Space Exploration Technology Development through Intellectual Property Analysis

1. Space Exploration Technology Development through Intellectual Property Analysis International Mars Society Conference —2005— William Noble Hulsey III Bill.hulsey@hulseyiplaw.com HULSEY Intellectual Property Lawyers, P.C. University of Texas IC2 Institute, Austin, Texas

2. Space Exploration Technology Development through Intellectual Property Analysis • Why Intellectual Property Matters • Exploration Technologies & Patent Analysis • Conclusion

3. Hypothesis: Exploration and Intellectual Property AreInextricably Associated Both Are “Written In the Human Heart”

4. Exploration is Written in the Human Heart Winston S. Churchill, The History of the English Speaking Peoples: The New World; The Mayflower, Vol. II, Book Five, Chapter Twelve, pp. 164-166. • “For there were troubles in England. The whole scheme of life had contracted and the framework of social organization had hardened. • “Merchants and the richer landed gentry saw new opportunities across the Atlantic for profitable investment, and an escape from cramping restrictions on industry and the general decline of European trade during the religious wars. • “In 1606, a group of speculators acquired a royal charter creating the Virginia company. It was a few hundred people who now took the first step in Jamestown in 1607. • “The objects of the directors were mixed and ill defined. Some thought that colonization would reduce poverty and crime in England.

5. Exploration is Written in the Human Heart Winston S. Churchill, The History of the English Speaking Peoples: The New World; The Mayflower, Vol. II, Book Five, Chapter Twelve, pp. 164-166. • “Others looked for profit to the fisheries of the North American coast, or hoped for raw materials to reduce their dependence on the exports from the Spanish colonies. • “All were wrong, and Virginia’s fortune sprang from a novel and unexpected cause. By chance a crop of tobacco was planted, and the soil proved benevolent. Tobacco had been introduced into Europe by the Spaniards, and the habit of smoking was spreading fast. • “Demand for tobacco was great and growing, and the profits on the Virginia crop were high. Small-holders were bought out, big estates were formed, and the colony began to stand on its own feet. • As it grew and prospered its society came to resemble the Mother Country, with rich planters in the place of squires. • They were not long in developing independence of mind and a sturdy capacity for self-government.”

6. The Intellectual Property Laws Basis— The United States Constitution • Article 1, Section 8, Clause 8 • “Congress shall have power. To promote the progress of science and the useful arts by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries.”

7. The Fuel of Interest President Abraham Lincoln

8. America Establishes anEntrepreneurial Environment • Perceived Opportunity • Risk Takers • Support Infrastructure • Propagation of Knowledge and Skills • First Class Educational System Encouraging Entrepreneurship • Capital and Liquidity • Rewards and Honors

9. Erie Canal (NY State) Transcontinental Railroad Panama Canal Alaskan Railroad Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Bonneville Power Authority (BPA) Comsat Conrail Public/Private Partnerships for Infrastructure Development

10. Private enterprise failure (1870-1901) Lack of sufficient capital Lack of rapid payback Unable to handle “surprises” Government Success Sufficient Capital Less time pressure Able to acquire the resources needed to do the job right, even with surprises Result Canal opened August 3, 1914 despite having to excavate 5 times as much soil as planned Example: The Panama Canal Commission The Panama Canal cut global shipping costs and played a critical role in both World Wars

11. Private enterprise failure (1903 -1914) Lack of sufficient capital Long payback period Lack of resources Government Success 1914-1923 Sufficient Capital Less time pressure Able to acquire the resources needed to do the job right, even with surprises Result July 15, 1923 Railroad finished Example: The Alaska Railroad Corporation Today 80% of Alaska’s population lives in the “rail belt” while Alaska’s biggest city, Anchorage was originated as a railroad work camp where supplies were unloaded from ships.

12. Yuri Gagarin Statue Star City, Moscow, Russia “A New Ocean Opens” SPACE Speculation on the potential benefits from space made only a few years ago were vague and indefinite. Today they are more visible, credible and attractive to potential users. And yet, while we are largely within the early phase of space exploration, still looking forward to the exploitation phase, it is impossible to make predictions with certainty. History teaches us that the greatest payoffs—the ones which will be the most revolutionary, the most significant and have the widest application—may well come from some unforeseen aspect of the program and from discoveries yet to come Dr. Wernher von Braun, 1968

13. Outer Space Treaty of 1967; Article 1(1) The Common Heritage of Mankind Principle 98 States ratified, Additional 27 signed • [T]he exploration and use of outer space, including the moon and other celestial bodies, • shall be carried out for the benefit and in the interest of all countries, irrespective of their • degree of economic or scientific development, and shall be the province of all mankind. Fundamental Problems Exist with This Res Communis Approach! Res Communis Approach

14. Essential Res Communis Elements —e.g., Jamestown, Virginia 1609— • Area under consideration cannot be subject to appropriation • All countries must share in its management • Must be an active sharing of benefits reaped from the exploitation of these resources • Area must be utilized exclusively for peaceful purposes Incentives to Invest, Explore, Own, and Develop Cannot Thrive in a Res Communis Approach!

15. Dr. Wernher von Braun Washington Star, 1975 “As you get older and approach retirement age, somebody else picks up where you left off. There were great men long before the first big rockets were built. And we are just building on their legacy. We want to make sure that this legacy can now be passed on to the next generation, the people who will really pick the fruits off of the trees we have planted. “I think the silliest part of the decay of the public interest in space is that . . . We planted the orchard, and we nourished it and fertilized it and watered it and gave it all our tender loving care. And now, when the fruits can be picked, they don’t want to play the fruit pickers! “This is where I think the young generation can make the greatest contribution: Pick the fruits!”

16. Enterpreneurs are Acting Jim Benson Jeff Bezos Paul Allen Elon Musk eCommerce sCommerce

17. 2004 President’s Space Exploration Vision —A New Future for U.S. Civil Space Programs— • The new Vision for Space Exploration in the 21st Century encompasses a broad range of human and robotic missions, including the Moon, Mars and destinations beyond • It establishes clear goals and objectives, but sets equally clear budgetary ‘boundaries’ by stating firm priorities and tough choices • It also establishes as policy the goals of pursuing commercial and international collaboration in realizing the new vision

18. A Vision of a Commercial Space Economy

19. Corollary:Private Property Rights, Including Intellectual Property Rights, Are Prerequisite to Space Exploration Investment Returns Are Essential for Investments

20. Intellectual Property RightsAnalysis & Use “Good Fences Make Good Neighbors” Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard’s Almanac

21. Texas Historical Marker Grayson County, Texas BUILDING THE TEXAS ECONOMY In the latter 1800's, when fencing was needed in the treeless Texas Panhandle, the solution proved to be barbed wire.Joseph F. Glidden of Illinois by 1876 was manufacturing the first really practical barbed wire on the market. H. B. Sanborn was sent to Texas as his agent, and remained to become a builder of the Panhandle. Wanting free access to water and grass, ranchers at first resisted fencing. Cowboys disliked it, as fewer range riders were needed on fenced lands. The old-timers grew bitter, because of blocked trails--herds had to be hauled rather than driven to market.Yet newcomers wanted fencing, in order to have use of land purchased for ranching. Merchants and city-builders wanted fences, to assure settlement. The T-Anchor, owned by Jot Gunter and Wm. B. Munson, real estate investors of Grayson County, built a line fence on this site in 1881, enclosing a 240,000-acre horse pasture. Barbed wire gradually came into general use. It saved the cattle industry, because improvements in breeding and feeding were possible on fenced ranges.

22. Commercial Development of Outer Space • Depends on sufficient incentives to private entities for a fair return on their investments. • A Time Tested Incentive:“Barbed Wire” for intangible property. . . . a legal order that protects the product of one’s creativity or the product of one’s intellectual creation • Protections of intellectual property • Patent rights • Trade secret rights • Copyrights • Trademark rights • • Contract rights

23. The Mars Exploration Strategic Roadmaps

24. Applying The Patent System to Exploration Technologies

25. NASA Exploration Directorate Selects 70 Winning Exploration Projects

26. The Seven Step Strategy is a basic guide for preliminary search of patents and published applications in order to locate relevant technology. Called a novelty or patentability search. Uses classification numbers rather than words. International Patent Resources forAdvancing Exploration Technologies

27. 1790 to present. 7.5 million patent documents. U.S. Patent Search Filewww.uspto.gov The U.S. patent search file has been called the largest collection of organized technical information in the world.

28. U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Web Page(www.uspto.gov)

29. European Patent Office Online Resources http://www.espacenet.com/

30. 180 million of records in the 80 databases 15.4 million abstracts available via esp@cenet® 14 Million patent full-text records 46 Million patent images in the EPO digital library also available via esp@cenet®. European Patent Office Database

31. WIPO Digital Patent Library http://www.wipo.int/ipdl/en/

32. WIPO Digital Patent Library http://www.wipo.int/ipdl/en/resources/links.jsp

33. Determine Initial ClassificationDetermine the initial classifications using keywords found in the Index to the USPC, scanning class titles and descriptions or a keyword search. Manual of Classification (MoC)Locate initial classifications in the MoC. Scan the entire class schedule, paying attention to the dot indent. Revise search strategy as needed. Classification DefinitionsRead the definitions to establish the scope of the subclasses relevant to the search. The definitions include important search notes. Browse Patent Titles and AbstractsCheck if you are on the right path. Retrieve and browse through titles of patents and published applications in the given classifications. If necessary, go back to Step 2 and redirect the search. Retrieve Subclass ListingOnce you’ve identified the relevant subclasses, retrieve and review all patent documents for every classification to be searched. Review Full-text Patent DocumentsReview the complete text and drawings of closely related patent documents. Cited References and Previously Published ApplicationsCheck references and previously published applications cited in closely related patent documents. Seven Step Strategy

34. What is the purpose of my invention? Is it a design or utility function? What is it made of? How is it used? Is it a process or a product? What are some common and technical terms that describe the nature of the invention? STEP 1 – Five Questions Five Questions

35. Turn an idea into a class/subclass. Tools Index to the U.S. Patent Classification System (USPC) Manual of Classification - Class Subject List Patent Databases STEP 1 – Beginning with Classification Step 1

36. Intended means of entry into the classification system. Alphabetic list of terms referring to specific classes and subclasses. Includes trademarks such as VELCRO. STEP 1 – Index to the USPC Index to the USPC

37. STEP 1 – Classification Search Tools Note PDF and HTML display options. Links to other related documents and reports from the MoC.

38. STEP 1 – Browse Class Titles and Descriptions Use your browser’s Find function to search the list of class titles. Consider synonyms, e.g. “rockets” for spacecraft or modules.

39. STEP 1 – Search Keywords in Patent Database Example: abst/fuel and abst/(dual or two) and abst/propul$

40. STEP 1 – Browse Titles and Abstracts Possible match? “Aerospace System.”

41. Use keywords to locate initial classification using these methods: 1. Index to the USPC. 2. Browse class titles and descriptions. 3. Keyword search in patent database. STEP 1 – Summary Step 1 - Summary

42. Using the initial classifications, determine the best classifications for your invention. Tools Manual of Classification - Class Schedule STEP 2 – Manual of Classification – General to Specific Step 2

43. STEP 2 – Manual of Classification – General to Specific Classification Main Menu http://www.uspto.gov/go/classification/

44. STEP 2 – Manual of Classification – General to Specific

45. STEP 2 – Manual of Classification – General to Specific Click on “P” icon to retrieve all patents in the given subclass.

46. Does the definition match. Look for “see” references. STEP 3 – Classification Definitions Step 3 Definitions

47. STEP 3 – Classification Definitions U.S. Class 60: Power Plants

48. STEP 3 – Classification Definitions Sub-Class 205: By chemical reaction

49. Are you on the right track? Retrieve and browse patent documents in the given classifications. STEP 4 – Initial Search Step 4Initial Search

50. STEP 4 – Initial Search – Scan Hit List Class 60/Sub-Class 205 Titles “Burning nitrous oxide and a fuel”