patent

Using ChatGPT! – Can ChatGPT be used for patent work? –

  • 2025年02月14日
#patent

ChatGPT

　Hello, this is Hiro.
In recent years, the evolution of AI technology has been remarkable, and its use in the patent industry is progressing, with the use of ChatGPT and other generative AI in patent searches and as a tool to assist in the preparation of specifications.
The other day, I attended a seminar (hands-on workshop) on how to use ChatGPT in responding to reasons for refusal. In the exercises at that seminar, ChatGPT presented proposed amendments and arguments that at first glance seemed appropriate. However, it is ultimately the job of patent attorneys and other specialists to check and judge whether the suggestions are really appropriate and whether there are any legal issues, and if there are any errors, they need to be corrected, so at the moment I got the impression that it is not easy (rather difficult) to use ChatGPT to improve the efficiency of work related to responding to reasons for refusal. On the other hand, ChatGPT is good at summarizing and explaining long documents in a short time. This ability is far superior to that of humans, and I thought it could be used conveniently when there is a need to understand the contents of a large number of patent documents in a short time.

a simple illustration inspired by the content of the Patent No.6691280

　After the seminar, I loaded various patent documents (PDF patent gazettes) into ChatGPT and asked it to explain their contents.
The following is an example of a conversation (input prompt and ChatGPT response example) in which ChatGPT (4o) explains the contents of a patent document (Patent No. 6691280: patent holder “Commissioner of the Japan Patent Office”) for an invention (“management system and management method”) by a patent office employee in a way that even an elementary school student can understand.

——————————————-
■Input prompt:
JPB006691280.pdf (←attached)
Please explain the contents of the attached patent document in a way that even elementary school students can understand.

■ChatGPT response:
This patent document (JP 6691280 B1) is about a system that efficiently manages patent information from around the world and makes it easier to search. If I explain it in a way that even elementary school students can understand, it would be as follows

1. What problem does it solve?
Many inventions are registered as patents around the world. However, since the way patents are written and the format of the data differs from country to country, it is very difficult to manage them all together.
For example, if you went to a library and the Japanese books and English books were all placed separately, it would be difficult to find the books you were looking for, wouldn’t it? If all the books were organized according to the same rules, it would be much easier to find the books you were looking for.
This invention is a system that organizes patent information so that it can be easily searched.

2. How does it solve the problem?
This system does the following things.
1. Gathers patent information from around the world
→ Automatically collects patent data from each country.
2. Organizes the data
→ Assigns a number to each patent, and converts information written in different ways into a common format.
3. Translates the data
→ Automatically translates foreign language patents so that they can be viewed in the same language.
4. Classifies the data using AI
→ Classify the patents by type of invention, e.g. “this patent is related to automobiles” or “this patent is related to computers”.
5. Save to the database
→ Register the organized patent information in a database so that it can be searched.

3. What happens when you use it?
With this system, searching for and managing patents becomes much easier.
• People at the patent office can quickly look up past inventions
• When a company makes a new invention, they can quickly check whether there are any similar patents
• Researchers can easily look up the latest inventions
In other words, it’s like creating a “magical library where you can quickly search through lots of inventions”.

Thanks to this invention, inventions from all over the world will be organized and made more convenient to use!
——————————————-

How was it? After a few seconds to load the attached file (PDF of the patent gazette), the above text appeared to flow smoothly. It is explained concisely and clearly, using bullet points and boldface decorations.
　What if you asked it to explain it in an even easier-to-understand way?

——————————————-
■Input prompt:
Next, please explain it in an even easier-to-understand way that even young children can understand.

■ChatGPT’s response:
A library of amazing inventions! 📚✨
If there were all sorts of toys jumbled up in a toy box, wouldn’t it be hard to find the toy you wanted to play with? 😵💦
If you could sort the toys into categories and make it so you could easily see where everything was, it would be even more fun to play with them!
This invention is a system that makes it easy to find new ideas by organizing them neatly in a notebook called a “patent”!

How do you organize them?🤔
1️⃣ Collect a lot!
　We’ll collect lots of patent notebooks from all over the world! 📖🌍
2️⃣ Arrange them in the same shape!
The way the notebooks are written is all over the place, so we’ll arrange them all in the same way! 📚✨
3️⃣ Translate them!
We’ll make it so that you can read the foreign language notebooks in Japanese! 🌎➡️🗾
4️⃣ Grouping!
Like “Car ideas🚗” and “Robot ideas🤖”, we’ll sort them by the same type!📂
5️⃣ Search!
If you say “Show me this idea!”, you’ll be able to find it right away!🔍

What happens if we have this?😃
✨ It makes it easier for people who work on researching patents!
✨ It makes it easier for people at your company to quickly check whether an idea is new or not!
✨ It makes it easier for people doing research to find things like “I didn’t know this kind of invention existed!”
In other words, it’s a system that helps you organize your invention notebook so that you can find what you’re looking for quickly, just like cleaning out a toy box so that you can find the toy you want to play with straight away! 🎊✨
That’s amazing! 😊💡
——————————————-

　It’s certainly easy to understand, even for young children. The examples are aimed at children, and even pictograms that match the context are used. At the end, there is even a comment on ChatGPT (“That’s amazing! 😊💡”). There are no typos or omissions, and the text is easy to understand from a child’s perspective, and to me, it looks like a text written by a human.

The generative AI is still continuing to evolve. We plan to continue to consider ways to use it in our work.

　The two illustrations in this article were generated by ChatGPT (4o), and are “a simple illustration inspired by ChatGPT” and “a simple illustration inspired by the content of the Patent Gazette (Patent No. 6691280)”.

Small eyelash curler

  • 2025年01月29日
#patent

It’s Swimmer.
The image shows a cosmetic accessory that I bought without thinking when I saw the word “patent” on the product shelf at my regular drugstore. It’s a curler that holds the eyelashes from above and below to curl them.

eyelash curler

The product did not have a patent number on it, so I tried searching for it on the patent information platform J-PlatPat by entering the company name, and found several patents for eyelash curlers. The patent for the product I bought has expired, but it seems that the product has continued to be improved since then.

Personally, I like the fact that it is very compact and doesn’t take up much space in my makeup bag, as well as the fact that it curls my eyelashes.

Eyelash curler
https://www.j-platpat.inpit.go.jp/c1801/PU/JP-2005-312712/11/en

Vermicular – Ingenuity in Communicating the Goodness of the Product

  • 2025年01月21日
#patent #trademark

The other day, I went to the Vermicular Restaurant The Foundry, which is located along the Nakagawa Canal.

Vermicular Restaurant The Foundry

The Vermicular Restaurant The Foundry is located within the Vermicular Village, which is run by Aichi Dobie Co., Ltd., a long-established casting manufacturer that was established in 1936.

Vermicular Village is always busy, so it was difficult to get a table, but I made a reservation for lunch to coincide with the 5th anniversary renewal.
At this restaurant, which has a relaxed atmosphere, you can enjoy dishes cooked using the Vermicular brand of cast-iron enamel pots. These pots are characterized by their airtightness and the fact that they can be used for anhydrous cooking, which involves heating food without using water.

On this day, we had a set meal of rice cooked in a Vermicular rice cooker and seven side dishes, as well as a soup curry cooked without water. The rice was served in a Vermicular rice container.

Vermicular

Vermicular

We could really understand how delicious the rice cooked in the “Vermicular Rice Cooker”, which aims to be the world’s best rice cooker, was by actually eating it.
I was impressed that the Vermicular pot stand has a built-in magnet, so that even if you lift up the Vermicular, it will move together with the pot stand, but when I looked into it, I found that the technology that makes it easy to remove the pot stand from the Vermicular, which is attached to the Vermicular pot stand with a magnet, has been patented.

In addition to the product exhibition and sales space and restaurant, the Vermicular Village also has a bakery cafe that serves bread baked in Vermicular, as well as cooking classes, and I felt that the company had made efforts to ensure that visitors could understand the quality of the product by actually using Vermicular to cook and eat food. I also think that this is a sign of the company’s confidence in its own products.

VERMICULAR, VERMICULAR VILLAGE, and VERMICULAR RESTAURANT THE FOUNDRY are registered trademarks.
Aichi Doby is also certified as an “Aichi Brand Company”, a mark of excellence in manufacturing.

Trademark registration for brand-name products and services is an important process in business. If you have any questions or requests regarding trademark registration, please contact us here.

The Nakagawa Canal was developed as a waterway to connect the Sasashima area (the former site of the Sasashima Freight Station) with Nagoya Port, but in recent years, the city of Nagoya has been working on a project to develop the area and hold events there, so why not go and take a look? (Syszo)

Marude Kotatsu

  • 2025年01月08日
#patent

　I’ve been curious about Okamoto Corporation’s “Marude Kotatsu” series
and finally bought one this year. There were various types to choose from, but I decided on the “Socks Supplement Marude Kotatsu Ankle Warmer”.

Socks Supplement Marude Kotatsu Ankle Warmer

　When I looked at the back, I saw a patent number (Japanese Patent No. 6043982).

Socks Supplement Marude Kotatsu Ankle Warmer

　Reading the patent bulletin, I found that the invention was characterized by its material and shape, which were designed to stimulate the “acupuncture points” on the ankles with pinpoint accuracy.

Socks Supplement Marude Kotatsu Ankle Warmer

　The oval part with a different color seems to stimulate the acupuncture points. When I tried wearing it, it didn’t get too hot, but I definitely felt like it was warming me up from the inside. I like that it makes it easy to stimulate the acupuncture points and that it can be expected to improve your constitution.

　I want to get through the cold winter by keeping my feet warm. (Marron)

A patented invention to prevent customer harassment

  • 2024年12月11日
#patent

　This article introduces a patented invention that uses scientific methods to solve the problem of customer harassment.

　In the invention of Japanese Patent No. 7164793 “Speech Processing System, Speech Processing Device, and Speech Processing Method” (patent holder: SoftBank Corp.), a speech signal from a customer speaking to a call center operator is recognized by a speech processing device. If a specific word sequence is detected in the speech signal that insults the listener, denies the listener’s character, or otherwise makes the listener feel uncomfortable, the specific word sequence is removed or replaced with another word sequence. In addition, the customer’s emotions are evaluated, and if the anger level is high, a synthesized voice with suppressed emotions is output. This reduces the stress on the operator.

customer harassment

　In the invention of Japanese Patent No. 7384558 “Harmful Behavior Detection System and Method” (patent holder: Hitachi Systems, Ltd.), for example, the harmful behavior detection system detects and supports responses to harmful behavior such as malicious complaints from customers to store staff in stores. If a shop assistant receives a malicious complaint from a customer, the information terminal will detect words that indicate the possibility of harmful behavior from the voice data that has been recognized by voice recognition, and send it to the server. The server will make a judgment regarding the status of the malicious complaint, and if the degree of the malicious complaint is high, a security guard will be dispatched immediately.

customer harassment

　In Tokyo, the Customer Harassment Prevention Ordinance will come into effect on April 1st, 2025. It is hoped that providers of goods and services and customers (consumers) will respect each other’s positions, and that a fair and sustainable society free from customer harassment will be realized. (Conan)

All About Medicine

  • 2024年12月04日
#patent #trademark

I think the term “generic” to refer to generic drugs has become widespread.
Generic drugs are medicines that are manufactured and sold after the patent on a new drug (original drug) has expired. They are inexpensive medicines that have been approved by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare as having the same active ingredients and efficacy as the original drug.
In the past, when I was prescribed medicine at the hospital, I remember having to express my preference for a generic drug, or having my preference asked by the doctor or pharmacist, but now I get the impression that generics are prescribed as a matter of course without any particular confirmation.
It seems that the efforts made to promote their use in order to reduce medical costs have had a certain effect on the spread of generics.

Medicine

By the way, although it tends to be hidden behind the topic of the My Number insurance card, did you know that a new system for generics was introduced in October?
For some brand-name drugs (long-term listed drugs) that have generics, if you request a prescription for the brand-name drug, a “special fee” will be added on top of the usual co-payment.
It is hoped that this initiative will further promote the use of generic drugs.
About the choice medical treatment of long-term publication product| Saving on medical expenses | Japan Health Insurance Association

Now, a question out of the blue.
What is the first Japanese registered trademark?

The correct answer is a trademark related to medicine!
(You can probably guess the answer from the flow of the story…)

The first trademark was applied for on October 1st 1884, the same year as the trademark registration system began, and was registered on June 10th the following year. When I checked up to trademark number 50 on J-PlatPat, I found that, as far as I could tell from the “type of goods and product name”, all but four of them were trademarks related to medicine.
According to the book “Edo and Meiji Era Logo Illustrated Dictionary: A Look Back at Company Marks through Registered Trademarks”, trademarks related to medicine, which was a major domestic industry from the Edo period and also suffered a lot of counterfeiting, were registered the most throughout the Meiji era.

This year marks 140 years since the trademark registration system was established. In addition to medicine trademarks, the book also introduces many other retro trademarks, together with their historical background. I think this is a book that is both a reference book and a fun read.
The first registered trademark (depicting a person cutting a fish and cutting their finger) is also quite unique, but personally, I think the impact of the 13th Japanese registered trademark, which is also related to medicine, is incredible! (Cacao)

Practical Training in Infringement Litigation: Aiming to become a patent attorney strong in infringement litigation

  • 2024年11月27日
#infringement litigation #patent

　This is Hiro. I am participating in practical training in infringement litigation, which will be held a total of four times from the beginning of September to the end of November.
　The aim of this training is to “train patent attorneys to be strong in infringement litigation, using materials arranged from actual infringement litigation cases so that even patent attorneys with no litigation experience can experience infringement litigation virtually”. I decided to participate in this training because I thought it would be perfect for me, as a registered patent attorney with supplementary qualifications, but with few opportunities to be involved in litigation.

　In the first half of the training, participants were divided into several groups and carried out mock consultations, which were designed to simulate the drafting of complaints and other documents and strategy meetings with clients, and in the second half, the lecturers provided practical training by explaining the issues in infringement litigation based on recent court decisions, so that participants could acquire the knowledge and interpretation of the issues.

　After each session, you will be asked to submit a draft of a complaint, a written response, or a plaintiff’s brief. If you submit these drafts, you will be able to receive feedback on your work from the lecturers at the next session, and you will also receive individual feedback on your work by email, which will be very helpful.

　After the first training session, I dropped by the Japan Patent Office building, which is located close to the training venue (the Japan Patent Attorneys Association Hall). As it was a Saturday, there were no staff members there, but I felt a sense of urgency as I stood in front of the Japan Patent Office, which is deeply involved in my day-to-day work.

The Japan Patent Office building The Japan Patent Office building

Caspian Sea Yogurt

  • 2024年11月21日
#patent

I will introduce a patented product that you may see every day without thinking about it.
This time I will introduce “Caspian Sea Yogurt”.

Caspian Sea Yogurt

“Caspian Sea Yogurt” is different from normal yogurt in that it has less whey (the clear top layer of water that forms in yogurt) and has a texture similar to cream. It seems that the technology registered as Japanese Patent Registration No. 3878953 is used.
According to the patent, the fermentation temperature is 27-33℃ and the fermentation time is 5-9 hours. Most normal yogurts are fermented at 42℃ for around 9 hours, so this product is unique in that it is fermented at a lower temperature. Using the information in the patent, I made some delicious yogurt at home using a yogurt maker.

If you are interested in the registered content, why not try searching at the following link (J-PlatPat)? (Chamomile)

Japan Platform for Patent Information｜J-PlatPat [JPP]

note-Note

  • 2024年10月23日
#patent #trademark

At first glance, this file looks like an ordinary file. Actually, it is a patented product (Japanese Patent Registration No. 6505669).

note-Note music score file

This is the “note-Note music score file” sold by Music Eight Co. By holding the paper (sheet music) in place with the four corners, it does not get in the way of writing. The applicant is a joint application between Music Eight and Tanpopo Co. Ltd. In addition, “Note-Note” is also a registered trademark (Japanese Trademark Registration No. 5738437).

note-Note music score file

note-Note music score file

　When I was a student, I used to use various methods to make use of sheet music, such as using drawing paper or connecting pieces of paper together with cellophane tape, but now I’m impressed to see how convenient this product is.
This has been an autumn of art for me, and I feel that I might want to try working on music again. (Marron)

Website :The “note:Note” file for writing on sheet music (Japanese only)
https://www.music8.com/user_data/notenote_04.php

Coleman -THE SUNSHINE OF THE NIGHT-

  • 2024年09月25日
#design #patent #trademark

　Have you heard of Coleman? It is an American outdoor brand (company) that has long been known among campers. I remember using a Coleman gasoline-powered lantern when I was a kid on a camping trip with my family. That lantern lit up the darkness as brightly as daylight. Decades later, Coleman products such as tables and cooking stoves are still in use at the camps I have come to visit with my own children. The photo shows the LP gas cans used for the cooking stove and gas lantern. The white Coleman logo on a red background stands out.

Coleman Lantern Gas

　Research shows that Coleman was founded in Oklahoma around 1900 by William Coffin Coleman. Initially, the company specialized in gasoline-powered lamps, but as electric lighting became more widespread, it developed a gasoline-powered lantern that could be used outdoors, which it began selling in 1914 as the ‘Arc Lantern’. (Wikipedia – Coleman (camping equipment)). Today, a wide range of Coleman products, including tents, are sold in camping supply shops, home improvement centers and online retailers.

　A trademark search on J-PlatPat revealed 136 registered trademarks where the right holder is ‘The Coleman Company Incorporated’. The first registered trademark in Japan (1950), Japanese Trademark Registration No. 387738 (see image), reads ‘THE SUNSHINE OF THE NIGHT’between an illustration of the sun and the Coleman logo letters. Does it refer to a lantern?

Coleman Logo

　Of the 136 registered trademarks, approximately 60 contained the words ‘Coleman’ or ‘コールマン(Coleman in Japanese katakana)’. In addition, there were approximately 100 patent applications and 110 registered designs where the applicant/right holder was Coleman. A large number of intellectual property rights protect Coleman products and services (Hiro).

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