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» Obscure Patent
of the Week - 10/12/03
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Animal Toy
US Patent No. 6,360,693 [ PDF
] [ HTML ]
Issued March 26, 2002
I am at a loss for words, and those of you who know me
know how unlikely that really is! What can be said about this patent?
Well, what can be said is that on March 26, 2002, the United States
Patent Office issued a patent on a stick! What is my evidence you
say? Well, first you can look at the picture. This is not one of
those cases where clever claim drafting and placement allowed a
crafty patent attorney to get away with claiming something
fundamental and overly broad. We have all seen that and those things
will happen, perhaps even accidentally. But this is a case where the
picture and everything in the application is directed to a stick and
the examiner seems to have missed that. Being a student of patent law
you probably are thinking that just looking at the picture is
ridiculous. The invention is defined by the claims, not the pictures.
You would, of course, be correct. So let's look at the claims. The
broadest claim says that this "animal toy" has a a solid
main section, at least one protrusion and is adapted for floating in
the water. Sounds like a stick to me! I suppose that if one is
looking for the bright side of things you can at least focus on the
fact that the examiner left some sticks in the public domain. Of
course this patent is ridiculous and the prior statement was tongue
in cheek. So the next time you are playing catch with your dog just
be sure that you use a hollow stick, one that doesn't have a
protrusion, or one that is adapted to sink when it hits the water.
For a more detailed article related to this patent see Having
Fun With Patents (published by the New York State Science
& Technology Law Center in March 2005).
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» Patent Abstract
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An apparatus for use as a toy by an animal, for example a dog, to
either fetch carry or chew includes a main section with at least one
protrusion extending therefrom that resembles a branch in appearance.
The toy is formed of any of a number of materials including rubber,
plastic, or wood including wood composites and is solid. It is either
rigid or flexible. A flavoring (scent) is added, if desired. The toy
is adapted to float by including a material therein that is lighter
than water or it is adapted to glow in the dark, as desired, by the
addition of a fluorescent material that is either included in the
material from which the toy is made or the flourescent material is
applied thereto as a coating. The toy may be segmented (i.e.,
notched) so as to break off into smaller segments, as is useful for
smaller animals or, alternatively, to extend the life of the toy.
Various textured surfaces including camouflage colorings are
anticipated as are straight or curved main sections. The toy may be
formed of any desired material, as described, so as to be edible by
the animal.
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» Guts of the Invention
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There are certainly no "guts" to this invention. It is just
a stick, as unbelievable as that may seem. In any event, I offer
claim 1 up for your consideration:
What is claimed is:
1. An animal toy, comprising:
(a) a solid main section having a diameter and a longitudinal length
and extending a predetermined distance along said longitudinal
length; and
(b) at least one protrusion attached at one end thereof said main
section and extending a predetermined distance therefrom and wherein
said at least one protrusion includes a second longitudinal axis that
is not in parallel alignment with a first longitudinal axis of said
solid main section;
and wherein said animal toy is adapted to float on the water.
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