Articles

Late-stage functionalisation has emerged as a valuable enabling tool within the arsenal of a medicinal chemist. As newer synthetic methods become developed for the generation of small molecules, so too has the chemical space that medicinal chemists will have access to. Of course, these methods are valuable to the R&D team – but did you know that late-stage functionalisation will also likely have an impact on the IP profession?

Each year the UKIPO publish facts and figures relating to the trade mark, patent and design filings of the previous calendar year. We have provided previous reports for TM activity 2021 and 2022. The UKIPO recently shared the figures for 2023 with us, and there are some intriguing patterns emerging - especially as regards examination of new TM applications.

Spiking Neural Networks (SNNs) represent the third generation of neural networks, offering a more brain-like approach to processing information. By utilising spiking neurons, SNNs promise energy efficiency and enhanced capabilities in time-dependent tasks, though challenges remain in training and applying them to conventional tasks.

Recent developments in EPO caselaw, particularly decision T 1741/22, highlight a significant deviation from established guidelines on patenting mathematical methods. This decision raises questions about the protection of software and equipment for analysing received measurements, potentially impacting a wide range of industries.

As part of its ongoing efforts to enhance the efficiency and consistency of trademark examination, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) has recently published a set of guidelines on how to describe a wide variety of goods and services to meet the levels of specificity deemed acceptable by CIPO. These guidelines are intended to supplement the notes found in CIPO’s Goods and Services Manual for “retired” terms that are deemed unacceptable without further specificity.

Canadian Trademark Opposition Proceedings permit applicants to request the Opposition Board to issue an interlocutory ruling to strike all or any portion of the opponent's statement of opposition. Such requests must be made prior to the filing and serving of the counter statement.

In a recent application before the UKIPO concerning a graphical user interface, or a GUI, an objection was raised against the drawings for them appearing to include “more than one design”. The design in question features 12 images, and shows a part of the image transitioning throughout the 12 illustrated stages.

There is no ‘ideal’ time for filing a patent application. A trade-off must be made between filing the ‘perfect’ patent application with data that exhaustively cover all possible embodiments falling within the scope of an ideal broad claim, and the need to secure legal certainty by obtaining a filing date. So, what happens if you need to file your application, but you don’t have time to obtain all the required data before the filing date?

The pictures on Instagram show bowls of fresh-looking caprese salad, with hunks of mozzarella, green basil, and vibrant tomatoes; red, yellow, and vivid purple. One of these tomatoes is not like the others. The purple tomato, from Norfolk Healthy Produce, gets its deep purple colour from high levels of anthocyanins in the fruit; the same chemicals are responsible for the lustrous hues of purple aubergines and blueberries.