IP consultant Nancy Edwards Cronin has an interesting suggestion for the Eco-Patent Commons (see my previous post on this new initiative to share patents having environmental benefits).ÃÂ In her Strategic Thinking column on Greenbiz.com (which the editors at Blawg ReviewÃÂ brought to my attentionÃÂ through this post on Securing Innovation), she recommends expanding the Commons beyond donated patents toÃÂ include “enabled invention disclosures,” written descriptionsÃÂ of inventions havingÃÂ the same level of detail as patents,ÃÂ inventions which companies wish to practice but do not want to patent because of the expense of the procurement process.ÃÂ In herÃÂ article, Cronin explainsÃÂ enabled inventionÃÂ disclosures this way:
Many companies successfully use enabled invention disclosures as part of their intellectual property (IP) strategies. Companies frequently have inventions that they do not wish to patent because the patent process is so expensive, including invention development costs, legal preparation and patent prosecution fees. However, companies also wish to prevent competitors from patenting those same inventions.
By using enabled invention disclosures to publish the invention, companies accomplish both goals: they save the cost of patenting but they also establish a ââ¬Åprior art barââ¬Â to obtaining the patent and make it impossible for competitors to claim it the invention as their own. Several Web site forums exist for publishing inventions, including www.ip.com and www.researchdisclosure.com.
Adding these disclosures to the mix, she says, would address what she sees as a criticalàshortcoming ofàthe Commons, i.e.,àpatented technology isàno longerà“cutting edge”àby the time a patent issues because of the lengthy application process in the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (PTO).àOf course, this observation has ramifications for all patents, not just those in the Commons repository, andàshe has a point that much patented technology becomes less relevant over time.àBut I’m not sure I buy the premise thatàissued patents become substantially de-valued during the admittedly longàjourney through the PTO.àPatents oftenàretain their value throughout the patent term and beyond.àIndeed, many patents are successfully enforced against infringers at theàtail end of the patent term.ÃÂ
Whether or not you agree with her argument about issued patents, her idea of adding invention disclosures to the CommonsÃÂ would almost certainly benefit the initiative and its participants byÃÂ increasing the valueÃÂ and utility of the available green technology.ÃÂ ÃÂ Of course,ÃÂ no independentÃÂ or targeted donations to the CommonsÃÂ would beÃÂ necessary becauseÃÂ enabled invention disclosures are by definition in the public domain and available to everyone.ÃÂ ÃÂ Instead, to make the technology available to greentech firms, it would just need to be made accessible via the Commons.ÃÂ ÃÂ Broadly, Cronin’s idea could be implemented in one of three ways.ÃÂ Either companies who publish environmentally-beneficial technology in these disclosures couldÃÂ provide theÃÂ publication information or citations to the Commons, the Commons itself could monitor the disclosure publications, or the publicationsÃÂ could alert the Commons of relevant published disclosures.ÃÂ However it’s done, I can’t argue with increasingÃÂ green idea and technology sharing.