Protect our table, Agritech

 

Due to severe climate change, conflicts between countries, and declining crop yields, the world's food crisis is getting worse and worse. A situation is coming where we can no longer keep our tables on traditional farming methods. In this issue, from this perspectives we’re going to look at ‘Agritech’, which will achieve agricultural innovation as a cutting-edge IT technology.

clipartkorea.co.kr

‘Agritech’ farming with AI and big data instead of a shovel,

Agritech, as a combination of Agriculture and Technology, refers to activities that agriculture meets cutting-edge IT technologies such as AI big data analysis to develop a series of technologies for agricultural innovation, from cultivation to production, distribution, and management. ‘Smart Farm’, which is familiar to us as a major technology leading Agri-Tech, literally refers to an intelligent agricultural system. Using smart farm technologies like IoT, big data, and AI, it can increase the efficiency and convenience of the entire process including cultivation, production, and distribution of crops.

Check the health of crops with deep learning,

The success of farming depends on the health of the crops grown. In particular, it is difficult for people to recognize the damages by diseases and pests of crops with the naked eye because the size and type are different. A Korean company has developed a system that can quickly identify the damages and accurately check health conditions through deep learning analysis.

wipsglobal.com/ KR10-2478723 B1
'Method and system for managing crops pets'

This technology monitors the real-time health status of crops based on the crop images input into the integrated system, analyzes the type and severity of damage, and predicts the spread of damages to neighbor farms when crops are affected by pests to help prevent in advance.

 From plant cultivation to barn management with IoT,

Recently, ‘indoor plant cultivator’ that can easily grow plants at home have been released and getting popular. It has been difficult to create a cultivation environment that reflects each variety and growth process of plants and to control the light source module. Korea's SK magic has developed a light source module and plant cultivation system for smart growers using IoT (Internet of Things) to improve this point.

wipsglobal.com/ KR10-2475601 B1
'Light source module for smart plant cultivation device,
smart plant cultivation device and smart plant cultivation system using internet-of-things 

In this technology, a light source module that automatically reflects and controls changes in natural light over time is mounted on a plant cultivator to set the intensity of illumination transmitted to each plant seed. Also the growth process of the plant being cultivated can also be transmitted to the user's mobile phone connected to the plant cultivator through IoT.

IoT can also help with disinfection and sterilization systems for livestock that are susceptible to viral infections. This technology can monitor the sensor measurement values of humidity, temperature, and odor from the inside video of the barn through the user's smartphone connected to the system using IoT, and it can remotely control the barn UV sterilization disinfection device.

wipsglobal.com/ KR10-2357974 B1
'System for sterilization and disinfection and infection prevention in pen using IoT
and method thereof'

Agricultural equipment is also in the era of self-driving,

Autonomous driving technology is no longer limited to the automotive industry. Now, we can meet tractors and robots that work on their own instead of people on farms and farmlands. The autonomous tractors and robots in rural areas where population aging and labor shortages are accelerating is welcome news like rain in a drought. John Deere, a global agricultural machinery & tractor manufacturing company, recently unveiled the fully autonomous tractor ‘8R’. It’s been reported that all autonomous driving is possible without driver, from sowing seeds to picking up the ground and driving.

Korean companies are also in the midst of developing autonomous tractors. TYM, a Korean agricultural machinery company, has developed autonomous tractor technology that can autonomously create a path and follow without driver intervention. It is said that the commercialization of autonomous tractors is already ahead and plans to be released soon.

wipsglobal.com/ KR10-1339750 B1
'Autonomous Tracktor'

Autonomous driving technology is also applied to agricultural robots. This technology is a self-driving system mounted on an eco-friendly weeding robot that automatically moves to the location where weeding is needed through camera sensors and GPS to perform weeding.

wipsglobal.com/ KR10-2389379 B1
'Autonomous driving system of weed removal robot'

Agritech, a protector for human food,

Now that the world is experiencing a serious food crisis, the problem of food for us and the next generation has already become a common problem that needs to be solved. Agritech may not be the best solution to solve this food crisis, which is entangled with complex elements, but if development and efforts to respond to the food crisis with IT technology are gathered, it may be the hope of new agricultural innovation.

clipartkorea.co.kr

[International Briefing] US, EP

 

US

US Harrity Analytics, announces list of ‘2023 TOP 300 Patent Owners’

On January 7, 2023, Harrity Analytics, a patent analysis company, announced the list of ‘2023 Top 300 Patent Owners’ based on the number of patent registrations in 2022.

Harrity Analytics annually has been publishing a list of Top 300 Patent Holders jointly with the US Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO) 1) every year.

The biggest change in the ranking this time is that Samsung Electronics, which was in second place before, took first place (8,513 cases), and IBM, which had maintained the first place for decades, showed the largest decrease and recorded second place (4,743 cases), LG (4,580 cases) in 3rd, Toyota (3,056 cases) in 4th and Canon (3,046 cases) in 5th.

TheTSMC, Qualcomm, and BOE rose year-on-year, while those of Huawei and Canon declined.Rocky Berndsen, Head of Harrity Analytics, predicted that Chinese patent applications have been explosively increasing for several years and will continue to grow in the future.

<2023 TOP 10 Patent Owners in the US>

< Original source of this post>

https://www.kiip.re.kr/board/trend/view.do?bd_gb=trend&bd_cd=1&bd_item=0&po_item_gb=&po_no=21758

 

 

 EP

UK Intellectual Property Office announces New Guidance for Password Sharing for Online Streaming Services Including Netflix

On December 19, 2022, the UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) announced a new guidance stating that sharing passwords of accounts for online streaming services such as Netflix constitutes piracy.

General copyright infringement refers to the illegal use of IP TV known as streaming boxes. Meanwhile, sharing passwords with users who do not live together after subscribing to use an online streaming service such as Netflix became a common practice, not illegal.

The main contents of the guidance is as follows.

According to the latest UKIPO guidance, the act of sharing online streaming service passwords without paying a subscription fee is considered copyright infringement.

In the UK Civil and Criminal Code, there are provisions that apply to users who use copyrighted content without paying, and it is quite foreseeable that such provisions apply to online streaming services, so the users who use online streaming services with the shared password sharing may be prosecuted

Currently it doesn’t seem like that the UK government will take legal action against users who share passwords, but it’s significant that the new guidance reveal that this practice is likely to be banned.

 

             

<Original source of this post>

https://www.kiip.re.kr/board/trend/view.do?bd_gb=trend&bd_cd=1&bd_item=0&po_item_gb=EU&po_no=21749

Claim Analysis, technical structure and keywords at a glance

 

  Patent literature consists of a bibliography, summary, description of the invention, claims, drawings and other many elements. Among them, the scope of claims serves to establish the scope of protection of patented inventions with the technical contents to be exclusively entitled. In other words, since the scope of a patent right is determined by the claims, the technology to be protected must be stated in the claims. If it is described only in the description of the invention and not in the claims, it cannot be protected by patent rights. Claims are the most important item in an application because the whether the patent is granted or not is determined by the content of the invention described in the claims, and it is also the most essential part in the search/analysis process to determine registration possibility, infringement, invalidity, etc. Therefore, it is very important to analyze the claims to understand the technology of the patent when reviewing.

  However, it is not easy to clearly understand the protection scope of the invention because the claims are composed of complex citation relationships such as independent claims or dependent claims. Furthermore, the language of each country and the way claims are written differs, making it more difficult to analyze the entire claims.

  To help with these difficulties, WIPS Global provides a ‘Claim Analysis’ feature that enables more efficient review by analyzing the claim tree and visualizing the comparison according to publication/registration of documents. Let's take a look at it now.

wipsglobal.com> View Details

  Claim analysis can be entered through the View Details.

wipsglobal.com> View Details> Claim analysis

  Considering that claims are mostly composed of multiple terms and that they can change depending on the status of the literature, WIPS Global's Claim Analysis provides a claim analysis module to enhance the identification. The figure above is a claim tree (hierarchy analysis). Using claim tree, you can see the independent claim-dependent claim structure and single/multiple reference relationships essential for checking the scope of rights. Each number represents a claim number.

  When a claim is selected, the reference relationship of the selected claim is displayed as a red line. A rectangular border is a group of claims that refer to the same claim within the same depth. If you mouse over a claim number displays the claims it refers to. Unclassified claims are indicated separately, which means that independent or dependent claims cannot be mechanically distinguished.

wipsglobal.com> View Details> Claim analysis

At the bottom of the claim tree, the content of the selected claim and the claims it references are displayed together.

wipsglobal.com> View Details> Claim analysis

‘Analyze claim elements’ allows you to more easily interpret and leave a note about the important parts while reviewing elements of the each claim. Click on Claims at the top to display the contents on the left. You can edit the text by dragging it into the space to the right, and you can type a note right next to it.

wipsglobal.com> View Details> Claim analysis

 ‘Claim Amendment’ allows you to compare the documents before/after grant. If you select a claim number from the claim list at the top, you can compare and analyze the content of the claims deleted or amended during the examination process. The left side is published status and the right side is the claim of the granted document. In the picture above, you can see that dependent claims No. 14 and 15 were amended into independent claims during the examination process. You can also mark key keywords using a highlighter.

  So far, we have looked at WIPS Global's Claim Analysis. With WIPS Global’s various analysis features, prevent errors in understanding patented technologies and check the scope of rights more easily and quickly!

Be in it, into the technologies ‘CES 2023’

  

From the 1/5th to the 8th, ‘CES 2023, the most influential Tech Event in the world, was held in Las Vegas, USA. This event was held on the largest scale ever and became a technological feast where about 2,400 companies from all over the world showcased their latest technologies and products. Let's take a look at the technologies and products that graced CES 2023.

Consumer Technology Association (CTA)

Mobility growth continues,

Mobility has gone beyond a product and has now become a technology itself. Booths showcasing mobility technology, including completed car manufacturers, are regular customers that attract the largest number of visitors at CES every year. This time, mobility showed the possibility of infinite technological development and expansion.

John Deere's fully autonomous tractor presented at the CES 2023 keynote speech
(Source: The Korea Economic Daily)

It is an autonomous driving tractor. John Deere's autonomous tractor was also introduced in 'Agritech', which was covered in the 19th issue of this webzine. In this CES 2023, this John Deere’s autonomous tractor won the CES Best Innovation Award.

 Hyundai Mobis of Korea introduced new concept mobility ‘M.Vision HI’ and ‘M.Vision TO’. M.Vision HI is a mobility device developed for the purpose of leisure and relaxation, and uses the vehicle glass as a large display to watch movies or shop online. M.Vision TO is an electrification-based autonomous driving car that incorporates the latest technologies of Hyundai Mobis, such as the E-Corner module, radar, lidar sensor, and communication lighting.

Hyundai Mobis M.Vision TO
(Source: Hyundai Mobis blog)

The core of the new concept mobility unveiled by Hyundai Mobis is in the corner module. The technology called the ‘E-Corner Module’, is a next-generation technology that integrates drive, braking, steering and suspension systems within each wheel of the vehicle.

Left : E-Corner module (Source: Hyundai Motor Company website)
Right : wipsglobal.com/KR10-2022-0003189, Corner Module for Vehicle

Autonomous driving also contributes to the development of electric wheelchairs. ‘Autonomous Model A’, an electric wheelchair from Japan’s ‘WHILL’ that won the CES Best Innovation Award, avoids obstacles on its own through front stereo cameras and rear lidar sensors, and supports autonomous driving return to the destination.

Left : Autonomous Model A (Source: Yonhap News)
Right 2 pics : wipsglobal.com/ JP 6930047 B2, Electric mobility, Electric mobility

The pinnacle of ‘human tech’, digital healthcare

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, interest in our health has increased more than before, and the digital transformation of the healthcare industry is accelerating. This trend was also seen at CES 2023. I think digital healthcare technology is the pinnacle of ‘human tech’, a technology for people. What innovations did global bio companies have prepared for?

Biointelligence, a US company, unveiled the bio button, a wearable device that can collect and analyze various biosignals in real time by attaching it to the body.

Bio button
(Source: Biointellisense official SNS)

Attach the bio button to the body, it can be used as a remote treatment solution based on cloud technology, and the transmitted bio signal includes overall health conditions such as skin temperature, heart rate, posture, and gait.

wipsglobal.com/ US2022-0401037,
ML-based anomaly detection and descriptive root-cause analysis for biodata

South Korea's SK Biopharmaceuticals has unveiled five wearable devices that can analyze the condition of epileptic patients in real time based on artificial intelligence technology. These products are digital medical devices that detect epilepsy patients' seizures and help treat them.

 Left : SK Biopharmaceuticals Zero Wired TM
Right : Zero Glass TM
(Source: SK Biopharmaceuticals website)

Venture companies and startups also stood out. This is ‘Dot Pad’, a Korean social venture company that manufactures assistive devices for people with disabilities. The dot pad is a braille smart pad for the visually impaired. It displays visual graphics such as figures, symbols, tables, and charts from PCs, mobile devices, electronic boards, etc. as tactile graphics with 2,400 pins raised. By touching pictures and images with the tactile sense and recognizing the contents, it is said that accessibility can be increased in various everyday situations such as education and music.

Dot Pad
(Source: The Korea Economic Daily)

wipsglobal.com/ KR10-2022-0148793,
Apparatus and method for output information

Korea’s Graphene Square presented the ‘Graphene Radiator’ made with ‘the world’s thinnest and strongest material’, graphene, and won the Best Innovation Award in the home appliance category. Graphene is very thin at the level of 0.2 nanometers, but it is considered a ‘new dream material’ because of its thermal conductivity 100 times higher than that of copper and its elasticity. This product can save energy by up to 30% compared to conventional coil-type heaters and is eco-friendly because it generates less electromagnetic waves, and it is said that various images and information can be expressed on a transparent window that can display a hologram display.

Graphene Radiator
(source: Graphene Square Co., Ltd.)

wipsglobal.com/ KR10-2022-0115535, Variable heating apparatus

CES2023, a collection of future technologies,

We looked at the main technologies and products of CES 2023, which was held under the slogan ‘Be in it!’. Through this exhibition, we met in advance the future technology to change human life in a convenient and innovative way. Next year, we look forward to CES 2024 full of more innovative technologies and products!