Aquaponics patent

[bunya boy]

Hi Gary, Here's something to get your teeth into!
Just copied it over from Muzz's forum. I'm sure you don't mind this sort of info being disseminated?

Murray wrote:

"These couple of people from Nimben have filed a patent claim.
They claim to have invented Aquaponics.

Here is the Patent document
http://www.wipo.int/pctdb/en/ia.jsp?ia=AU2007%2F000978&IA=AU2007000978&DISPLAY=STATUS (http://www.wipo.int/pctdb/en/ia.jsp?ia=AU2007%2F000978&IA=AU2007000978&DISPLAY=STATUS)

It makes interesting reading. They have covered every possible variant you can think of in an aquaponics system. If this is a succcessful patent registration then we may all have to pay them a royalty or be prevented from operating our home system, or, for those who have plans to "go commercial" may be prevented from doing so.
It is an absolute disgrace and the ultimate in dishonesty to file such a claim.
We all need to write letters of protest, every single one of us to our respective patent office in every country. They have applied for international patents, so it is possible that it may cause difficulty for everybody."

Cheers IanK :confused:

[Burnbrae]

To process that many patent applications in that number of countries requires alot of money, time and patience. With my very very limited knownledge of patents I understood a patent can not be granted if it was public knownledge prior to the application. However I would strongly suggest further legal advice be sort from a patent attorney. Failure to act my cause grief for all of us:mad:

[KentUB]

Portable Farms also claims to have a paatent pending for their system. I have not been able to determine the limits of this supposed patent. However they claim that they have a new pumping system that reduces clogging from solids so likely that is what the patent covers.

[GaryD]

Hi,

I agree with the general principle that it never pays to ignore these things. Once a bureaucrat has determined that something should (or should not) proceed it can be difficult to get them off their position.....and they often have plenty of our money to use in the defense of their point of view.

Joel Malcolm from BYAP has had his lawyers take a look at the thing and, according to them, it seems that it's not going anywhere.

Gary

[arthoz]

The same thing happened in Malaysia when some foreign country patented our "tongkat ali" (a sort of much sought after herb like ginseng) claiming it all for their own profit while we have been using and producing medicine from it for hundreds of years.

I don't think this will hold any sway over countries like Malaysia, China and other south east Asian countries. We would be very, very offended over this sort of thing that is trying to put a leash on our source of livelihood and an interference of economic activities and innovative advancement of technology. Aquaponics should be a freely or cheaply available technology to everyone even to people in poor countries and for commercial ventures that could help create jobs, reduce poverty and increase food production effectively and environmental friendly.

Thank you bunya boy for bringing this forward for everyone's attention. You don't know how angry and disappointed the researchers at Terengganu in Malaysia would be after spending thousands of grant money on research and then they are forced to acknowledge and pay these so called "inventor" of aquaponics. Maybe we should do some form of protest because it would also prevent other people to do this sort of thing in the future.

Though Gary said that "Once a bureaucrat has determined that something should (or should not) proceed it can be difficult to get them off their position.....and they often have plenty of our money to use in the defense of their point of view."--they would be utterly forced to change their view if pressured either persuasively or forcefully by other foreign governments and general public discontent.

If you haven't know, a Malaysian company recently have won a legal battle against the trademark use of "Mac" against MacDonalds in their company name: Mac Curry. In light of this historical legal battle victory, I have full trust in the government of Malaysia that this "inventor" of aquaponics would get booted out if he tries to sue anyone in Malaysia. As Macdonalds no longer holds their trademark name monopoly so will aquaponics.

As for portable farms, I've looked at their design and I would assume they are not really a new design...the system are what we call clarifier, a method use in water treatment system (I believe it's been around for decades all over the world) in order to separate solid material from water. I even use it in my aquaponics system though in a different variant of implementation.

Sorry for my rant but this is sort of thing that I have feared would happen...and now the horror begins. Everyone wants a piece of the profit from this wonderful thing called aquaponics. Just tweak the system a little and you could say: "I invent the damn thing!!! So pay up!!!"

[Dufflight]

I think companies have been able to patent a lot of things they should never have been able to patent. Like genes and plants. From my understanding no company has built any of these things from scratch. AP in one form or another has been around for thousands of years so I don't think a patent will be granted. More annoyed that they tried in the first place.

[KentUB]

AP in one form or another has been around for thousands of years so I don't think a patent will be granted.

The sad state of affairs is that the Patent Offices do very little research and mostly rely on the patent submitters documentation in reviewing the patent. Additionally the patent is usually written in very techinal legal terms that make it hard to compare to the terms used with plain language by people practicing the art.

Look at the patents on a business system for sending receipts via email and also streaming media. Those cost a pretty penny to defeat. Then there is the patent granted not long ago on swinging from side to side on a playground swing! That one was a lark by a Patent Attorney and his young son that demonstrated how broken the patent system really is.

[Burnbrae]

From personal experience Australian Patents are almost a rubber stamp, however at the other extreme patents from the European Union are extremely slow and painful, I'm still waiting after 5 years. Patents are deliberatly written in broad terms to cover as many possible combinations as possible. The patents office generally investigate existing patents that make similar claims as those sort by the current application. Unfortunately there are some patent attorneys who encourage business with fools gold.

[early]

Portable Farms claims to have a patent pendiing but that is just a povisional patent. What it does is protect an idea just gives you the right to advertise patent pending. After a year you have to file for a real patent and prove your claim. Which would mean there is no other public display before your date of patent pending. so the first time its on youtube the claim is no longer valid