Celebrating Barnsley's Intellectual Property on World IP Day

Joseph Bramah

 

Jane Lambert

World Intellectual Property Day is a celebration of creativity, enterprise and innovation.  Over the years Barnsley folk have demonstrated those qualities in abundance.  As for creativity, the composer John Arthur Casken, the playwright John Arden and the poet Ian McMillan came from Barnsley.  So, too, did the entrepreneur Rita Britton whose conversation I discussed in Meeting Rita Britton, a Living Legend on 9 April 2024.  But perhaps the Barnsley scion who has had the biggest impact on the world is the inventor, Joseph Bramah because he invented a device that enables large concentrations of humans to live healthily in close proximity to each other 

That device was the water closet which was Bramah's first and most famous invention but it was not his only one.   He developed a particularly secure kind of lock for which he received a patent in 1784. On the strength of that invention, he set up the Bramah Locks Company which continues to this day.  He also invented a hydraulic press the drawings of which are on Espacenet under the title "Obtaining and Applying Motive Power".  In his lifetime he received 18 patents for inventions that ranged from fire trucks to beer engines.   Wetherspoon has a pub called The Joseph Bramah at 15 Market Hill in Barnsley town centre.

Over the 20 years or so that I have been running a pro bono IP clinic at The Business Village I have seen many budding entrepreneurs and inventors.   Some I have referred to Sheffield Central Library for a patent search,  Others I have referred to product design consultants.   I have introduced several to local patent or trade mark attorneys.  On a few occasions I have helped businesses settle potentially ruinous disputes on advantageous terms at the earliest possible stage.

Barnsley's Library @ The Lightbox where I gave a presentation to local entrepreneurs entitled IP for Startups and Other SMEs in 2019. The Lightbox is part of the Business and IP Centre South Yorkshire which is itself linked to the British Library's nationwide network.  It is possible to access a lot of useful resources including Esp@cenet from the Lightbox and one-to-one interviews with experts are offered on that site.

Anyone wishing to discuss this article may call me on 020 7404 5252 during office hours or send me a message through my contact page.

Barnsley IP Clinic 14 April 2020

By Badics - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=35492068

Jane Lambert

On the second Tuesday of every month, I hold an intellectual property clinic at Barnsley Business and Innovation Centre at Wilthorpe between 16:00 and 18:00.  The next one is due to take place on Tuesday, 14 April 2020.  Obviously, I can't visit the Centre and neither can those who require advice but there is no reason why the clinic cannot be conducted by phone or video link.

As I said in IP Services during the Emergency 23 March 2020 NIPC Inventors Club, IP is now more important than ever:

"If we are ever to stop Covid-19 in its tracks it will be through the efforts of universities and biotech and pharmaceutical companies around the world whose research will have to be funded. Much of that funding will come from the private sector which will require legal protection for the revenue streams from which it will recoup such investment."

Very much the same is true of the design and development of medical devices, personal protection equipment, infection tracking and logistics software and all the other contributions that will be required to counter the menace.

Much of that work will be done by small businesses and in some cases individuals.   As I also said in the article, those businesses will need the best possible advice on patenting, licensing and technology transfer too and they will need them on affordable terms.  I cannot carry all the answers in my head but I can introduce you to attorneys, design consultants, specialist accountants and solicitors and others who can help take your project forward,   I described all the services that I offer in Barnsley Pro Bono IP Clinic 12 Nov 2019 7 Nov 2018,

So if you want to attend my online clinic please, complete the Initial Advice and Sihnposting form as soon as possible.

The Library @ The Lightbox - "Everything you need to know about IP for Small Businesses but did not know what, whom, where or how to ask"

Standard YouTube Licence Jane Lambert

The Library @ The Lightbox is an important resource for entrepreneurs and other innovative and creative people in Barnsley which opened in The Glassworks last Saturday.  Its facilities include a ground floor sharing space for up to 45 people with a large 86” Tango screen.

I have been invited to give a talk in that sharing space on Monday, 22 July 2019 between 17:30 and 18:30.  The title of my talk will be "Everything you need to know about IP for Small Businesses"  It will cover everything a startup or other small business needs to know about protecting its investment in branding, design, technology and creativity.

On branding, I will cover not only registered trade marks and passing off but less obvious protection such as database rights in market research and customer service records which is the basis of a business's goodwill.

On design, I will discuss both decorative design which is protected by design registration and in some cases copyright but also functional design which is covered by unregistered design right and sometimes semiconductor topographies.

On technology, I will mention not only patents but also trade secrets (including the new Directive), unregistered design rights, copyright and database right for programs and data, unregistered design rights and plant varieties.

In relation to creativity, I will talk about copyright and rights in performances.

On enforcement, I will consider litigation options (the Patents Court, Intellectual Property Enterprise Court multitrack and small claims track, the IPO's tribunals. the Chancery Division and County Court) and alternatives to litigation such as ICANN's UDRP and Nominet's DRS for domain name disputes, IPO examiners opinions on the validity or infringement of patents and mediation).

I shall explore funding options such as before and after the event insurance.

I will tell attendees where they can get more information such as the British Library and Leeds and Sheffield Central Library Business and IP Centres. For those who want to consult a specialist lawyer or patent or trade mark attorney, I shall speak about my own pro bono clinics at the Barnsley Business Village and Sheffield Central Library as well as the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys' at Leeds, Sheffield and elsewhere.

This is a must for anyone who owns or contemplates setting up a small business.  The next time I am likely to deliver a similar talk will be in London and the conference organizer charge £645 + VAT for such events. Should anyone wish to discuss this article or any topic mentioned or referred it in it, call me on 020 7404 5252 during office hours or send me a message through my contact form.