We invited Mr. Atsushi NOZAKI, IP Information Consultant and CEO of e-Patent Co., Ltd., as a lecturer. This seminar was held online to prevent our members from gathering as a measure against COVID-19. He gave a lecture titled as “Latest Trend of AI and Quantum Computer in Terms of Patents.” His seminar is held once per year, and this was the third time for us. Our members understood not only the latest trend on AI and quantum computer but also the latest patent applications by GAFA(Google、Apple、Facebook、Amazon ) and our clients.
Mr. Yoshiyuki MACHIDA, Senior Partner of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding “Analysis of Others’ Patent which may be a Bar to One’s Business and Measures to Avoid Infringing their Patent, and How to Create the Patent which can Suppress their Business”. This seminar was held online to prevent us from gathering as a measure against COVID-19. Our members studied how to interpret patent claims and examined patents which may serve as a bar to patent and how to avoid infringing patents while referring to precedents.
Mr. Yaocheng HU, Chinese Patent Attorney of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding “Revision of Examination Guideline and Latest IP Topics in China”. Especially, we studied the new guideline of the inventive step with considering difference between the Japanese and Chinese practices. After the seminar by Mr. HU, there was active discussion regarding the practical issues. Our members are interested in Chinese IP trend since the number of new Patent Applications and Office Actions for China in our firm are still great. We intend to actively provide knowledge obtained in this seminar with our clients.
We invited Mr. Atsushi NOZAKI, IP Information Consultant and CEO of e-Patent Co., Ltd., as a lecturer. He gave a lecture titled as “Search of Laid-Open Public Foreign Patents”. Mr. NOZAKI has given us the lecture about the search of domestic patents in two year ago, and therefore, the present lecture is second time for him. We understood how to use the major search sites such as Espacenet, USPTO Website, Google Patent, etc. We also visited other useful search sites. Some of our members are not familiar with the Google Patent. However, they could study varied useful functions of the Google Patents through the seminar. We intend to train our members such that they can actively use and analyze the IP information, thereby contribute to our clients.
Mr. Sigeru MIZUTANI, Patent Attorney of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding “How to draft claims and specification with considering OA response on outgoing family applications”. We studied on the basis of specific examples that the tendency of the examination varies depending on technical field of the invention and the patent system in each country. Moreover, the participants discussed how to draft claims and specification of first country application with considering second country application in the country such as China or EPC where the requirements of amendment is strictly limited.
Mr. Yoshiyuki MACHIDA, Senior Partner of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding points of focus and attention for AI related invention. In the seminar, many examples of AI related patent prosecutions and litigations have been introduced. We could understand the points of attention for the interview with inventor and the patent prosecutions.
Mr. Masakazu UCHIDA, Partner Patent Attorney of our firm, held an internal seminar entitled as “Reduction Scheme of PCT International Application Fees”. In the seminar, he explained that the reduction of a Submission Fee and a Search Fee of the PCT International application has been extended thereby the scheme can be applied for small and medium size companies, further specific procedure has been simplified (certificate is not required). In addition, we confirmed that we will provide information to our clients such as small and medium size companies, venture companies and universities so that our clients can use the reduction scheme.
Mr. Shinji NAKAMURA, Patent Attorney of our firm, held an internal seminar entitled as “Check Points of Claim Drafting of AI Related Inventions”. He explained about specific examples of AI related inventions added into the JPO’s Examination Handbook in January of this year. He also explained about some points to be considered in Claim Drafting with referring to actually allowed claims.
Mr. Kosaku YAMAZAKI, Patent Attorney of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding “Basic Knowledge about RPA”. RPA (Robotic Process Automation) is a software for automating operation of a PC. In the seminar, our people studied RPA’s functions, actual programming and application examples. In our firm, RPA is used in many of actual tasks. Recently, some of our staffs started RPA programming.
We invited Mr. Tsugio YAMADA, Standardization Advisor of the Japanese Standards Association, as a lecturer and held an internal seminar regarding the “Business Strategies by IP and Standardization”. Mr. YAMADA talked about some interesting examples in which some companies achieved strategic standardization with combining standard and IP. Moreover, we understood some points of “New Market Creating Type Standardization Scheme” applied for unique (excellent) technology specific to the companies.
We invited Mr. Satoshi NIKI, Attorney at Law, of NISHIMURA & ASAHI LAW FIRM as a lecturer and held an internal seminar regarding the “Basic Knowledge and Risk of Open Source License Software”. Mr. NIKI talked about a concept of “Copyleft” which is basis of the OSS (Open Source Software) License, recent trend of OSS and the risk that OSS infringes third party’s patent right with explaining specific examples.
October 10, 2018 Mr. Yoshiyuki MACHIDA, senior partner of our firm, participated in “Wuhan City of Automobile Intellectual Property Summit 2018” in China and talked in the title of “Research of Intellectual Property Rights protecting Artificial Intelligence Business”. He got a high reputation from the organizer of the forum since his lecture was very meaningful and valuable for protecting the intellectual property rights relating to the artificial intelligence in China. October 11, 2018 Mr. MACHIDA visited the Wuhan City Intellectual Property Office and discussed about current situation and problems of IP protection, and the assistances for Japanese companies in Wuhan city.
We invited Mr. Yoshinori TAKANO, Attorney at Law/Patent Attorney, of UCHIDA & SEMEJIMA LAW FIRM as a lecturer and held an internal seminar regarding the “IP Strategies for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises”. Mr. TAKANO clearly explained us many IP related points being useful for business of small and medium-sized enterprises such as Patent Strategies for surviving in their own markets, use of patent within contract and claim drafting with considering business activities.
Mr. Yoshiyuki MACHIDA, Senior Partner of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding “How To Draft Patent Documents” referring to “Patent Documents Writing Manual” issued by the Japan Patent Information Organization (General Incorporated Foundation). We studied some points for drafting clear Japanese sentences with referring to specific examples such as (1) Sentence should be shortened, (2) Subject and/or Object should not be omitted, (3) Keep in mind understandable structure.
Mr. Masakazu UCHIDA, Patent Attorney of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding points to be considered during an interview with inventor. We could understand importance of thinking in the stand point of client’s view and technique for broadening an inventive concept, with discussing about specific examples.
We invited Mr. Koichi IWADE and Mr. Daisuke AIHARA of Coordinate Corporation as a lecturer and held an internal seminar regarding the Information Security for all of our staffs. They explained latest examples of fraud, virus infection and targeted threat using an email or website, and talked about specific countermeasures thereto. This seminar could raise security awareness of our staffs.
Mr. Yaocheng HU, Chinese Patent Attorney (admitted in China) of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding Chinese patent system. He talked about an outline of Chinese patent law and the patent examination guideline revised in April 2017. In the seminar, he explained about the Chinese patent system with considering the differences between Japanese and Chinese patent systems. We could understand Chinese patent system, thereby it helps us to understand the actual practices of the Chinese patent application.
Mr. Ichiro FUJINAMI, Patent attorney of patent section of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding recent trend of the Factory Automation (FA) technologies. He talked about how FA would be changed by incorporating IoT related technologies thereto. We could understand FA technologies while considering IP strategies thereof.
Mr. Yasuo NARA, Patent attorney of patent section of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding how to draft claims. Specifically, he talked about important points to be considered when we draft claims. He also talked about important points of claims for foreign application. In the seminar, some examples of claims concerning enforcement and conforming to an actual practice of each foreign country were introduced. Thus, we could deeply understood how to draft claims.
Mr. Ichiro FUJINAMI, Patent Attorney of patent section of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding copyright. Copyright law is a most familiar law among the intellectual property laws. However, the structure of copyright law is complex and it is difficult law. He assumed that client will give some questions about copyright. Therefore, he gave a talk about copyright relating to the internet and the business while explaining specific examples.
Mr. Yoshiyuki MACHIDA, Senior Partner of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding important points to be considered when we receive new case from clients. Specifically, he talked about patent application claiming priority based on Japanese patent application, PCT application, divisional application and patent application utilizing a rule of exceptions to lack of novelty. We could reconfirm basic requirements (due dates in law, items to be described on a request form) and understood practical important points for the above mentioned patent applications.
Ms. Yuriko IWASAKI, Patent Attorney of design and trademark section of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding trademark. She gave a talk about basic matters and searching technique of trademark. She also gave a talk about a trend of recently added new types of trademarks while explaining specific examples. It was very valuable time for many patent attorneys, technical stuffs and stuffs of drawing who are generally familiar with Patent.
We invited Mr. Yoshitaka OHTA of JPO, member of examination guideline room in coordination division of first examination section, as a lecturer to one of our training programs. He gave a talk about an examination guideline handbook for the IoT related technologies, which was revised on March 2017.
To celebrate 50th anniversary of Isono International Patent Office, P.C., we held a commemorative lecture meeting in Iino Hall (Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo). About 180 peoples of our clients participated and the lecture meeting was successfully held. Contents of Lecture Meeting:1 Understand AI Business Lectured by Mr. Takeaki UNO, Professor/Director, Mathematical Informatics Inter-University Research Institute Corporation Research Organization of Information and Systems National Institute of Informatics Principles of Informatics Research Division Contents of Lecture Meeting:2 The arrival of the era requiring open & close strategic philosophy (How should we direct an IP management in the IoT era) Lectured by Mr. Kouichi OGAWA, Doctor of engineering Senior Researcher, Tokyo University, Policy Alternatives Research Institute Advisor, New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO).
We invited Mr. Atsushi NOZAKI, IP Information Consultant, as a lecturer to one of our training programs. He gave a lecture titled as “Patent Search Techniques for Patent Attorneys and Patent Engineers”. He gave a talk about an efficient creating method of search formula for prior art search.
We invited Mr. Kazunori INARI as a lecturer to one of our training programs. He gave a talk about “Deep Learning and IoT Business”. He belongs to Research Institute of System Planning Inc. (ISP) which, as well as our office, is a member of Artificial Intelligence Business Creation Association (AIB Association).
Mr. Yoshiyuki MACHIDA, a Senior Partner of our firm, held an internal seminar regarding a trend in protection of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies under Intellectual Property Rights Laws (IP Laws) and gave a talk about it. We shared the latest information on the IP Laws with respect to the AI technologies. Specifically, we learned as to how the AI technologies are protected under IP Laws, such as Patent, Copyright and/or Trade Secret of Unfair Competition Laws, etc.
In this overseas training, we visited some patent firms in China. In the training, we gave a presentation regarding differences and characteristics of patent system in both of countries, and discussed about them with Chinese patent attorneys.
