Addressing the impediments copyright imposes on the use of patent specifications and prior art documents to improve patent quality

This article considers from an Australian perspective the impediments that copyright law places in the path of those who seek to use patent specifications and non-patent prior art documents in ways that are necessary to the proper functioning of the patent system. Until recently, copyright law in Australia had limited the uses to which members of the public could put patent specifications in that country. Those impediments have been removed as a result of an important legislative change to the way in which copyright in patent specifications can be enforced. The change gives the public a greater freedom to make use of patent specifications than it enjoyed before, and removes unwarranted restrictions upon the ways in which the public can reuse valuable information. However, what the amendment does not address is the impediments copyright imposes on using non-patent prior art documents in ways that advance the public interest.

Play a role in the patent puzzle

Discusses the contentious issues surrounding computer software patents and patenting in connection with the Peer-to-Patent Australia project, a joint initiative of Queensland University of Technology (QUT) and New York Law School (NYLS) that operates with the support and endorsement of IP Australia, the government body housing Australia's patent office. Explains that the project is based on the successful Peer-to-Patent pilots run recently in the USA and Japan that are designed to improve the quality of issued patents and the patent examination process by facilitating community participation in that process. Describes how members of the public are allowed to put forward prior art references that will be considered by IP Australia's patent examiners when determining whether participating applications are novel and inventive, and therefore deserving of a patent. Concludes that, while Peer-to-Patent Australia is not a complete solution to the problems besetting patent law, the model has considerable advantages over the traditional model of patent examination

Peer-to-Patent Australia: First Anniversary Report, December 2010

Peer-to-Patent Australia will initially run as a 12 month pilot project designed to test whether an open community of reviewers can effectively locate prior art that might not otherwise be located by the patent office during a typical examination. Patent applications will be made available for peer review for a period of 6 months and there will follow a 6 month period of joint qualitative and quantitative assessment of the pilot project by IP Australia and QUT. The objective of Peer-to-Patent Australia is to improve the patent examination process and the quality of issued patents by utilising the knowledge and skills of experts in the broader community. It is a way of linking the scientific and technical expertise of anyone with an Internet connection with the expertise of a patent examiner. That community participation consists of members of the public reviewing patent applications and contributing relevant prior art references and comments within a web-based forum. The aim is to bring to light prior art, particularly non-patent prior art, that might otherwise not be identified by patent examiners. The better the prior art resources a patent examiner has at his or her disposal, the more likely a patent application will be assessed properly in terms of novelty and inventive step. The role of Peer-to-Patent Australia in this regard is to act as both a facilitator of discussion and a collector of prior art submissions. Peer-to-Patent Australia collects relevant prior art references on behalf of the reviewing community and forwards that prior art to IP Australia. Section 27 of the Patents Act 1990 (Cth) allows for the Commissioner of Patents to receive submissions of prior art by third parties relevant to the novelty and inventiveness of a particular patent application.

Impact on agronomic parameters in Vines and wine quality of foliar treatments with specific fractions of yeast derivatives

In hot Spanish climate, Toledo, Syrah and Sauvignon blanc Vineyard were treated in pre veraison with yeast derivatives RD-LM and RD- LA to stimulate phenolic and aromatic maturity respectively (application of yeast derivatives specifically designed to be used with the patent foliar application technology WO/2014/024039, Lallemand Inc. Canada). For studied effects in berry and wine composition three harvest time had been done. Experimented yeast derivatives had no significant effects on yield components and vegetative growth in both varieties. The Syrah RD-LM variety presented higher total and extractable anthocyanins and also more amount of tannins, although this last ones are not evident in the sensory analysis. The sensory analysis of wine has given very similar results in both varieties but with significant results in favored by phenols and tannins derived RD- LM and RD-LA respectively.

The Scored Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) and its Association with Quality of Life in Ambulatory Patients Receiving Radiotherapy

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the scored Patient-generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) tool as an outcome measure in clinical nutrition practice and determine its association with quality of life (QoL). DESIGN: A prospective 4 week study assessing the nutritional status and QoL of ambulatory patients receiving radiation therapy to the head, neck, rectal or abdominal area. SETTING: Australian radiation oncology facilities. SUBJECTS: Sixty cancer patients aged 24-85 y. INTERVENTION: Scored PG-SGA questionnaire, subjective global assessment (SGA), QoL (EORTC QLQ-C30 version 3). RESULTS: According to SGA, 65.0% (39) of subjects were well-nourished, 28.3% (17) moderately or suspected of being malnourished and 6.7% (4) severely malnourished. PG-SGA score and global QoL were correlated (r=-0.66, P<0.001) at baseline. There was a decrease in nutritional status according to PG-SGA score (P<0.001) and SGA (P<0.001); and a decrease in global QoL (P<0.001) after 4 weeks of radiotherapy. There was a linear trend for change in PG-SGA score (P<0.001) and change in global QoL (P=0.003) between those patients who improved (5%) maintained (56.7%) or deteriorated (33.3%) in nutritional status according to SGA. There was a correlation between change in PG-SGA score and change in QoL after 4 weeks of radiotherapy (r=-0.55, P<0.001). Regression analysis determined that 26% of the variation of change in QoL was explained by change in PG-SGA (P=0.001). CONCLUSION: The scored PG-SGA is a nutrition assessment tool that identifies malnutrition in ambulatory oncology patients receiving radiotherapy and can be used to predict the magnitude of change in QoL.

Guidelines on building design and operation to minimize air quality impacts from major roads in transit oriented development

Poor air quality has a huge detrimental effect, both economic and on the quality of life, in Australia. Transit oriented design (TOD), which aims to minimise urban sprawl and lower dependency on vehicles, leads to an increasing number of buildings close to transport corridors. This project aims at providing guidelines that are appropriate to include within City Plan to inform future planning along road corridors, and provide recommendations on when mitigation measures should be utilised.