LED Lighting Industry for Tanks In Trouble
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roshi719
Official fish poo remover
Wow this is horrible. Hey Rev, is there any way we can start up some kind of a petition on the forum and get it where it needs to be? We should all do what we can to fight this as it will affect the whole hobby for years to come.
Wow Greedy people out there!!
Thats a real shame. I guess I better get my Night lights real soon.
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I am pretty sure we havn't seen the last of led's in aquaria. Kinda looks as though this company let PFO get the bugs out before they used their patent rights. I only skimmed through this a little bit so I do not have the whole story.
Viva'sReef
Valuable Member
The rudimentary drawings that Orbitec filed with the patent office is hilarious. How could they patent something this broad, without specific CAD drawings of a specific design, not just some chicken scratch of a box with dots on a napkin?
I hope for the best for PFO, and all the other major LED aquarium light manufacturers.
And like JR said, I better get my moonlights ordered ASAP because they might be forced to take them off the shelves if this thing goes to court!
I hope for the best for PFO, and all the other major LED aquarium light manufacturers.
And like JR said, I better get my moonlights ordered ASAP because they might be forced to take them off the shelves if this thing goes to court!
Moonlights will not be affected by this. The biggest thing that Orbital is going after PFO for is the ability to support life under LEDs. Moonlights don't fall under this category. They are also nailing them for the ability to automatically adjust the spectral output of the light.
This patent is utter crap. There may be a chink in the armor though. There was demonstration in a public setting of an LED fixture used for marine tanks before the Orbital patent was filed. If the judge and jury (which Orbital requested) aren't complete morons, and patent law is explained correctly to them (ya right), PFO might have a fighting chance.
LEDs as primary lighting will still be around, but in one of two ways: Either companies like PFO and AI start paying royalties to Orbital for the patent rights, or we create a giant DIY movement, which is already starting. They can't go after us for building it ourselves, only if we stand to make a profit from it.
This patent is utter crap. There may be a chink in the armor though. There was demonstration in a public setting of an LED fixture used for marine tanks before the Orbital patent was filed. If the judge and jury (which Orbital requested) aren't complete morons, and patent law is explained correctly to them (ya right), PFO might have a fighting chance.
LEDs as primary lighting will still be around, but in one of two ways: Either companies like PFO and AI start paying royalties to Orbital for the patent rights, or we create a giant DIY movement, which is already starting. They can't go after us for building it ourselves, only if we stand to make a profit from it.
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Actually there has been updates on this and it could be real bad.
This could affect anyone that sells or builds a fixture for the aquarium hobby including moonlights or fixtures with moonlights. Already some places are pulling anything with leds off the shelf in this hobby... I guess drs foster and smith are part of this suit and other may follow as in getting sued.
The hole thing is just bogus. I think i am going to pull a patent for leds used in a bathroom, hallway, kitchen, etc so it anyone uses one there they have to pay me. Lawyers are killing everything.
Already some good friends of mine have lost jobs do to this.
Dave
This could affect anyone that sells or builds a fixture for the aquarium hobby including moonlights or fixtures with moonlights. Already some places are pulling anything with leds off the shelf in this hobby... I guess drs foster and smith are part of this suit and other may follow as in getting sued.
The hole thing is just bogus. I think i am going to pull a patent for leds used in a bathroom, hallway, kitchen, etc so it anyone uses one there they have to pay me. Lawyers are killing everything.
Already some good friends of mine have lost jobs do to this.
Dave
Just sent my solaris back to PFO for work. Hope it comes back soon. This whole fiasco really fires me up. Didn't realize the world of patent law was so nasty and really hinders progress and technological growth. Anyone should be able to make led lights without legal reprise in a "free" country. Orbitec's patent is ridiculously broad, should patent every idea I have so I can sue tomorrow's intellectuals and pioneers for trying to advance our species. This has to change, and is a sign of a much deeper problem. Seems we have been asleep while all these crazy laws and standards have been put in place. Gonna put on same RATM!!!
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The only ones that will be affected by this will be anyone who stands to make profit from the design and sale of an LED fixture capable of supporting marine life. DFS shouldn't be involved in this, as they are just a reseller. If they designed and sold the product, that would be different.
This will also not affect anyone who wants to DIY their own setup.
I won't put in my personal views on this topic, but as a patent attorney, I am writing a series on patents and the aquarium industry for Glassbox-Design. I hope those who are interested in the PFO case might find my article informative and that it might provide some background to understand what is going on. Here's a link to Part I:
http://glassbox-design.com/2009/patents-101-benefits-faults-recourse/#comment-2624
http://glassbox-design.com/2009/patents-101-benefits-faults-recourse/#comment-2624
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SaraB
2500 Club Member
Great write-up Mike! Thanks for sharing some of the background behind patents and I look forward to reading Part 2.
Ladipyg
Saltwater Diva
More Mike...I want to find out "the rest of the story" as Paul Harvey says. So does Orbitek owned the patent for LED's or are they just trying to patent the aquarium application for them? Either way, I wrote a letter to my Congressman and Senator about what a skunk I believe Orbitek was, how I felt they were untrustworthy behind this scam and that perhaps their government contracts should be looked into as a result. A company being this dishonest and looking to make a buck, well it not their first time at the rodeo...maybe they need auditing to see where our tax dollars are going.
On another note, it is a pretty straight forward application of using the LED's for aquarium lighting...I think the thing that makes the PFO application special is the computer that runs the actual LED's. If Orbitek doesn't own the patent on the system processor they are out of luck...I HOPE!!
On another note, it is a pretty straight forward application of using the LED's for aquarium lighting...I think the thing that makes the PFO application special is the computer that runs the actual LED's. If Orbitek doesn't own the patent on the system processor they are out of luck...I HOPE!!
It would be interesting to see if PFO or other parties involved in this filed a re-examination on the patent seeing that an LED system over an aquarium was demonstrated before the patent was filed. This isn't rocket science either. Anyone with a level of familiarity to LEDs would be able to figure out how to set up and drive an array for an aquarium.
Acroholic
There is no substitute.
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Not to alarm you, but PFO has not been returning telephone calls for the last few weeks. They have laid off their entire LED division. I don't think they have customer service any more. You may want to do a search of Reef Central about his. There have been threads about zero PFO customer service and this Orbitec patenmt issue going on for several weeks now. This is not a new issue.
If you have had contact with PFO Customer Service and they are actually fixing your light, then you are the first I have heard of recently that has gotten anywhere with them. Good for you!
Dave
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