Electrical Engineering & Electronics Patents

Inventions and innovations in electronic and electromechanical technology have revolutionised and continue to change the modern world. Nikola Tesla’s patent for his alternating electric current generator was one of the earliest granted patents in the field of electrical engineering, and the multiple number of patents in the scientist’s name underlined the importance of patents in his time. The importance of patents still holds true at present, when electronic and electromechanical technology is a key foundation upon which many industries rely.

The electronics and electrical engineering industry is a fast moving sector for development with innovation as a driving force. The sector covers fields as diverse as transaction terminals to laser engineering and is one of the most heavily patented technology sectors in the world.

What electronic equipment, devices, or systems are patentable?

As long as your electrical engineering or electronic device invention is new and inventive, it should be patentable in most countries around the world. Additionally, circuit board layout designs can be protected as design registrations in many countries, and could also be protected under copyright laws in many instances.

Benefits and challenges of patenting electronics

Filing early is particularly important in filing patents in order to maximise the gains from the particular invention.

One example of the successful research and protection of electrical technology is by the CSIRO in Australia. They developed Wi-Fi technology that is found in most wireless routers in homes and businesses around the country. The core parts of this technology was developed incidentally in the early 90s by a team of CSIRO researchers in their search for black hole echoes. To this day, the research agency owns key patents to the technology, which brings in hundreds of millions of dollars in royalty payments.

If the CSIRO had not obtained patent protection for this technology, they could have lost a substantial amount of ongoing revenue. Inventors of electrical inventions should keep in mind that they should file a patent application for their technology before making a public disclosure, or using their technology commercially, as this could destroy their ability to get protection for their invention.

Examples of granted electrical engineering patents & electronics patent applications

The Baxter IP approach to filing electrical engineering and electronics patents

1. Identifying Inventions: Technological advancements can often be the result of a number of distinct inventions acting in combination. Your patent attorney can help you identify inventions at an early stage, with an eye to building a patent portfolio.
2. File early and file often: Establishing an early patent filing date is crucially important prior to any discussion with a third party owing to possible disclosures that may risk the patentability of the electrical engineering idea. Development lifecycles may extend over 12 months or more and clients often work with electronic product development specialists, such as a hardware systems designer during this process. With each new step in the design or development, you or your systems designer should consult with your patent attorney as to whether a further patent application needs to be filed to cover new developments or whether the new developments were already anticipated in your original patent application.
3. Combination filing strategy: Developments may not simply be a springboard for inventions. A combination IP filing strategy including electrical patents, electrical innovation patents, registered designs and trade marks may help secure protection over as many of the new functional or aesthetic features that may arise.
4. Targeted strategy: Assessing the impact of how intellectual property relates to your business can be an important aspect of properly focusing new intellectual property. In this regard, IP protection may be best targeted at protecting valuable markets or targeted at hindering competitors to maximise the value of the IP.

Depending on specific circumstances, however, other strategies may be more appropriate. It is important to discuss your particular situation with a qualified attorney to determine the best strategy in each case.

Examples of electrical engineering and electronics patent applications filed through Baxter IP

1. AU Patent #2019901057 – A method of transmitting a time series by digital communication. Andriuskevicius, Egidijus
2. AU Patent #2019900518 – Weapon targeting training system and method therefor. Sinab Technologies Pty. Ltd.
3. AU Patent #2019201920 – A massive energy storage system with distributed rotor or mover structure and transitional rotor pulse current. Zhang, Daming
4. AU Patent #2019200174 – A system and method for power generation. Hiremath, Rajeev MR