> What if, as part of a patent application, the USPTO published the claims in a public forum, and allowed the public to put forward suggested implementations.
> Companies would double down on requiring engineers to not read patents, as some companies already do to avoid triple damages. In my ideal world, we continue to stand on the shoulders of giants.
I think a lot of frustration with the patent system comes from independent inventions that nonetheless infringe on a patent. The obvious solution is to make independent invention a defense of some sort.
There is a trade-off, as you recognize. The less you can defend a patent against someone else developing the same technology, the less incentive you have to disclose anything that would help them do so. As an inventor, I don't want other people to "stand on my shoulders" unless they are required to compensate me for my contribution. You see this heavily in areas where patents are for whatever reason hard to use. E.g. Intel doesn't use patents on its process technology, it uses closely guarded trade secrets.
Interesting idea.
> After all, how many useful NPEs are there?
For all intents and purposes, the investment vehicle that funded Spaceship One is an NPE: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mojave_Aerospace_Ventures
> Companies would double down on requiring engineers to not read patents, as some companies already do to avoid triple damages. In my ideal world, we continue to stand on the shoulders of giants.
I think a lot of frustration with the patent system comes from independent inventions that nonetheless infringe on a patent. The obvious solution is to make independent invention a defense of some sort.
There is a trade-off, as you recognize. The less you can defend a patent against someone else developing the same technology, the less incentive you have to disclose anything that would help them do so. As an inventor, I don't want other people to "stand on my shoulders" unless they are required to compensate me for my contribution. You see this heavily in areas where patents are for whatever reason hard to use. E.g. Intel doesn't use patents on its process technology, it uses closely guarded trade secrets.