1 00:00:04,440 --> 00:00:12,319 Speaker 1: Welcome to Tech Stuff, a production from iHeartRadio. Hey there, 2 00:00:12,320 --> 00:00:15,520 Speaker 1: and welcome to tech Stuff. I'm your host, Jonathan Strickland. 3 00:00:15,560 --> 00:00:18,680 Speaker 1: I'm an executive producer with iHeartRadio. And how the tech 4 00:00:18,720 --> 00:00:22,599 Speaker 1: are you? Okay? So to really understand this episode, you 5 00:00:22,640 --> 00:00:26,000 Speaker 1: should really listen to yesterday's episode and get up the speed. 6 00:00:26,520 --> 00:00:29,920 Speaker 1: But justin brief to cover what I talked about yesterday, 7 00:00:30,160 --> 00:00:33,680 Speaker 1: I explained what patents are for, and I gave a 8 00:00:33,680 --> 00:00:36,560 Speaker 1: short explanation of how patents and patent law got started 9 00:00:36,600 --> 00:00:39,240 Speaker 1: in the United States, keeping in mind that other countries 10 00:00:39,240 --> 00:00:41,360 Speaker 1: had already had their own patent laws at that time. 11 00:00:41,400 --> 00:00:44,800 Speaker 1: It's not like the United States invented patent law. And 12 00:00:44,920 --> 00:00:48,639 Speaker 1: I talked about how in seventeen ninety the young government 13 00:00:48,760 --> 00:00:52,479 Speaker 1: of the young United States established patent law, which initially 14 00:00:52,560 --> 00:00:55,560 Speaker 1: was incredibly strict, and then it did a one to 15 00:00:55,640 --> 00:00:59,200 Speaker 1: eighty and became the opposite. I mean, like, the first 16 00:00:59,280 --> 00:01:02,840 Speaker 1: year of issuing patents, the US only granted three patents total, 17 00:01:03,200 --> 00:01:06,120 Speaker 1: and then in seventeen ninety three, a big revision to 18 00:01:06,160 --> 00:01:08,600 Speaker 1: the law meant that the office was technically supposed to 19 00:01:08,640 --> 00:01:12,280 Speaker 1: approve any and all patents as long as they had 20 00:01:12,319 --> 00:01:15,600 Speaker 1: the proper application fee, So just from one extreme to 21 00:01:15,640 --> 00:01:19,479 Speaker 1: the other. I concluded yesterday's episode by talking about the 22 00:01:19,520 --> 00:01:23,280 Speaker 1: first superintendent of the US Patent Office, a doctor named 23 00:01:23,360 --> 00:01:26,120 Speaker 1: William Thornton, and now we're going to pick up with 24 00:01:26,240 --> 00:01:31,600 Speaker 1: his successor, Thomas Jones, another physician. So Jones changed how 25 00:01:31,880 --> 00:01:35,240 Speaker 1: some things worked at the Patent Office, including a change 26 00:01:35,240 --> 00:01:38,960 Speaker 1: that carries through to modern patents today, that being that 27 00:01:39,080 --> 00:01:43,080 Speaker 1: he started the specification of the invention was allowed to 28 00:01:43,240 --> 00:01:47,360 Speaker 1: reference the accompanying sketches of that invention. It's kind of 29 00:01:47,400 --> 00:01:49,160 Speaker 1: hard to even imagine that there was a time where 30 00:01:49,200 --> 00:01:51,960 Speaker 1: this wasn't a case where you would have a sketch 31 00:01:52,360 --> 00:01:55,760 Speaker 1: and or a model, almost definitely a model, but probably 32 00:01:55,760 --> 00:01:58,640 Speaker 1: a sketch too, and a set of specifications, but they 33 00:01:58,640 --> 00:02:03,240 Speaker 1: didn't reference one another. That changed with Jones's tenure as superintendent. 34 00:02:03,640 --> 00:02:06,680 Speaker 1: If you read over a modern patent, you'll often see 35 00:02:06,840 --> 00:02:10,200 Speaker 1: that there will be a sketch that's frequently labeled with 36 00:02:10,240 --> 00:02:13,519 Speaker 1: several parts that are called out like part A or 37 00:02:13,560 --> 00:02:16,320 Speaker 1: Part B or sometimes their numbered or whatever, and then 38 00:02:16,360 --> 00:02:21,359 Speaker 1: the actual specification will reference those parts and explain how 39 00:02:21,400 --> 00:02:27,480 Speaker 1: they work within the grander functionality of the invention. So Jones, 40 00:02:27,919 --> 00:02:32,480 Speaker 1: like doctor Thornton before m felt that patent applications definitely 41 00:02:32,520 --> 00:02:36,960 Speaker 1: needed to meet a threshold of usefulness and inventiveness. So 42 00:02:37,120 --> 00:02:40,560 Speaker 1: both of them had expressed concern that stripping that power 43 00:02:40,600 --> 00:02:44,120 Speaker 1: away from the Patent Office meant that folks with file 44 00:02:44,200 --> 00:02:47,800 Speaker 1: patents for stuff that was already in existence or that 45 00:02:48,120 --> 00:02:52,520 Speaker 1: they just plane didn't work. So both Jones and Thornton 46 00:02:53,360 --> 00:02:57,880 Speaker 1: ignored that revision to the patent law that dated back 47 00:02:57,919 --> 00:03:01,800 Speaker 1: to seventeen ninety three, that bit saying hey, you don't 48 00:03:01,840 --> 00:03:04,640 Speaker 1: have the right to reject patents. They both said, you 49 00:03:04,639 --> 00:03:06,920 Speaker 1: know what, I kind of do. I know the government 50 00:03:06,960 --> 00:03:09,560 Speaker 1: says I don't, but I disagree with that. So they 51 00:03:09,560 --> 00:03:12,840 Speaker 1: took a much harder stance on pattens that you know, 52 00:03:12,960 --> 00:03:17,080 Speaker 1: either failed to describe a new invention or were deemed 53 00:03:17,160 --> 00:03:22,400 Speaker 1: to not meet the threshold of usefulness or both. William Elliott, 54 00:03:22,720 --> 00:03:26,760 Speaker 1: who was doctor Thornton's chief assistant, he had felt that 55 00:03:26,919 --> 00:03:29,840 Speaker 1: he should have been promoted to superintendent and he was 56 00:03:30,200 --> 00:03:34,720 Speaker 1: deeply upset when it's instead went to Thomas Jones. So 57 00:03:35,080 --> 00:03:41,160 Speaker 1: he then accused Jones of having opened all the mail 58 00:03:41,440 --> 00:03:44,440 Speaker 1: that was being sent to the Patent office himself Now 59 00:03:44,480 --> 00:03:46,680 Speaker 1: you might say, well, what's the big deal with that, 60 00:03:46,840 --> 00:03:50,160 Speaker 1: Why shouldn't the superintendent open the mail that's sent to 61 00:03:50,200 --> 00:03:54,880 Speaker 1: the patent Office. Well, according to Elliott, his accusation was 62 00:03:54,880 --> 00:04:01,320 Speaker 1: that sometimes people would stuff application envelopes with filthy lucre. 63 00:04:01,920 --> 00:04:05,240 Speaker 1: That is, you know, they would put cash in their 64 00:04:05,280 --> 00:04:09,920 Speaker 1: application in an effort to grease the wheels of bureaucracy. Essentially, 65 00:04:10,200 --> 00:04:14,119 Speaker 1: they would include a bribe with their application. So Elliot 66 00:04:14,120 --> 00:04:18,960 Speaker 1: said that before Thomas Jones took over as superintendent, the 67 00:04:18,960 --> 00:04:22,159 Speaker 1: Patent Office had it as a matter of fact that 68 00:04:22,279 --> 00:04:24,960 Speaker 1: any money that was sent in this way would be 69 00:04:25,040 --> 00:04:28,240 Speaker 1: returned to Cinder and that way you avoid impropriety, right, 70 00:04:28,320 --> 00:04:33,560 Speaker 1: you're not taking bribes. But since Thomas Jones was demanding 71 00:04:33,600 --> 00:04:36,520 Speaker 1: that he be allowed to open all the mail personally, 72 00:04:37,279 --> 00:04:41,560 Speaker 1: the implication was that he was possibly pocketing this money, 73 00:04:41,800 --> 00:04:45,560 Speaker 1: that he was essentially taking bribes. Now, whether that accusation 74 00:04:45,640 --> 00:04:48,440 Speaker 1: had any merit or not, or whether the fact that 75 00:04:48,800 --> 00:04:53,480 Speaker 1: Jones had a dispute with Elliott because his sons were 76 00:04:53,560 --> 00:04:56,120 Speaker 1: running a business out of the Patent office. One of 77 00:04:56,160 --> 00:05:00,160 Speaker 1: Elliott's sons was a freelance draftsman and was working out 78 00:05:00,160 --> 00:05:03,120 Speaker 1: of the Patent office. And so there's the possibility that 79 00:05:03,240 --> 00:05:07,400 Speaker 1: the Thomas Jones was having words with his chief clerk 80 00:05:08,120 --> 00:05:11,400 Speaker 1: because he felt it was inappropriate for the clerk's sons 81 00:05:11,440 --> 00:05:12,880 Speaker 1: to be able to run a business out of the 82 00:05:12,880 --> 00:05:15,320 Speaker 1: patent office. That's not what the patent office was for. 83 00:05:16,000 --> 00:05:18,720 Speaker 1: But I don't know if that's the reason why this 84 00:05:18,760 --> 00:05:22,240 Speaker 1: all blew up. I do know that ultimately Thomas Jones 85 00:05:22,279 --> 00:05:25,080 Speaker 1: received a reassignment. He moved on to work in a 86 00:05:25,120 --> 00:05:29,640 Speaker 1: different office within the US government. However, William Elliott didn't 87 00:05:29,920 --> 00:05:32,280 Speaker 1: like get to do a victory lap because he was 88 00:05:32,320 --> 00:05:36,400 Speaker 1: also told he had to vacate his position. However, his 89 00:05:36,600 --> 00:05:41,360 Speaker 1: son was able to retain his freelance draftsman job at 90 00:05:41,360 --> 00:05:46,000 Speaker 1: the Patent Office. That son was named William Parker Elliot. 91 00:05:46,160 --> 00:05:49,240 Speaker 1: So he had William Elliott and William Parker Elliott. And 92 00:05:49,839 --> 00:05:53,040 Speaker 1: as a draftsman, he would work with inventors to create 93 00:05:53,080 --> 00:05:56,120 Speaker 1: the sketches of their invention as part of their patent application, 94 00:05:56,520 --> 00:05:59,279 Speaker 1: and he would charge the inventors a fee for doing this. 95 00:05:59,400 --> 00:06:01,280 Speaker 1: So that was how he was making his living as 96 00:06:01,760 --> 00:06:04,760 Speaker 1: part of this process for patents. He'll figure more in 97 00:06:04,800 --> 00:06:07,160 Speaker 1: our tail as we continue this journey through the history 98 00:06:07,200 --> 00:06:10,039 Speaker 1: of the Patent Office, which, y'all, if you read over 99 00:06:10,160 --> 00:06:12,320 Speaker 1: histories of the patent office, it sounds like it would 100 00:06:12,320 --> 00:06:14,440 Speaker 1: be the most boring thing in the world, right, But 101 00:06:14,520 --> 00:06:19,719 Speaker 1: as you read about these interpersonal conflicts, you start to think, like, wow, 102 00:06:20,040 --> 00:06:22,880 Speaker 1: this is more Game of Thrones than I expected it 103 00:06:22,880 --> 00:06:28,280 Speaker 1: to be. Well, anyway, our next superintendent was John D. Craig. 104 00:06:28,880 --> 00:06:31,800 Speaker 1: He would serve as the superintendent from eighteen twenty nine 105 00:06:32,160 --> 00:06:36,800 Speaker 1: to eighteen thirty five. Craig was, let's call him a 106 00:06:36,839 --> 00:06:42,240 Speaker 1: divisive figure. So, according to historian Kenneth Dobbins, Craig was 107 00:06:42,440 --> 00:06:47,680 Speaker 1: quote arrogant, subject to rages, disagreeable to patent applicants and 108 00:06:47,720 --> 00:06:52,280 Speaker 1: their agents, and a domineering tyrant towards the subordinate employees 109 00:06:52,360 --> 00:06:56,480 Speaker 1: of the Patent Office end quote. So Craig inherited an 110 00:06:56,480 --> 00:07:01,040 Speaker 1: office that was really short on cash, Like according to 111 00:07:01,160 --> 00:07:05,239 Speaker 1: Craigzone calculations, the Patent Office was short to the tune 112 00:07:05,240 --> 00:07:08,320 Speaker 1: of around four thousand dollars. And keep in mind, this 113 00:07:08,400 --> 00:07:13,200 Speaker 1: is eighteen twenty nine. He suspected hanky and or panky 114 00:07:13,280 --> 00:07:16,200 Speaker 1: had been going on, but he didn't find any evidence 115 00:07:16,240 --> 00:07:19,360 Speaker 1: of it, Like he thought maybe one of his predecessors 116 00:07:19,400 --> 00:07:23,800 Speaker 1: perhaps doctor Thornton had been embezzling money from the Patent Office, 117 00:07:23,880 --> 00:07:28,080 Speaker 1: but he couldn't find any evidence supporting that hypothesis. Now, 118 00:07:28,400 --> 00:07:31,840 Speaker 1: it's also true that during his tenure, when doctor Thornton 119 00:07:31,880 --> 00:07:35,960 Speaker 1: was the first Superintendent, he would often request that Congress 120 00:07:35,960 --> 00:07:39,520 Speaker 1: increase funding to the Patent Office, but Congress kind of 121 00:07:39,560 --> 00:07:42,520 Speaker 1: ignored him for the most part. This would become something 122 00:07:42,520 --> 00:07:45,360 Speaker 1: of a time honored tradition for many years. The Patent 123 00:07:45,360 --> 00:07:48,080 Speaker 1: Office would argue it needed more funding, and no one 124 00:07:48,160 --> 00:07:52,320 Speaker 1: would seem to care that much at that point. So 125 00:07:52,440 --> 00:07:55,960 Speaker 1: Craig had a different approach to granting patents than Thornton 126 00:07:55,960 --> 00:07:58,920 Speaker 1: and Jones did. So his predecessors had felt like a 127 00:07:58,920 --> 00:08:01,840 Speaker 1: patent review was a vital part of the process that 128 00:08:01,920 --> 00:08:05,760 Speaker 1: it really needed to happen. Craig felt the most important 129 00:08:05,840 --> 00:08:09,080 Speaker 1: part was that the applicant paid their application fee, and 130 00:08:09,240 --> 00:08:12,200 Speaker 1: if that happened, well, then we're good to go. It 131 00:08:12,480 --> 00:08:15,600 Speaker 1: just you know, stamp approved on those patent applications if 132 00:08:15,600 --> 00:08:19,080 Speaker 1: the fee comes in. So Craig wasn't so fussed about 133 00:08:19,200 --> 00:08:22,960 Speaker 1: patent specifications and rarely, if ever, even bothered to read them. 134 00:08:23,000 --> 00:08:27,360 Speaker 1: According to contemporary reports, he was adhering to that change 135 00:08:27,360 --> 00:08:29,400 Speaker 1: in patent law, the one that dated all the way 136 00:08:29,440 --> 00:08:33,840 Speaker 1: back to seventeen ninety three. And if any disputes arose 137 00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:36,360 Speaker 1: due to a patent being say a copy of another 138 00:08:36,400 --> 00:08:39,360 Speaker 1: invention that had already received a patent, or any other 139 00:08:39,440 --> 00:08:42,040 Speaker 1: problem like that, well that was a matter for the courts. 140 00:08:42,320 --> 00:08:44,560 Speaker 1: It wasn't a matter for the patent office. So he 141 00:08:44,640 --> 00:08:46,600 Speaker 1: was like, Nope, we're going to follow the law and 142 00:08:47,080 --> 00:08:50,600 Speaker 1: get all those fees and not worry whether or not 143 00:08:50,679 --> 00:08:53,480 Speaker 1: the thing where granting a patent for actually works or 144 00:08:53,480 --> 00:08:56,720 Speaker 1: if it's new. He did, however, find the lack of 145 00:08:56,840 --> 00:09:01,320 Speaker 1: organization in the office appalling, so he created a system 146 00:09:01,520 --> 00:09:06,040 Speaker 1: in which he classified inventions according to subject matter, specifically 147 00:09:06,080 --> 00:09:09,880 Speaker 1: for all the models of the invention, so like models 148 00:09:09,880 --> 00:09:12,240 Speaker 1: that were designed to do things like farm work would 149 00:09:12,240 --> 00:09:14,280 Speaker 1: be grouped together that sort of thing. So he did 150 00:09:14,360 --> 00:09:18,640 Speaker 1: bring a certain kind of organization system to the patent process. Remember, 151 00:09:18,960 --> 00:09:22,679 Speaker 1: at this stage, the patents that were being granted and 152 00:09:22,760 --> 00:09:25,240 Speaker 1: the applications that were being submitted, none of them were 153 00:09:25,280 --> 00:09:29,040 Speaker 1: being numbered. There was no numbering system with patents at 154 00:09:29,040 --> 00:09:31,719 Speaker 1: this point, so as they were starting to mount up 155 00:09:31,760 --> 00:09:35,360 Speaker 1: in the thousands, it was getting more and more difficult 156 00:09:35,640 --> 00:09:39,240 Speaker 1: to keep everything sorted and organized. In a little bit 157 00:09:39,240 --> 00:09:44,320 Speaker 1: of foreshadowing, Craig also sought a sizeable grant for the 158 00:09:44,360 --> 00:09:48,240 Speaker 1: office for the purposes of constructing a fireproof building into 159 00:09:48,280 --> 00:09:51,400 Speaker 1: which the Patent Office would then move, because he said, 160 00:09:51,400 --> 00:09:55,600 Speaker 1: you know, it would be disastrous if there were a fire, 161 00:09:55,920 --> 00:09:59,400 Speaker 1: because we have all these models and stuff. We don't 162 00:09:59,400 --> 00:10:03,520 Speaker 1: have copies of these patents. It would be a huge loss. 163 00:10:04,000 --> 00:10:09,080 Speaker 1: So Congress surprisingly actually voted to fund the project. But 164 00:10:09,400 --> 00:10:13,440 Speaker 1: before that could happen, Before the building could be built, 165 00:10:14,080 --> 00:10:17,559 Speaker 1: Craig found himself at the center of an investigation. An 166 00:10:17,559 --> 00:10:20,360 Speaker 1: employee at the Patent Office had argued that Craig was 167 00:10:20,440 --> 00:10:23,000 Speaker 1: ill suited for his position and that he should be 168 00:10:23,040 --> 00:10:28,080 Speaker 1: dismissed from it. That employee was the son of William Elliott, 169 00:10:28,400 --> 00:10:32,840 Speaker 1: also named William Elliott. You know William Parker Elliott. So 170 00:10:33,160 --> 00:10:36,920 Speaker 1: why did Billy junior take aim at Craig? Well, as 171 00:10:36,920 --> 00:10:40,280 Speaker 1: I mentioned earlier, Elliot the younger was a freelance draftsman 172 00:10:40,320 --> 00:10:44,200 Speaker 1: for the Patent Office, and Craig had ended up hiring 173 00:10:44,240 --> 00:10:46,560 Speaker 1: one of his former students. He had been a teacher 174 00:10:46,559 --> 00:10:48,280 Speaker 1: in the past, and one of the students had become 175 00:10:48,320 --> 00:10:52,800 Speaker 1: a draftsman. So Craig hired this former student to come 176 00:10:52,920 --> 00:10:56,280 Speaker 1: and work at the Patent Office as essentially another freelance draftsman. 177 00:10:56,800 --> 00:11:00,440 Speaker 1: But that meant that this student was a compet editor 178 00:11:00,800 --> 00:11:04,920 Speaker 1: to Elliott Junior, and so, like his father before him, 179 00:11:05,200 --> 00:11:08,720 Speaker 1: Elliot the second filed a complaint against his boss and 180 00:11:08,840 --> 00:11:12,920 Speaker 1: it worked so allegedly, President Andrew Jackson himself signed the 181 00:11:12,960 --> 00:11:16,800 Speaker 1: dismissal papers in eighteen thirty five and JD. Craig had 182 00:11:16,840 --> 00:11:21,359 Speaker 1: to leave as Superintendent of the Patent Office. The Elliots 183 00:11:21,880 --> 00:11:26,120 Speaker 1: continued in their role as kingmakers, or at the very least, 184 00:11:26,160 --> 00:11:31,240 Speaker 1: as superintendent destroyers. Okay, we're going to take a quick 185 00:11:31,240 --> 00:11:33,880 Speaker 1: break to thank our sponsors and we'll pick up with 186 00:11:34,000 --> 00:11:48,120 Speaker 1: the next Superintendent of the Patent Office. Okay, So JD. 187 00:11:48,280 --> 00:11:52,360 Speaker 1: Craig is out. He's been dismissed from his position as 188 00:11:52,400 --> 00:11:57,760 Speaker 1: Superintendent of the Patent Office. So who next leads the office? 189 00:11:57,840 --> 00:12:02,040 Speaker 1: That would be James Chamberlain Picket. What a fantastic name. 190 00:12:02,840 --> 00:12:05,679 Speaker 1: He was a veteran of the War of eighteen twelve 191 00:12:05,920 --> 00:12:09,360 Speaker 1: and he would become the penultimate superintendent for the Patent 192 00:12:09,360 --> 00:12:13,280 Speaker 1: Office in February of eighteen thirty five, but he only 193 00:12:13,280 --> 00:12:17,520 Speaker 1: stuck around for three months. He was not the superintendent 194 00:12:17,559 --> 00:12:20,560 Speaker 1: for very long at all. He actually resigned his position 195 00:12:20,960 --> 00:12:24,120 Speaker 1: because an opportunity opened up in the Department of Treasury 196 00:12:24,600 --> 00:12:28,800 Speaker 1: and he thought that looks like it's better worked for me. 197 00:12:29,320 --> 00:12:31,120 Speaker 1: So I don't have very much to say about him 198 00:12:31,160 --> 00:12:33,320 Speaker 1: as leader of the Office because he wasn't around very 199 00:12:33,360 --> 00:12:37,000 Speaker 1: long in that capacity. But then we get to our 200 00:12:37,160 --> 00:12:40,920 Speaker 1: final superintendent of the US Patent Office, a guy named 201 00:12:41,000 --> 00:12:45,760 Speaker 1: Henry L. Ellsworth, another great name. He was said to 202 00:12:45,800 --> 00:12:51,560 Speaker 1: be methodical and meticulous. He whipped the office into shape 203 00:12:52,200 --> 00:12:55,839 Speaker 1: where there had been chaos. He instituted order, and he 204 00:12:55,840 --> 00:12:59,880 Speaker 1: would serve as superintendent until eighteen thirty six. But he 205 00:13:00,160 --> 00:13:03,559 Speaker 1: remained the leader of the Patent Office until eighteen forty five. 206 00:13:04,280 --> 00:13:06,959 Speaker 1: So how is that possible? How could he be superintendent 207 00:13:07,040 --> 00:13:10,400 Speaker 1: until eighteen thirty six but lead the office till eighteen 208 00:13:10,480 --> 00:13:13,680 Speaker 1: forty five. Well, it's because in eighteen thirty six, the 209 00:13:13,760 --> 00:13:18,640 Speaker 1: US government changed its approach to patent law again. Actually, 210 00:13:18,640 --> 00:13:22,560 Speaker 1: this time, the government essentially scrapped all existing patent law 211 00:13:22,679 --> 00:13:27,000 Speaker 1: and started over. So once more, clerks had the legal 212 00:13:27,080 --> 00:13:31,040 Speaker 1: authority to screen patent applications, and to deny applications that 213 00:13:31,080 --> 00:13:35,079 Speaker 1: were for an obvious invention or a copy of something 214 00:13:35,080 --> 00:13:38,920 Speaker 1: that already existed, or otherwise failed to qualify for a patent. 215 00:13:39,400 --> 00:13:42,240 Speaker 1: Since seventeen ninety three, they technically didn't have the right 216 00:13:42,280 --> 00:13:44,600 Speaker 1: to do that. Eighteen thirty six they get the right 217 00:13:44,640 --> 00:13:47,840 Speaker 1: to do it again. The length of protection for a 218 00:13:47,880 --> 00:13:51,360 Speaker 1: patent expanded from fourteen years to twenty one years at 219 00:13:51,360 --> 00:13:54,840 Speaker 1: that point. Now, this would change several times over the years. 220 00:13:54,840 --> 00:13:56,640 Speaker 1: I'm not going to go over every single change of 221 00:13:56,679 --> 00:14:00,320 Speaker 1: patent law. That would just be exhausting and and not 222 00:14:00,360 --> 00:14:05,040 Speaker 1: really that interesting. I will say that currently patent law 223 00:14:05,080 --> 00:14:08,920 Speaker 1: allows for twenty years of protection from the date that 224 00:14:08,960 --> 00:14:11,600 Speaker 1: the patent is issued, and then you are also able 225 00:14:11,640 --> 00:14:16,680 Speaker 1: to file for an extension of up to five more years. Anyway, 226 00:14:17,000 --> 00:14:20,480 Speaker 1: the eighteen thirty six Act officially established a Patent Office 227 00:14:20,520 --> 00:14:24,080 Speaker 1: as a division of the State Department. No longer would 228 00:14:24,080 --> 00:14:28,080 Speaker 1: there be a superintendent in charge. Instead, the head of 229 00:14:28,160 --> 00:14:31,360 Speaker 1: the Patent Office would now hold the title of commissioner. 230 00:14:32,000 --> 00:14:34,600 Speaker 1: So you might say, well, that's a kind of fine point. 231 00:14:34,680 --> 00:14:39,000 Speaker 1: But it's true that Ellsworth was the last superintendent, but 232 00:14:39,040 --> 00:14:42,360 Speaker 1: he was also the first Commissioner of the Patent Office, 233 00:14:42,720 --> 00:14:46,280 Speaker 1: because the title changed while he was holding that position, 234 00:14:46,840 --> 00:14:50,120 Speaker 1: and he took his duties really seriously. One of those 235 00:14:50,360 --> 00:14:54,000 Speaker 1: was that for all new incoming patents, the office would 236 00:14:54,040 --> 00:14:58,560 Speaker 1: assign a number to that patent. Finally, we get to 237 00:14:58,800 --> 00:15:04,640 Speaker 1: patent numbering, where we actually can see the chronological sequence 238 00:15:04,640 --> 00:15:08,280 Speaker 1: of patents that were granted. The very first patent, in 239 00:15:08,320 --> 00:15:11,960 Speaker 1: case you're curious, Patent number one was for a new 240 00:15:12,040 --> 00:15:16,359 Speaker 1: design for locomotive wheels, as filed by one John Ruggles. 241 00:15:17,560 --> 00:15:20,960 Speaker 1: The changes to patent law happened in the summer of 242 00:15:21,040 --> 00:15:24,560 Speaker 1: eighteen thirty six, but it was the winter of eighteen 243 00:15:24,600 --> 00:15:27,800 Speaker 1: thirty six where we would see another massive change happen 244 00:15:28,280 --> 00:15:32,360 Speaker 1: to patents, this time not because of legislative maneuvers, but 245 00:15:32,560 --> 00:15:39,240 Speaker 1: because of a disaster. So on December fifteenth, eighteen thirty six, 246 00:15:39,760 --> 00:15:43,920 Speaker 1: the worst case scenario for the Patent Office happened. There 247 00:15:44,040 --> 00:15:47,120 Speaker 1: was a fire in the Patent Office, and it was 248 00:15:47,160 --> 00:15:51,040 Speaker 1: a massive fire that essentially wiped out all the patents, 249 00:15:51,400 --> 00:15:55,480 Speaker 1: the models, and the drafts that had been made since 250 00:15:55,640 --> 00:15:59,840 Speaker 1: seventeen ninety. Now at this time, the Patent Office occupied 251 00:15:59,880 --> 00:16:02,960 Speaker 1: US section of the Blodget Hotel, which also had a 252 00:16:02,960 --> 00:16:04,800 Speaker 1: couple of other tenants in it. Right, you had the 253 00:16:04,880 --> 00:16:11,360 Speaker 1: US post Office. But ironically, the other big organization that 254 00:16:11,600 --> 00:16:16,720 Speaker 1: had a space in the Blodget Hotel was a fire department. 255 00:16:17,320 --> 00:16:20,280 Speaker 1: And as Steve Martin would say in the documentary Roxanne, 256 00:16:20,800 --> 00:16:25,320 Speaker 1: we're supposed to be putting them out, But seriously, the 257 00:16:25,360 --> 00:16:29,240 Speaker 1: cause of the fire was due to a really dumb 258 00:16:29,320 --> 00:16:33,280 Speaker 1: practice that the US Post Office workers were following. All right, 259 00:16:33,320 --> 00:16:37,040 Speaker 1: so let's set the scene. It's December, it's Washington, DC. 260 00:16:37,720 --> 00:16:41,840 Speaker 1: Things can get really cold. So to keep warm, some 261 00:16:41,920 --> 00:16:45,920 Speaker 1: of the offices had wood burning stoves where you would, 262 00:16:45,960 --> 00:16:47,880 Speaker 1: you know, put some wood in the stove and burn 263 00:16:47,920 --> 00:16:50,600 Speaker 1: it in order to generate heat and keep the office comfortable. 264 00:16:51,120 --> 00:16:54,520 Speaker 1: So at the end of the workday, the Postal Office 265 00:16:54,560 --> 00:16:58,760 Speaker 1: workers would collect the ashes from their wood stove and 266 00:16:58,800 --> 00:17:01,480 Speaker 1: then they would bring those ashes down into the basement 267 00:17:02,040 --> 00:17:06,000 Speaker 1: and they would store them in a box at the 268 00:17:06,040 --> 00:17:09,760 Speaker 1: basement of the hotel. And the box was made out 269 00:17:09,800 --> 00:17:12,480 Speaker 1: of wood. And I think you can probably see where 270 00:17:12,480 --> 00:17:17,080 Speaker 1: this is going. So on that night in December of 271 00:17:17,119 --> 00:17:20,399 Speaker 1: eighteen thirty six, the ashes that they dumped in this 272 00:17:20,480 --> 00:17:23,560 Speaker 1: wooden box were still hot. There still had some coals 273 00:17:23,720 --> 00:17:27,359 Speaker 1: inside those ashes, those coals ultimately set fire to the 274 00:17:27,359 --> 00:17:30,359 Speaker 1: wooden box, and the wooden box happened to be right 275 00:17:30,400 --> 00:17:33,800 Speaker 1: next to the post offices supply of firewood in the 276 00:17:33,840 --> 00:17:39,199 Speaker 1: basement really convenient, right. So the fire grew and in 277 00:17:39,240 --> 00:17:41,800 Speaker 1: the wee hours of the morning, people began to notice 278 00:17:41,840 --> 00:17:45,440 Speaker 1: that something was a miss at the Blodget Hotel. As 279 00:17:45,520 --> 00:17:49,240 Speaker 1: for the fire department, it had equipment, but it didn't 280 00:17:49,240 --> 00:17:52,919 Speaker 1: have any firefighters because the firefighter force was a volunteer 281 00:17:53,040 --> 00:17:57,080 Speaker 1: force and for reasons I'm not aware of, I'd need 282 00:17:57,119 --> 00:18:00,720 Speaker 1: to look into it further, but apparently early they had 283 00:18:00,760 --> 00:18:05,240 Speaker 1: faced such a discouraging experience that they disbanded, so there 284 00:18:05,320 --> 00:18:09,479 Speaker 1: was no actual firefighting force in that fire department. So 285 00:18:09,520 --> 00:18:13,639 Speaker 1: the fire ended up spreading mainly to the areas that 286 00:18:13,680 --> 00:18:17,000 Speaker 1: were inhabited by the Patent Office, and they destroyed thousands 287 00:18:17,240 --> 00:18:21,359 Speaker 1: of documents and models and sketches. The Post Office actually 288 00:18:21,400 --> 00:18:24,520 Speaker 1: got off pretty lightly. Their documents were in a separate 289 00:18:24,560 --> 00:18:27,959 Speaker 1: section of the Blodget Hotel, and so Post Office workers 290 00:18:27,960 --> 00:18:31,720 Speaker 1: were actually able to get in there and rescue important 291 00:18:31,800 --> 00:18:35,560 Speaker 1: stuff from the Post Office before the flames could spread there. Now, 292 00:18:35,560 --> 00:18:40,320 Speaker 1: early on, some folks suspected that the fire was actually arson, 293 00:18:40,920 --> 00:18:43,520 Speaker 1: that someone had said it on purpose, and the reason 294 00:18:43,760 --> 00:18:46,840 Speaker 1: was that the US government was currently in the middle 295 00:18:46,920 --> 00:18:51,000 Speaker 1: of an investigation into the Post Office itself. There were 296 00:18:51,119 --> 00:18:55,520 Speaker 1: various charges of corruption that were playing out with the 297 00:18:55,600 --> 00:18:59,920 Speaker 1: US Post Office, so rumors began to spread that may 298 00:19:00,840 --> 00:19:04,800 Speaker 1: this was actually an effort to remove evidence by burning it, 299 00:19:05,359 --> 00:19:08,480 Speaker 1: that someone working at the Post Office, perhaps a leader, 300 00:19:08,840 --> 00:19:11,520 Speaker 1: had decided to try and do this in an effort 301 00:19:11,640 --> 00:19:18,840 Speaker 1: to confound the investigation. But since the actual fire ended 302 00:19:18,920 --> 00:19:22,400 Speaker 1: up impacting the Patent Office but not really the Post Office, 303 00:19:22,960 --> 00:19:28,160 Speaker 1: that hypothesis was ultimately rejected, and later investigations showed it 304 00:19:28,200 --> 00:19:31,880 Speaker 1: was more likely this carelessness and bad practice of storing 305 00:19:32,359 --> 00:19:35,200 Speaker 1: ashes in a wooden box in the basement that actually 306 00:19:35,280 --> 00:19:41,000 Speaker 1: led to the fire, not intentional arson. Now, former Superintendent 307 00:19:41,080 --> 00:19:45,359 Speaker 1: Craig's requests to build a flame resistant Patent office really 308 00:19:45,400 --> 00:19:49,919 Speaker 1: became a top priority. If you remember JD. Craig had, 309 00:19:50,680 --> 00:19:56,119 Speaker 1: while he had some really controversial opinions about patents and 310 00:19:56,240 --> 00:19:59,199 Speaker 1: it was apparently a terrible boss, he did really believe 311 00:19:59,240 --> 00:20:01,600 Speaker 1: that the Patent Office needed to move into a more 312 00:20:01,720 --> 00:20:06,280 Speaker 1: fire resistant building, and so he had petitioned Congress to 313 00:20:06,880 --> 00:20:11,000 Speaker 1: fund that, and in fact Congress did, but it would 314 00:20:11,040 --> 00:20:12,760 Speaker 1: take a while for that to get built. Most of 315 00:20:12,800 --> 00:20:15,640 Speaker 1: the old patents that had been stored in the Blodget 316 00:20:15,720 --> 00:20:19,080 Speaker 1: hotel were lost, and that would also prompt changes to 317 00:20:19,280 --> 00:20:21,800 Speaker 1: how the Patent Office would store patent sentiment that the 318 00:20:21,800 --> 00:20:25,639 Speaker 1: office would require copies of patents to protect against another 319 00:20:25,720 --> 00:20:28,680 Speaker 1: catastrophic loss in the future, so that you're not storing 320 00:20:29,680 --> 00:20:33,800 Speaker 1: the one and only copy of a patent in a 321 00:20:33,840 --> 00:20:36,320 Speaker 1: single place. It's a bit hard to believe that no 322 00:20:36,359 --> 00:20:39,159 Speaker 1: one bothered with copies up to that point, but I 323 00:20:39,200 --> 00:20:42,720 Speaker 1: guess until there's a disaster, there's not much incentive to 324 00:20:42,720 --> 00:20:46,040 Speaker 1: protect yourself. Also, making a copy was not the easiest 325 00:20:46,040 --> 00:20:50,560 Speaker 1: thing in the world necessarily at the time, so it 326 00:20:50,560 --> 00:20:53,400 Speaker 1: could be a pretty time consuming process if you don't 327 00:20:53,440 --> 00:20:56,159 Speaker 1: have access to the like a printing press or something, 328 00:20:56,720 --> 00:21:00,400 Speaker 1: and so maybe that was part of it as well. Anyway, 329 00:21:00,800 --> 00:21:04,280 Speaker 1: the Office was able to restore around two thy eight 330 00:21:04,400 --> 00:21:09,159 Speaker 1: hundred old patents, designating them with a number that was 331 00:21:09,160 --> 00:21:13,560 Speaker 1: preceded by the letter X. This distinguished them from new 332 00:21:13,680 --> 00:21:17,080 Speaker 1: patents that were being filed with the office under the 333 00:21:17,200 --> 00:21:20,359 Speaker 1: eighteen thirty six Revised Law, so we do have a 334 00:21:20,400 --> 00:21:24,040 Speaker 1: record of some of the patents between seventeen ninety and 335 00:21:24,119 --> 00:21:26,880 Speaker 1: eighteen thirty six, and like I said, they're designated as 336 00:21:27,560 --> 00:21:31,159 Speaker 1: X and then a number. But again it's just a 337 00:21:31,200 --> 00:21:34,920 Speaker 1: fraction of all the patents that were received by the 338 00:21:34,960 --> 00:21:37,040 Speaker 1: office leading up to eighteen thirty six. I think there 339 00:21:37,080 --> 00:21:41,119 Speaker 1: was something like more than ten thousand patents total, so 340 00:21:42,080 --> 00:21:45,720 Speaker 1: you know, between a fifth and a fourth of them 341 00:21:46,280 --> 00:21:49,120 Speaker 1: survived and all the rest were destroyed. By the way, 342 00:21:49,160 --> 00:21:53,800 Speaker 1: the office was actually able to restore patents mostly by 343 00:21:53,880 --> 00:21:58,400 Speaker 1: talking to the inventors or patent holders who had filed 344 00:21:58,520 --> 00:22:01,640 Speaker 1: for the patent in the first place, to to recreate 345 00:22:02,320 --> 00:22:06,360 Speaker 1: their initial patent and their sketches and stuff like that. 346 00:22:07,520 --> 00:22:12,040 Speaker 1: They had to remake them, so it wasn't like there 347 00:22:12,080 --> 00:22:14,600 Speaker 1: was just a copy hanging around for most of these. 348 00:22:15,600 --> 00:22:19,119 Speaker 1: It would take four years before the Patent Office's new 349 00:22:19,160 --> 00:22:22,560 Speaker 1: digs would actually be ready. Most of the new building 350 00:22:22,640 --> 00:22:25,760 Speaker 1: was made of stone and marble, and it was thought 351 00:22:25,840 --> 00:22:28,680 Speaker 1: to be far safer than the Blodget Hotel had been, 352 00:22:28,720 --> 00:22:31,480 Speaker 1: at least with regard to fires, and for nearly four 353 00:22:31,520 --> 00:22:34,840 Speaker 1: decades it served as a decent but not perfect place 354 00:22:34,880 --> 00:22:37,800 Speaker 1: for the Patent Office. As I mentioned, you know, the 355 00:22:38,040 --> 00:22:42,480 Speaker 1: early practice with patents was that inventors were to include 356 00:22:42,600 --> 00:22:46,920 Speaker 1: a model of their invention if possible, and models take 357 00:22:47,000 --> 00:22:50,120 Speaker 1: up a lot of space. So it wasn't a perfect 358 00:22:50,119 --> 00:22:53,560 Speaker 1: place for the Patent office because there was no such 359 00:22:53,600 --> 00:22:58,760 Speaker 1: thing as an office that was accepting models, physical models. 360 00:22:58,760 --> 00:23:01,680 Speaker 1: It took up a lot of space. They would rapidly 361 00:23:01,720 --> 00:23:04,920 Speaker 1: start to run out of storage space and they would 362 00:23:04,920 --> 00:23:08,680 Speaker 1: have to request things like an extension to the building 363 00:23:08,880 --> 00:23:12,600 Speaker 1: or something along those lines. So if you review the 364 00:23:12,640 --> 00:23:16,280 Speaker 1: work of the commissioners who held the office from say 365 00:23:16,320 --> 00:23:21,320 Speaker 1: eighteen forty onward to like eighteen seventy seven, you see 366 00:23:21,359 --> 00:23:24,159 Speaker 1: a lot of requests for new construction work so that 367 00:23:24,200 --> 00:23:27,320 Speaker 1: they can have more space to store things like models. 368 00:23:27,640 --> 00:23:31,119 Speaker 1: But things would change in eighteen seventy seven. The office 369 00:23:31,160 --> 00:23:34,120 Speaker 1: made sure to make copies of stuff. With the introduction 370 00:23:34,160 --> 00:23:38,160 Speaker 1: of photography, that included actually making photographs of the models. 371 00:23:39,640 --> 00:23:41,480 Speaker 1: You know, obviously, it's a much harder thing to make 372 00:23:41,520 --> 00:23:43,720 Speaker 1: a copy of a model than it is a copy 373 00:23:43,760 --> 00:23:48,040 Speaker 1: of a document, so photographs are largely used as instead 374 00:23:48,200 --> 00:23:50,639 Speaker 1: of creating a copy. Obviously, if you made a copy 375 00:23:50,640 --> 00:23:53,639 Speaker 1: of every single model, well now you've just doubled the 376 00:23:53,760 --> 00:23:57,920 Speaker 1: challenge of storing everything, so they would photograph the models 377 00:23:58,000 --> 00:24:03,679 Speaker 1: rather than ask for a replica of a model. But yeah, 378 00:24:03,880 --> 00:24:06,560 Speaker 1: they really changed their approach and made sure they had 379 00:24:06,560 --> 00:24:09,280 Speaker 1: copies stored in different places, so that should something like 380 00:24:09,320 --> 00:24:12,760 Speaker 1: this happen again, it would not result in as big 381 00:24:12,800 --> 00:24:17,840 Speaker 1: a disaster as the eighteen thirty six fire did. And 382 00:24:17,880 --> 00:24:20,200 Speaker 1: this sets us up for the second big fire, which 383 00:24:20,200 --> 00:24:23,360 Speaker 1: would happen on September twenty fourth, eighteen seventy seven. We're 384 00:24:23,359 --> 00:24:27,080 Speaker 1: coming up to the anniversary of that major fire of 385 00:24:27,160 --> 00:24:30,600 Speaker 1: the US Post Office, the second major fire. Before we 386 00:24:30,640 --> 00:24:32,919 Speaker 1: get into any of that, let's take another quick break 387 00:24:33,080 --> 00:24:46,200 Speaker 1: to thank our sponsors. Okay, we're back. So obviously, between 388 00:24:46,280 --> 00:24:48,879 Speaker 1: eighteen thirty six and eighteen seventy seven, there were a 389 00:24:49,000 --> 00:24:53,280 Speaker 1: ton of different commissioners who led the Patent Office. Most 390 00:24:53,280 --> 00:24:55,720 Speaker 1: of them only held the position for like a couple 391 00:24:55,800 --> 00:24:59,520 Speaker 1: of years at most. But in eighteen seventy seven, the 392 00:24:59,520 --> 00:25:02,960 Speaker 1: Commissi was a guy named Ellis Spear. He was a 393 00:25:03,040 --> 00:25:06,119 Speaker 1: veteran of the Civil War on the Union side, I 394 00:25:06,160 --> 00:25:09,359 Speaker 1: should add he had also been a farmer, and he 395 00:25:09,800 --> 00:25:13,480 Speaker 1: loved classical literature. He had joined the Patent Office in 396 00:25:13,480 --> 00:25:16,360 Speaker 1: eighteen sixty five, right after the end of the Civil War, 397 00:25:16,720 --> 00:25:19,959 Speaker 1: and by eighteen seventy seven he found himself promoted to commissioner. 398 00:25:20,280 --> 00:25:23,639 Speaker 1: And while his time as leader overall has sort of 399 00:25:23,760 --> 00:25:29,080 Speaker 1: a positive aspect to it, the eighteen seventy seven fire 400 00:25:29,160 --> 00:25:32,040 Speaker 1: is an obvious exception to that. Right, it's not that 401 00:25:32,080 --> 00:25:38,080 Speaker 1: it was his fault, but that was a big, expensive catastrophe. 402 00:25:38,520 --> 00:25:42,200 Speaker 1: So the fire seemingly started in the room that they 403 00:25:42,200 --> 00:25:45,840 Speaker 1: were using to store the models. How it got started 404 00:25:46,920 --> 00:25:51,440 Speaker 1: remains a mystery, so there are various hypotheses suggesting how 405 00:25:51,480 --> 00:25:56,080 Speaker 1: the fire might have started. One suggests that some chemicals 406 00:25:56,119 --> 00:25:59,520 Speaker 1: that were being stored in that room perhaps created really 407 00:25:59,640 --> 00:26:03,000 Speaker 1: flamm fumes, and maybe there was even a case of 408 00:26:03,000 --> 00:26:09,080 Speaker 1: spontaneous combustion, which is possible that can happen. Others suggested 409 00:26:09,119 --> 00:26:12,479 Speaker 1: that maybe one of the models had like a lens, 410 00:26:12,600 --> 00:26:18,600 Speaker 1: an optical lens that perhaps focused some sunlight onto a 411 00:26:18,680 --> 00:26:21,040 Speaker 1: flammable surface, and that's how the fire got started. So 412 00:26:21,119 --> 00:26:24,679 Speaker 1: essentially like having a magnifying lens position just right so 413 00:26:24,720 --> 00:26:28,280 Speaker 1: that when sunlight is coming through, uh, it's focused on 414 00:26:28,320 --> 00:26:31,639 Speaker 1: a point that heats up and then bursts into flame. 415 00:26:32,160 --> 00:26:35,280 Speaker 1: Maybe that's how it happened. Others said that, well, it 416 00:26:35,359 --> 00:26:37,880 Speaker 1: was probably closer to what happened in eighteen thirty six. 417 00:26:37,960 --> 00:26:41,640 Speaker 1: That maybe it was that the day was unseasonably chilly, 418 00:26:41,640 --> 00:26:45,719 Speaker 1: because again this happened in September, not in December, and 419 00:26:45,760 --> 00:26:49,959 Speaker 1: that because it was unseasonably chilly, some office workers, you know, 420 00:26:50,040 --> 00:26:53,919 Speaker 1: set a fire in their office, like a in a 421 00:26:54,000 --> 00:26:58,560 Speaker 1: grate in order to keep the heat up, and that 422 00:26:58,760 --> 00:27:02,760 Speaker 1: this ended up creating barks that set the fire. It's 423 00:27:03,160 --> 00:27:06,200 Speaker 1: hard to say what it was. No one really knows, 424 00:27:06,520 --> 00:27:10,680 Speaker 1: but whatever the cause, the fire quickly engulfed those models. 425 00:27:10,840 --> 00:27:13,560 Speaker 1: Among them was a model of Eli Whitney's cotton Gin, 426 00:27:14,119 --> 00:27:18,480 Speaker 1: the only model that was produced for that patent, and 427 00:27:18,520 --> 00:27:22,480 Speaker 1: that was completely destroyed by the fire. The fire claimed 428 00:27:22,720 --> 00:27:26,240 Speaker 1: far more individual pieces than the fire that happened in 429 00:27:26,240 --> 00:27:29,919 Speaker 1: eighteen thirty six because there had been more than forty 430 00:27:30,040 --> 00:27:34,960 Speaker 1: years of additional patents granted since then. So while the 431 00:27:35,080 --> 00:27:38,080 Speaker 1: fire didn't destroy the whole building or anything like that, 432 00:27:39,560 --> 00:27:42,240 Speaker 1: there had been a lot of patents granted between eighteen 433 00:27:42,320 --> 00:27:45,160 Speaker 1: thirty six and eighteen seventy seven. I mean, the pace 434 00:27:45,200 --> 00:27:49,719 Speaker 1: of innovation had picked up considerably as the nineteenth century 435 00:27:49,760 --> 00:27:54,160 Speaker 1: went on. All told. Estimates put the fire's tally at 436 00:27:54,560 --> 00:28:00,160 Speaker 1: consuming around eighty thousand models and six hundred thousand drawings 437 00:28:00,480 --> 00:28:05,359 Speaker 1: attached to patent applications. But and this is a key element, 438 00:28:06,280 --> 00:28:11,600 Speaker 1: no patents were completely lost, not a single one. There 439 00:28:11,640 --> 00:28:15,320 Speaker 1: were some partial losses, but nothing was lost completely. So 440 00:28:15,359 --> 00:28:20,040 Speaker 1: that meant the new processes were protecting those patents. The 441 00:28:20,119 --> 00:28:23,199 Speaker 1: patent office did not find itself starting from nothing. Again, 442 00:28:23,960 --> 00:28:29,320 Speaker 1: the preventive measures actually worked. The copies helped mitigate some 443 00:28:29,359 --> 00:28:32,439 Speaker 1: of the problems that would follow. So back in eighteen 444 00:28:32,480 --> 00:28:35,879 Speaker 1: thirty six, when all of those patents were destroyed, it 445 00:28:36,000 --> 00:28:40,080 Speaker 1: meant that inventors, patent holders and their lawyers were able 446 00:28:40,120 --> 00:28:42,480 Speaker 1: to argue that no, really they held the rights to 447 00:28:42,520 --> 00:28:46,520 Speaker 1: a particular invention. And because the patents were gone, there 448 00:28:46,560 --> 00:28:49,040 Speaker 1: was nothing to refer to, right. You couldn't go and 449 00:28:49,080 --> 00:28:52,080 Speaker 1: see like, oh, did you actually file that patent because 450 00:28:52,080 --> 00:28:55,200 Speaker 1: the patents didn't exist, So people could make false claims left, 451 00:28:55,240 --> 00:28:58,280 Speaker 1: right and center, and people with the real claim found 452 00:28:58,320 --> 00:29:01,600 Speaker 1: themselves fighting for their rights court, but they lacked the 453 00:29:01,680 --> 00:29:05,480 Speaker 1: documentation to show that they actually had the authority to 454 00:29:05,680 --> 00:29:08,720 Speaker 1: make that claim. So it was a really messy legal situation. 455 00:29:09,880 --> 00:29:13,360 Speaker 1: A similar thing happened in eighteen seventy seven, but the 456 00:29:13,360 --> 00:29:17,560 Speaker 1: copies and documentation were able to mitigate that a bit, 457 00:29:18,080 --> 00:29:22,440 Speaker 1: not totally, but a little bit. The monetary cost of 458 00:29:22,480 --> 00:29:27,440 Speaker 1: the eighteen seventy seven fire was by far much greater 459 00:29:27,920 --> 00:29:30,520 Speaker 1: than the one that happened in eighteen thirty six. However, 460 00:29:30,600 --> 00:29:33,000 Speaker 1: the fact that the office lost none of the patents 461 00:29:33,600 --> 00:29:37,120 Speaker 1: was a huge deal. So one change that ended up 462 00:29:37,120 --> 00:29:40,000 Speaker 1: being the result of this fire is that the Patent 463 00:29:40,040 --> 00:29:42,960 Speaker 1: Office deemed it was no longer necessary for inventors to 464 00:29:43,000 --> 00:29:46,600 Speaker 1: include a model of their invention with their patent application. 465 00:29:47,080 --> 00:29:49,800 Speaker 1: So until eighteen seventy seven that had still been the custom, 466 00:29:50,480 --> 00:29:53,040 Speaker 1: but the challenges of storing and caring for the models 467 00:29:53,040 --> 00:29:56,240 Speaker 1: had just become too great as more applications were pouring 468 00:29:56,280 --> 00:29:58,840 Speaker 1: in from inventors in the United States, so the Patent 469 00:29:58,840 --> 00:30:02,600 Speaker 1: Office would no longer accept models of inventions from eighteen 470 00:30:02,680 --> 00:30:06,080 Speaker 1: seventy seven on. That's understandable, it's also kind of a bummer. 471 00:30:06,960 --> 00:30:10,720 Speaker 1: It also meant that sometimes it was difficult to determine 472 00:30:10,760 --> 00:30:13,280 Speaker 1: if a particular invention would work or not. Like with 473 00:30:13,360 --> 00:30:16,360 Speaker 1: a model, you could at least take a slightly more 474 00:30:16,440 --> 00:30:20,080 Speaker 1: educated guess as to whether or not the underlying functions 475 00:30:20,160 --> 00:30:24,840 Speaker 1: of the invention would work without the model. When you're 476 00:30:24,840 --> 00:30:27,280 Speaker 1: just looking at a two dimensional sketch and then a 477 00:30:27,320 --> 00:30:31,760 Speaker 1: list of specifications, it's a little more challenging. As I've 478 00:30:31,800 --> 00:30:34,800 Speaker 1: mentioned in this show, patent law has changed a few 479 00:30:34,840 --> 00:30:38,800 Speaker 1: times since the nineteenth century, but the intent largely remains 480 00:30:38,880 --> 00:30:42,960 Speaker 1: the same. It's meant to provide protection and incentive for inventors, 481 00:30:43,000 --> 00:30:46,360 Speaker 1: and in return, inventors share their work so that future 482 00:30:46,400 --> 00:30:50,280 Speaker 1: generations can continue to benefit from their innovation and then 483 00:30:50,360 --> 00:30:54,040 Speaker 1: build upon it further. And while it doesn't always work 484 00:30:54,080 --> 00:30:57,120 Speaker 1: out that way, and issues like patent trolls can still 485 00:30:57,120 --> 00:31:00,479 Speaker 1: become a real headache, in general, I think it's been 486 00:31:00,480 --> 00:31:04,440 Speaker 1: a pretty good idea. Someone should probably patent it now. 487 00:31:04,480 --> 00:31:07,120 Speaker 1: Before I sign off, I want to remind y'all that 488 00:31:07,200 --> 00:31:10,280 Speaker 1: I'm going to be at this year's iHeartRadio Music Festival 489 00:31:10,600 --> 00:31:13,560 Speaker 1: at the House of Music that's happening this weekend on 490 00:31:13,640 --> 00:31:17,680 Speaker 1: Friday and Saturday. I'll be recording in the iHeart Podcasts 491 00:31:17,800 --> 00:31:21,720 Speaker 1: Studio powered by Bose. Come by on Friday at six 492 00:31:21,760 --> 00:31:25,080 Speaker 1: pm to the Free House of Music outside T Mobile Arena. 493 00:31:25,440 --> 00:31:27,800 Speaker 1: I will see you there and you can look out 494 00:31:27,840 --> 00:31:30,920 Speaker 1: for my episode that I record there next week. It 495 00:31:30,960 --> 00:31:34,040 Speaker 1: should be live on Monday. Also to remind you of 496 00:31:34,040 --> 00:31:37,160 Speaker 1: what the House of Music actually is. I can't wait 497 00:31:37,160 --> 00:31:39,200 Speaker 1: to see this in person. I've been reading about it 498 00:31:39,240 --> 00:31:44,120 Speaker 1: and I'm really intrigued. So it's a selection of interactive 499 00:31:44,160 --> 00:31:47,960 Speaker 1: exhibits and these experiences that are in the House of 500 00:31:48,040 --> 00:31:50,520 Speaker 1: Music are modeled after some of the artists that are 501 00:31:50,560 --> 00:31:54,440 Speaker 1: performing at the Music Festival, and they include people like 502 00:31:54,520 --> 00:31:57,520 Speaker 1: Kelly Clarkson on one side and Public Enemy on the other. 503 00:31:57,600 --> 00:32:01,600 Speaker 1: I mean, it's a big spectrum. Fallow Boy has a 504 00:32:01,720 --> 00:32:05,000 Speaker 1: room in there. TLC has a room in there. Not 505 00:32:05,080 --> 00:32:08,520 Speaker 1: all of them are necessarily mixed reality experiences, but they're 506 00:32:08,560 --> 00:32:13,480 Speaker 1: all interactive and they're meant to kind of encourage the 507 00:32:13,640 --> 00:32:17,479 Speaker 1: joy of music and the sharing of joy in music. 508 00:32:17,560 --> 00:32:20,520 Speaker 1: So I'm really looking forward to seeing it for myself 509 00:32:20,600 --> 00:32:24,719 Speaker 1: and to record in this special studio that Bose has 510 00:32:24,760 --> 00:32:29,840 Speaker 1: worked with iHeartRadio to create. So again this Friday at 511 00:32:29,880 --> 00:32:33,880 Speaker 1: six pm in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the T Mobile Arena. 512 00:32:34,000 --> 00:32:36,200 Speaker 1: Outside the T Mobile Arena, you'll find the House of Music. 513 00:32:36,200 --> 00:32:38,960 Speaker 1: That's where you're gonna find me, the bald guy talking 514 00:32:39,000 --> 00:32:43,200 Speaker 1: about technology and Yeah, I hope to see y'all out there, 515 00:32:43,720 --> 00:32:45,640 Speaker 1: and I hope you're well, and I'll talk to you 516 00:32:45,760 --> 00:32:56,200 Speaker 1: again really soon. Tech Stuff is an iHeartRadio production. For 517 00:32:56,280 --> 00:33:01,120 Speaker 1: more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, 518 00:33:01,280 --> 00:33:03,280 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.