Patent decision
- BL number
- O/184/06
- Concerning rights in
- GB2397920
- Hearing Officer
- Mr S Probert
- Decision date
- 3 July 2006
- Person(s) or Company(s) involved
- British Telecommunications Plc
- Provisions discussed
- PA 1977 Sections 1(2)(d), 1(2)(c), 1(1)(b), 3. Article 52 EPC
- Keywords
- Excluded fields (refused), Inventive step
- Related Decisions
- None
Summary
The claimed invention was a method of visually representing the state of a communications network on a display, using (in combination) an expandable/collapsible tree structure, and indication gauges to represent the state of selected components of the network.
The Hearing Officer used the test for patentability as set out RiM v Inpro, ie. 'Taking the claims correctly construed, what does the claimed invention contribute to the art outside excluded subject matter?' The contribution to the art was a way of visually representing data to the eye; one that enabled the human mind to assimilate the content of the data more quickly.. Although in the specific embodiments claimed, the data represented the state of a communications network, this did not impart any technical advantage to the invention. The only contribution to the art fell entirely within excluded subject matter i.e. presentation of information. Although a computer program was used, there was no contribution to the art in the field of computer programs.
The invention was also found to lack an inventive step.
Full decision O/184/06 
245Kb
