A “Toolbox” for Forensic Engineers

Intellectual Property Cases 381
manufacture of a specific design, and if another manufacturer produces a
product that appears to fall within the ambit of the patent, court proceedings
may be initiated to resolve the issue. In the first case, a manufacturer of
rubbish bins in Germany established a large business by providing plasticbodied
containers that offered greater security for, and ease of disposal of,
the contents. When the firm began manufacture in the U.K., an entrepreneur
spotted that the design could just as well be made in a more robust material,
steel. By redesigning the bin, the patent could be avoided, but the patentee
felt rather differently, and court proceedings were initiated.
In the second case, the holders of a patent for the design of lawnmower
casings decided to sue another lawnmower maker because they felt that the
lawnmowver maker infringed their patent. The case is significant because,
after examining the patent in great detail, the court decided, in light of
previous patents in the same area, that the patent could not have been valid
at the time of granting.
The final example shows how it is possible to circumvent patent claims
by a careful analysis of the way a specific device worked, and indeed, how it
could be improved. The residual current device (RCD) protects consumers
by isolating the main electrical supply if a fault is detected, so that if a
lawnmower user (for example) accidentally cuts the power cord, he or she
will not be electrocuted because the RCD quickly breaks the circuit.
13.2 Wheeled Containers
One example of a wheeled container is the so-called “wheelie bin”
(Figure 13.1 taken from German petty patent no. 7611603). The container
is now so widespread in the U.K. that it is easy to forget the problems of
rubbish disposal that confronted the country only a few years ago. The per
capita volume of waste rose over the years, and the original small plastic
or steel bins of the 1960s and 1970s were not capable of meeting demand.
One interim solution, to use simple plastic bags, created more problems
than it solved, mainly because of the insecurity of such containers, which
can easily break and spill their contents. The wheelie bin was invented in
Germany in 1975–1976, and the product has spread gradually into the U.K.
The main buyers are local authorities, who are responsible for rubbish
collection. The investment makes great sense, because
1. The amount of rubbish that can be collected at one time is much
greater compared with plastic bags or conventional bins.
2. The rubbish is sealed better in bins, so spillage is minimal.
3. Emptying the bins is more efficient, with specially designed disposal
vehicles.