Patent decision

BL number

O/440/16

Concerning rights in

GB1417283.7

Hearing Officer

Mr H Jones

Decision date

20 September 2016

Person(s) or Company(s) involved

Cloudera, Inc.

Provisions discussed

Section 1(2)(c)

Keywords

Excluded fields (refused)

Related Decisions

None

Summary

The application relates to a system (particularly Apache Hadoop) and method for performing data queries in a distributed computing cluster comprising a set of computers connected to each other across a network. The system is said to have some of the flexibility of known schema-on-read systems and some speed benefits of known-schema-on write systems.

The examiner concluded that the invention does not meet the requirements of section 1(2) on the grounds of the actual contribution being a computer program.

The hearing officer applied and referenced Symbian, Aerotel/Macrossan, Astron Clinica, Halliburton, AT&T, Gemstar/Virgin, Gale’s application and HTC/Apple. He refused the application under Section 18(3) finding that the contribution lay in a computer program which is excluded under Section 1(2)(c) and in particular:

· the technical effect resides in the way the computer program operates on data files and is not concerned with internal workings of processors or how various elements of a computer system interact with each other

· the computer itself does not run faster and operates conventionally

· the invention does not solve a technical problem within the computer and seems to reside in personal choice rather than a process that provides a solution to a technical problem

· this case and that of Symbian can be distinguished on their facts

· the IPO is bound by UK law

Full decision O/440/16 95Kb