Understanding patent infringement.
By: sbbarca | Posted: 24th August 2009
To determine whether you have a problem with patent infringement you should first look and read the claims of the patent. If this is your patent that will obviously be easy. If not, then go to the USPTO website or Google patents and download a pdf copy of the claims. A quick look at the drawings will give you a pretty good cursory understanding of what you're up against. However, for more precise detail you will have to consult the claims.
The patent claims are found at the end of the patent. They will begin with numbers. The second step is compare the parts and limitations of the patent with the other product or service. When all those pieces, or limitations are found in the other product, there is patent infringement. If negative, then there is no patent infringement, with the possible exception of contributory, indirect infringement or the doctrine of equivalents. In which case you should consult with an experienced patent attorney for more detail.
Now here's a quick way to do it like the pros: just check out the independent claims. They are easy to spot because they will be either claim 1, and they will not reference other patent claims.
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