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Table of Contents

• This Week's Patent News

• Weekly Statistics

• Main Article

• Trivia (question)

• Featured Inventor

• Today in Patent History

• Our Features

• Centurion Patentors

• Trivia (answer)

• Recommendations

This Week's Patent News:

1. 📱 Samsung Denied Transfer in Patent Case Date Published. Samsung lost its appeal to transfer a patent infringement case filed by Mullen Industries from Texas to California. The case involves alleged infringement through Samsung smartphones, tablets, and watches using Google technologie.

2. 🧠 EU Publishes AI Code of Practice Date Published. The European Commission released its “General-Purpose AI Code of Practice,” complementing the AI Act. While not a lawsuit, this development has major implications for IP protection in AI-generated content and patent eligibility.

3. 🧩 Rubik’s Cube Trademark Rights Annulled Date Published. The General Court of the European Union upheld a decision to annul trademark rights for the Rubik’s Cube. This ruling could reshape how functional designs are protected under EU IP law.

4. 💊 Moderna Shifts Blame in Vaccine Patent Lawsuit Date Published. In an ongoing patent infringement case over its COVID vaccine, Moderna argued that the U.S. Government—not the company—should bear responsibility for any alleged infringement. This marks a strategic pivot in its legal defense.

On a freezing trip to New York City, Anderson witnessed this very scenario: a streetcar driver constantly opening the window to clear off his view. It wasn’t just inconvenient. It was dangerous. Anderson, a real estate developer and ranch owner from Alabama, returned home and designed a solution: a swinging arm with a rubber blade, operated manually inside the vehicle. It could clear the windshield without opening the window.

In 1903, she was granted U.S. Patent No. 743,801 for her window-cleaning device. It was the first operational windshield wiper, and it worked.

Auto manufacturers were not impressed.

They dismissed her invention, claiming it would distract drivers and wasn’t practical. After all, what did a woman from Alabama know about engineering?

Anderson’s patent quietly expired in 1920. And wouldn't you know it, by the mid-1920s, nearly every automobile came equipped with windshield wipers based on the concept she pioneered. She never made a dime. But her idea became a standard safety feature worldwide.

Mary Anderson’s story isn’t just about invention; its about resilience in the face of systemic dismissal. Her design changed transportation, but the industry took its time catching up.

🚘💡 Inventing in the Rain was just one of the many forgotten stories we spotlight every Tuesday.

Like what you just read? There are hundreds more where that came from quirky patents, brilliant minds, and the inventors history forgot.

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It’s free, it’s fascinating, and it might just change the way you see your windshield next time it rains. Join 40,000+ readers getting smarter about innovation—one patent at a time.

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Daniel Henderson: The Sculptor of Signals and Silicon

While the rest of us were struggling to program VCRs, he was busy inventing a mobile phone and wireless system that could send and receive pictures and video. In 1993, he built conceptual prototypes of just that, effectively predicting core features of smartphones decades ahead of the mass market.

That invention, backed by patents such as U.S. 8,160,221, 7,349,532, 7,254,223 and 8,472,595, gave phones the ability to do more than just ring and talk. They could now see. These early concepts of visual caller ID and multimedia messaging, TTS, uploadable sound and video files, and RF contact synchronization helped lay the groundwork for today’s iPhone, Android, and everything in between. No surprise then that the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History now holds Henderson’s original objects, nestled alongside Edison’s light bulb and the first Apple computer. Not bad company for a kid from Southern Oregon.

Yes, Henderson’s journey started in Ashland, Oregon, where he earned a business degree from Southern Oregon University in 1984. But don’t let the business background fool you.  This was no spreadsheet guy. Early in his career, he worked closely with Kazuo Hashimoto, the Japanese inventor credited with Caller ID and the answering machine. He also crossed intellectual paths with Jack Kilby, the Nobel laureate behind the integrated circuit. When your mentors are literally in textbooks, you tend to think in circuits, not job titles.

By 1996, Henderson had founded PhoneTel Communications to manage and license essential patent portfolios, including Hashimoto’s. Over time, he amassed 31 U.S. patents of his own, which have collectively been cited over a thousand times. That’s not just inventive, that’s influence.

Henderson’s contributions earned him plenty of recognition: Distinguished Alumnus at SOU, an honorary doctorate from NJIT, a Super Bowl commercial with Ray Kurzweil, online recognition as a pioneer at Lemelson-MIT, and a spot in the National Academy of Inventors. But while some inventors fade quietly into white papers and courtroom depositions, Henderson pivoted, quite literally, to stone.

Today, when he's not mentoring students or advising university boards, he’s sculpting. Yes, actual sculptures. His works: Sleek, minimalist stone pieces explore the irony and mythology of modern tech. Picture a monolithic smartphone carved from marble. It doesn’t ping, but it does provoke.

And that’s Daniel Henderson in a nutshell: part technologist, part philosopher, and part modern artist. He didn’t just help build the phone in your pocket. He’s also asking what it means to carry a screen that shows the world, but sometimes shields us from it.

Daniel Henderson gave phones vision before we knew they needed it. And then he created art about it, because he knew we’d eventually need to talk about technology, not just use technology to talk.

🐋 The Forgotten Pioneer of Submarine Warfare: Edward Lasius Peacock’s 1913 Breakthrough

His patent also featured a streamlined, pressure-resistant hull that reduced underwater drag, improving stealth and speed. Combined with a balanced ballasting system for stability during launches and better periscope placement, the design suggested a tactical underwater platform—not just a floating mine or defensive tool, but a proactive offensive vessel.

Filed just a year before World War I, Peacock’s invention arrived as the world stood on the brink of naval transformation. While it never saw production, his blueprint anticipated design principles later seen in WWII submarines and even Cold War-era nuclear subs.

Surprisingly, little is known about Peacock’s background—likely an independent inventor—but his patent remains a testament to early 20th-century American ingenuity. It’s a reminder that some of the boldest ideas in engineering history never made it to sea—but helped shape the future just the same.

Congratulations to last week's Centurion Patentors!
We are excited to welcome the following inventors into these prestigious patent clubs:

For more info about their research & patents, click here

Answer: The original Apple iPhone. Apple secured over 200 patents for it, spanning multitouch, user interface, hardware design, and more. It triggered a global wave of patent litigation, especially with Samsung.

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