{"id":810,"date":"2019-07-04T10:27:27","date_gmt":"2019-07-04T08:27:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bardehle.com\/europeansoftwarepatents\/?p=810"},"modified":"2021-09-29T19:46:19","modified_gmt":"2021-09-29T17:46:19","slug":"european-software-patents-june-2019-updates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bardehle.com\/europeansoftwarepatents\/european-software-patents-june-2019-updates\/","title":{"rendered":"EUROPEAN SOFTWARE PATENTS June 2019 updates"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

June came with four new decisions in the EUROPEAN SOFTWARE PATENTS<\/a> knowledge base relating to graphical user interfaces, computer simulations and business methods:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Patents for graphical user interfaces<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Improvements in graphical user interfaces<\/strong><\/a> are sometimes difficult to protect with patents when they are closely related to the presentation of information (which is as such excluded from patentability).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In one case, the European Patent Office acknowledged that precomputing user habit information for a graphical user interface of a mobile device<\/a> is technical. However, this difference over the prior art was found to be obvious, since in the art of computing, \u201cprecomputation\u201d was found to be a well known method of speeding up program execution. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the other hand, the European Patent Office granted a software patent on a method of representing missed approach information in a perspective view on a cockpit display<\/a>. Here, the argument was that enabling a pilot to abort a landing in due time if necessary, thereby improving safety, is technical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Patentability of computer simulations<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The field of computer simulations<\/a><\/strong> continues to be an exciting area in terms of patentability, last but not least because of the pending referral G1\/19 in which the EPO Enlarged Board of Appeal will have to make a stance concerning the patentability of computer-implemented simulation methods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the meantime, the European Patent Office granted a software patent on a method for designing an optical system that satisfies a certain algebraic condition<\/a>. The board took the view that the criteria for technical character presupposes that the claimed subject-matter relates to a physical entity or a physical activity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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By the way, if you are interested in a deeper look into how the European Patent Office examines software-related inventions, this 30-minute video gives a concise overview of the “two hurdle” approach with lots of examples<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Business method patents<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In the field of business methods<\/a><\/strong>, one Technical Board of Appeal had to deal with a patent application relating to an automated exchange system designed to execute matching of combinations of financial instruments. Despite the focus of this invention on a financial use case, the board found that implementing the financial matching concept in a way which improves real-time and latency constraints in the matching unit<\/a> is indeed a technical problem that has to be taken into account in the inventive step assessment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fear of missing out?<\/h2>\n\n\n \n \n
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