The world`s largest IT company, IBM, was awarded the most US patents last year, with 2 886 patents issued by the US Patent and Trademark Office. Inventions included a method for holographic storage, circuit miniaturisation techniques, and a device to help you smell your data.
Claiming the title for the eighth consecutive year, IBM topped the next closest company by more than 850 patents, surpassing the combined total of patents awarded to eight of its largest competitors - Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Sun, Microsoft, Cisco, Dell, Oracle and EMC.
The results were reported on Friday by IFI CLAIMS Patent Services, which compiles the CLAIMS patent database and annually reports the number of US patents issued to companies.
Technology breakthroughs were patented in critical areas of IBM`s business during 2000 with nearly 1 000 patents awarded for software, about 1 000 for microelectronics and 400 for storage technologies.
Inventions include a method for holographic data storage, by which entire pages of data are committed to and read from photosensitive material by a laser. Each page consists of an array of "bright" and "dark" pixels, resembling a checkerboard. This invention improves the contrast between the bright and dark pixels by subtracting unwanted electronic signal from the dark pixels as each hologram is recorded. By making the dark pixels darker, errors are reduced and capacity can be increased.
A new speech recognition system will be able to identify who is speaking by voiceprint characteristic regardless of what the person is saying, and then perform a command specific to that person. For example, a woman who shares an office can say, "Call my husband", and the system will dial the correct number for her spouse.
"Time sharing" computers over the Internet covers a method for using idle computers connected via the Internet to work on computationally intensive projects, such as weather forecasting or rendering sophisticated computer graphics.
At present, computing involves two senses - sight and hearing. IBM hopes to add a third sensory dimension to the computing experience - smell. The Aroma sensory stimulation in a multimedia invention will allow computer users to smell scents associated with video signals received over the Internet. Responding to signals, smells from a pallet of scents will emit from a scent emulator hooked up to the computer.
And IBM`s integrated circuit spiral inductor and its method for forming an integrated circuit spiral inductor with ferromagnetic liner are inventions with big names, designed to make wireless devices smaller.
High-speed circuits used in wireless communications applications require passive components such as inductors and transformers. These two IBM inventions describe compact, high-quality inductors and transformers that can be integrated into silicon chips without consuming excess chip area, which can lead to enhanced miniaturisation. These components can also operate at high frequencies, which extends the use of circuits in many applications such as cellphones and personal digital assistants.
According to Nicholas M Donofrio, senior VP, corporate technology and manufacturing, one-third of the technologies IBM patented in 2000 are already in the marketplace and many more will reach market in 2001.
IBM`s total intellectual property portfolio generated more than $1 billion in licensing royalties in 2000. The company holds nearly 34 000 patents worldwide, including about 19 000 in the US.
The company is also one of the largest non-European patent holders in Europe and one of the largest non-Japanese patent holders in Japan.
"In an industry driven by innovation, patent leadership demonstrates a commitment to developing technologies that benefit our customers and fuel IBM`s growth," says Donofrio. "The creativity of our technical teams is helping push the industry in new directions that are determining the next steps in e-business."
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