Tuesday: More patents, please

09/01/2000

Mark A. DeSorbo

PORTLAND, OR—Wednesday is Prince Spaghetti Day, but Tuesday is patent day.

And if one were to visit to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Web site and do a search for "cleanrooms," it would then be crystal clear that masterminds will be forever changing the face of contamination control.

CleanRooms magazine began featuring recently granted patents in cleanroom technology last October in "Inventor's Corner," which has become one of the most popular magazine sections, according to the CleanRooms 2000 Reader Survey that was conducted by MindSearch (Tewksbury, MA).

Whether it was a wafer processing system, cleanroom glasses outfitted with HEPA filters, noise-attenuating air diffusers or a fire detector, "Inventor's Corner" aimed to herald it. In order to provide a forum for innovators and budding creators alike, an "Inventor's Corner Panel" will be a featured conference session on Tuesday, October 3, at CleanRooms West 2000.

Mike Fisher and Brian Ivey, of Fisher Container Corp. (Buffalo Grove, IL) will be two of the featured panelists, discussing how the technology of a recently patented autoclavable breather bag was the easiest part.

"The hardest part wasn't the technology. It was the process of applying for the patent," says Ivey, sales manager. "The bigger challenge is what you have to do to defend it if someone does challenge it. You have to consider the dollar volume of defending it if someone's challenge is successful. The average cost for legal fees to defend is a half a million dollars."

Ivey, who was granted the patent for the autoclavable breather bag last November, will discuss how the invention's concept was conceived as well as how it relates to pharmaceutical applications like automated fill units for vaccines.