirror.

The following video showcases some of Rozin’s captivating mechanical mirror installations. In particular, the Penguins Mirror, the Wood Mirror, the Troll Mirror, the Pompom Mirror, the Peg Mirror, and the Fur Mirrors, are shown.  

The following US patents, awarded to Rozin, and most recent patent application, are members of patent families that include World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Canadian (CA) and Australian (AU) patents. Patents that each recite inventions, supporting the display of Rozin’s art installations, depicting mechanical mirrors.

• US6552734B1 - System and method for generating a composite image based on at least two input images.
• US6553138B2 - Method and apparatus for generating three-dimensional representations of objects.
• US6891561B1 - Providing visual context for a mobile active visual display of a panoramic region.
• US20020031252A1 - Method and apparatus for generating three-dimensional representations of objects.

References

[35 USC 41] Patent fees – Patent and trademark search systems.   https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/mpep-9015-appx-l.html#d0e301581

[35 USC 101] Inventions patentable. https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/mpep-9015-appx-l.html#d0e302376

[35 USC 102] Conditions for patentability - Novelty.   https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/mpep-9015-appx-l.html#al_d1fbe1_234ed_52  

[35 USC 103] Conditions for patentability - Non-obvious subject matter.   https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/mpep-9015-appx-l.html#al_d1fbe1_19797_b0  

[35 USC  154]  Contents and term of a patent - Provisional rights.   https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/mpep-9015-appx-l.html#d0e303482

[35 USC 173] Term of Design Patent. https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/mpep-9015-appx-l.html#d0e304510

China National Intellectual Property Administration (in English): https://english.cnipa.gov.cn/

Desimone, J. (Jan. 19, 2016) Q&A: Daniel Rozin reflects on his mirror artwork. MOCA – Museum of Contemporary Art, Jacksonville, FL. https://mocajacksonville.unf.edu/blog/Q-A--Daniel-Rozin-reflects-on-his-mirror-artworks/  

Daniel Rozin – NYU Tish School: https://tisch.nyu.edu/about/directory/itp/95804818

European Patent Office (in English): www.epo.org

Japan Patent Office (in English): https://www.jpo.go.jp/e/

US Code of Federal Regulations - Title 37    https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/mpep-9015-appx-l.html

US Federal Code - Title 35: https://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/mpep-9015-appx-l.html

United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO): www.uspto.gov