A post from student blogger Josh

Who doesn’t love final exams? Everyone! Yay! Your professors hate grading them, you dislike studying for them, and they loom in everyone’s mind from the moment Thanksgiving is finished until you finally put your pen down on the last day of the semester. By the time you start MSPL you’ve had at least 8 rounds of finals, and yet they’re still as annoying and stressful as ever. You certainly don’t want my advice on studying for finals, nor do you want to imitate my study habits. What you do want is to finish those papers, give those talks, take the tests, and then go home and sleep until Christmas rolls around.

So how does one look on the bright side and enjoy life for these next couple of weeks? Well it may sound nerdy, but hearing about my MSPL classmates and their respective capstone projects as they near the completion of a semester’s worth of work is exciting. Seeing everyone in the program come from being unable to claim the chairs we sat in to defending a complex piece of intellectual property for a real inventor is actually extremely cool. It’s a constant reminder of how far we’ve come in just 4 months. I’ve had semesters where I learned new forms of mathematics, or learned to think of mechanical processes in new ways; but I’ve never come so far in learning a whole new skillset in such a short period of time. The fact that we can reasonably be expected to perform at this level may be somewhat stressful, but it’s also a testament to our work ethic and the quality of education we have received at the hands of our mentors.

The fact that we’ve made it this far is worth celebrating; unfortunately, we can’t actually do that until the semester is over. But there is that light at the end of the tunnel to look forward to, and we’ll all make it out just fine. To those of you who read this and aren’t members of MSPL, good luck on your finals. Stay tuned for the mental breakdown I will inevitably have on this page next week, because today instead of doing more work I will be pigging out on leftovers and watching the Seahawks blow a 4^th quarter lead.

A post from student blogger Brittany

I woke up this past Saturday morning feeling refreshed and ready to complete my slide deck for my capstone presentation. I have blackout curtains they I keep closed ALL THE TIME because my sleep is very important, so for a change I decided to open them to let a little light into my bedroom. I was blinded by the amount of white I saw. There had been reports of snowfall but it didn’t seem like people were worried but I don’t think they were prepared for the winter wonderland that would greet them as they left the house. Lucky me I didn’t have to leave the house, it was my first Saturday off from work from my second job (LEARN TO SAY NO) so I was able to sit at home all day and work on upcoming assignments. From sun up to sun down it snowed, the weatherman predicted 7-10 inches and I don’t think his calculations were far off.

While I was fortunate enough to not have to leave my house, working on my slide decks for the upcoming capstone presentations was probably just as tumultuous as battling the elements. By the end of my PhD I was a bit of a pro when it came to making PowerPoint presentations but that was because in part I had been adding and tweaking things as I went along and by the end the information was second nature. The goal of the presentation is to convince my capstone mentor that I understand the new technology well enough to write a good claimset while simultaneously educating him on the most crucial aspects of Patent Law and Prosecution.

Despite the work that went into completing the slide deck, I was astounded by how much I had actually learned and retained throughout the semester. It’s crazy to think that just a little over four months ago I had no idea about what it took to be a patent agent, but now I was drafting claims left and right (disclaimer: they may not be the best claims) and holding conversations with my peers and more senior professionals about patent law.

A post from student blogger Brittany

Sitting in our capstone class and Karen starts spewing deadlines for end of the semester assignments as we greet her with blank stares. My blank stare was due to the fact that unbeknownst to me, I had completely missed an entire aspect of technology regarding one of my capstone projects which meant I had to start from scratch writing a picture claim, my broad claim and my dependent claims. Luckily for me, we have spent so much time discussing drafting claims that I knew the exact approach I would need to take in order to complete all the assignments in a timely fashion.

The aforementioned happened because I had decided to reread the technology disclosure to ensure that I was drafting claims that covered the entire scope of the technology, and then it suddenly became painfully apparent that I was missing an entire claimset. As someone still very new to the field of patent law, I am not surprised that I missed a portion of the new technology. This issue made me realize that I must be be extremely meticulous in my approach to reading technology disclosures and although I am highly educated, I must gather information from the inventor in such a way they I may come across as annoying or lacking knowledge about the background of the disclosed technology. I would hope that this method of gathering essential information from the inventor would allow me to draft the most complete claimset as to appease both the client and the USPTO ( let’s be honest…..it’s pretty difficult to please those guys).

All in all I’m glad that I was able to identify and have time to correct my mistake in a timely manner because I would hate to get embarrassed at the capstone presentation by Karen and/or my inventor. These things and others will happen but pushing forward and getting as much hands-on experience will be the best way to learn from my mistakes. One of our professors once told us that it takes drafting at least 20 patent applications before you feel comfortable enough to determine whether you are good or bad at this patent stuff so I have a few more to go before I make that decision.

A post from student blogger Nicole

There are three important things when dealing with an invention for a patent.  The invention must be nonobvious, novel, and useful.  Before this program I actually thought the only thing you needed to get a patent was a new invention.  Unfortunately I was wrong.  The invention has to be nonobvious, useful, and fit into a statutory category as well.  But what is this nonobvious thing I’m talking about?  How can something be nonobvious?  Well you see, when you have an invention you have to research it to make sure it’s not out there already.  So when you come across two things that when put together create your invention, that means your invention is obvious.  But you were so excited to create this invention! It was so unique in your mind and if it was so obvious then why wasn’t it already invented!   Yeah it doesn’t really make sense.  The world of patent law is an enigma.  But don’t give up too soon because there are patent agents or lawyers out there that will put their blood, sweat, and tears into your invention to find some part of it that can be patented.  Another example of obviousness would be if an existing invention is made with a new material, it would be considered novel but it would also be considered obvious.

Now that you’ve figured out your invention is new and nonobvious, let’s move on to whether or not it’s useful.  It has to be able to function.  So nothing that violates laws of physics is allowed or anything straight up crazy like that Godly powers patent I talked about back in September.  Once you figured out it’s useful you have to determine if it fits into one of the five categories: process, machine, article of manufacture, composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement.  A process is a series of operations and is as simple as it sounds, like the process of bathing your cat without injury.  A machine is a device consisting of a series of fixed or moving parts and could be something like a machine that turns pages of a book for you.  An article of manufacture is a simple invention with few or no moving parts and could be something as simple as a pencil.  A composition of matter is a unique arrangement of items like glue and plastics.  A new and useful improvement would be something like a method of converting a video game controller into a laser pointer.  I think I’d like to get my hands on one of those game controllers.  Well now that everyone has their facts straight, no one should forget all the important things that go into getting a patent.

A post from student blogger Brittany

As I progress in the MSPL program the realization of sitting for the Patent Bar Exam looms over my head like a dark cloud that I can’t get away from. Recently, our cohort had the pleasure of speaking with a former MSPL student that gave us great insight into how she prepared for the exam and the job search. She emphasized to us that we should take the Patent Bar prior to applying for jobs because in addition to the MSPL curriculum, it makes us that much more competitive. That meeting kicked the entire cohort into high gear as an email requesting study groups quickly followed. It is great to be surrounded by a group of people that push me to do my best and support one another. In addition to the study groups, I have decided to maintain a daily study schedule because I know there is no way in hell I can study for the exam in one week and expect to pass as did the former MSLP student above. Referring to my last blog post, you all know I have a few issues with time management so I would end up pulling my hair out if I only gave myself a week.

In addition to the study material that was so graciously bestowed upon us prior to fall break *insert side-eye*, the Patent Law and Prosecution course has been extremely helpful for preparing for the exam as well. During every class we have sample bar exam questions and the midterm consisted primarily of MPEP questions. You don’t know what the MPEP at this point and you should be rather grateful for that, but if you want to be a patent practitioner it will be your go-to guide for all things patent law.

So all in all, I’m pretty happy that winter is coming so that I can hibernate at home or in the library in order to get some effective studying completed and pass the bar before I start applying for jobs next semester. I can only hope that my frustrations during this time do not rear their ugly heads in my upcoming blog posts but just remember THIS TOO SHALL PASS.

A post from student blogger Nicole

There comes a time in the semester when you start to write claims.  When I started to write mine it was weird.  That’s the best way I can put it.  Weird.  The teachers warn you of its sorcery, but you don’t think about it until it’s time to write them.  It’s like thinking from a different part of your brain.  The part where you look at something as its pieces instead of as a whole.  We all view everything as the bigger picture.  Let’s take a lanyard, for example.  You just see it as something that goes around your neck or is attached to your car keys.  But really look at it.  Are there designs?  Are there different materials?  How are the materials attached to each other?  What is the structure of it, how do the parts interact with each other?  Here is an example of a lanyard connector claim: a coupling portion extending from the distal end of the lanyard connector body to thereby allow selective attachment of an attachment to the lanyard connector.  Weird right?  Who knew you would ever have to explain something that way.  This is the beginning of working out a new muscle.  It’s going to be tough at first, but it will get better.  I hope.  I’m just kidding, I know it will get better.  All the teachers are more than willing to help you get through it, but not just get thought it, understand it.  Hopefully we will be able to write claims as easily as writing our names.

A good way to start writing a claim would be to write a picture claim.  This is describing every part of the invention.  You actually write all the details of the invention and all the parts of it working together as a whole.  You want to make a list of all the nouns and then describe how they work together.  It is important to describe how everything interacts with each other.  Yes, again it will be weird, but you get the hang of it.  Don’t worry if you’re slow at it because that’s exactly how I am.

Once the picture claim is written you will prune and distill it to become the broad claim.  This is getting rid of anything that is unnecessary and making things more general.  You want your claims to cover as much as possible so that nobody can find a way around your invention.  Nobody wants their patent to be Swiss cheese.

Well I hope you enjoyed my crash course about claims and that I didn’t scare you away!  When you finally end up writing claims the first thought will be, “this is weird”.  Yes I realize I’ve said weird a bunch of times, probably too many, but it’s the perfect fit.

A post from student blogger Josh

Well, it’s that time of the semester again, where we’re all either studying for midterms or putting a truly epic effort into procrastination. Since I’m currently participating in the later of those two options, I figured I should post something about things you can do other than study that will assist you in life as a graduate student.

1). Read a book. The book doesn’t have to be a technical manual, and it doesn’t have to pertain to patent law in any way. While this will absolutely not help you to pass your exams, reading well – written texts is a great way to improve your writing skills. If you intend to be a patent agent, those skills come in handy every day. While there’s the foreign land of patent applications, where regular English doesn’t apply, patent agents are also in constant correspondence with clients and attorneys. Learning to communicate concisely and effectively in written form is important for many facets of your career. I’m currently avoiding studying by burying my nose in Hunter S. Thomson’s “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas”. While I initially intended to write this post in Thomson’s style as an exercise, I’ve found that (given Notre Dame’s zero tolerance policy for certain behaviors) this would be an unwise idea. However, I do fear and loath midterms, so the title will remain.

2). Figure out the rest of your life. I just discovered that my apartment has been 65 Fahrenheit for the past week because apparently, one has to turn on the heater via the thermostat control panel. Now that things are toasty and warm here, I’ve also cleaned my dishes, restocked the kitchen, and swept/scrubbed every hard surface and carpet available. Did this help me study? No. But it had to be done at some point, and now I feel like less of a frozen slob.

3). Write a blog post. If you’re fortunate enough to get the digital media fellowship that MSPL offers, take it. The tuition discount is worth it, and sometimes it helps to take a break from the more rigorous MSPL material by just writing about the program.

4). Read publications on Patently0, IP Law 360, and other groups that discuss intellectual property law. These offer new ways of thinking about the law, and also make great references for in class discussions. Plus, while you’ll never be tested on this material, having an understanding of current topics in IP is critical to practicing patent law as a professional.

5). Learn about the technologies that your professors work closely with. Professor Wack (patent law and prosecution) has spent many years working on patents in biomedical engineering, specifically pertaining to artificial limbs and joints. Being familiar with these technologies gives you as a student a background for better understanding many of the examples used in class. For you automotive people (like me), learn specifically about how the parts of a car actually fit together. Professor McGlynn’s brief examples regarding transfer cases, gearboxes, and differentials that he uses in class are best understood if you actually know what these things are. None of this knowledge is essential to doing well in the courses, but having it certainly never hurts.

6). Know your deadlines. Make a calendar if you have to, but know when you have exams, meetings, and assignments. It’s a lot harder to mess up one of these things if you are well aware of them in advance. Time management doesn’t suddenly stop becoming a necessary skill when you graduate.

7). Have a social life. Make plans to do something fun as soon as your midterms are over. For instance, the Linebacker Inn has $7 pitchers of decent beer on Mondays. If you’re more of a foodie, there are all sorts of places to eat in South Bend, so grab some friends or a special someone and go enjoy a decent meal. See a movie, go dancing, learn to ride a motorcycle, take a road trip… it really doesn’t matter. Do whatever floats your boat, as long as it’s worth waiting for. I highly recommend bringing a friend or two along. Great times, like cheap bottles of wine, are always better when shared.

Look at that. I just burned half an hour. I guess that means I should probably try not to fail my midterms.