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A comment on Apple v. Samsung Verdict: Could Bill Gates Have Patented The iPhone in 1995?. Parent comment

Re:Apple v. Samsung Verdict: Could Bill Gates Have Patented ... by danielweber on Monday August 27, 2012 @04:22PM (#4440670)
The depiction of a holodeck would not stop someone from getting a utility patent for a holodeck.

But the appearance of an identical work in fiction should stop a design patent. So if you wanted to get a design patent on a duplicate of a PADD, Star Trek would count as prior art.

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Re:Apple v. Samsung Verdict: Could Bill Gates Have Patented ... by philwelch on Monday August 27, 2012 @04:43PM (#4440801)
In fact, Paramount has been awarded design patents for Star Trek phasers, uniforms, and starships: http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Star_Trek_design_patents
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Re:Apple v. Samsung Verdict: Could Bill Gates Have Patented ... by twoodfin on Monday August 27, 2012 @04:29PM (#4440710)
I'm fairly certain most of the posting's examples center around the utility patents under dispute.
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