IBM holds US patent record for the 16th year with 4,186 patents in 2008

15 January 2009

IBM yesterday announced that it was granted 4,186 US patents in 2008, becoming the first company ever to earn more than 4,000 US patents in a single year.

IBM's 2008 patent issuances are nearly triple Hewlett-Packard's and exceed the issuances to Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, Oracle, Apple, EMC, Accenture and Google - all put together. This is the 16th consecutive year IBM has led in this measurement of innovative research.

Of those thousands of ideas, IBM says it's especially proud of two: US Patent #7,408,465 could eventually help the blind walk down the street without the help of a cane or dog. Radio-frequency tags placed on hazards like telephone poles and fences would transmit electronically voiced descriptions to a portable reader.

This patent covers the method by which users will prioritise the descriptions they receive, so that they can, for example, make an aural map of a familiar neighbourhood and walk through it unaided.

US Patent #7,321,306 could help save a toddler trapped in a sweltering car. The patent describes a system of radio-frequency chips and heat sensors, which could be attached to a child's car seat and also embedded in a vehicle.

The devices monitor the temperature inside, particularly when a child is strapped into a seat and the motor is off. If the temperature rises above an acceptable threshold, the system sets off an alarm--and rolls down the car's windows.