Top Stories

The Michigan Messenger going forward

By Staff Report | 11.16.11

I am writing today to announce the closure of the Michigan Messenger. After four years of operation in Michigan, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news into a single site, The American Independent at Americanindependent.com. This is part of a shift in strategy, towards new forms [...]

Colorado-based abstinence program provided false and misleading information to Michigan students

HIV-AIDS-small
By Todd A. Heywood | 11.16.11

An abstinence-only presentation provided to numerous school districts in Calhoun and Eaton Counties in October of this year provided false and misleading information to students about HIV, experts allege.

Class action lawsuit filed against MERS over unpaid taxes

foreclosure
By Todd A. Heywood | 11.15.11

Two county registers of deeds filed a class action lawsuit Monday on behalf of Michigan’s 83 counties alleging that the Mortgage Electronic Registration Services owes millions of dollars in property title transfer taxes.

Schuette fights important mercury regulations

epa_logo
By Eartha Jane Melzer | 11.14.11

Despite evidence of the impact of mercury on children and public health, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette last month joined with 24 other state attorneys general in filing a lawsuit to scuttle new EPA regulations that would reduce mercury emissions from power plants.

Ford attempts to patent EcoBoost engine

By Ed Brayton | 10.05.09 | 7:47 am

Ford Motor Company has filed more than 100 patents seeking to protect its EcoBoost engine, which promises to drive the next generation of more fuel-efficient gasoline engines. The engine combines direct fuel injection and turbocharging to get more horsepower with less fuel, allowing smaller engines to drive larger vehicles and boosting the average fuel economy of Ford’s fleet. But as the Detroit News reports, other carmakers dispute the unique nature of Ford’s system:

But other automakers have been combining those two technologies for years, albeit for different reasons. First used to boost the power of high-performance motors, the Germans began selling mainstream vehicles with gasoline powered turbo direct-injection engines before Ford even unveiled its system.

“If I were them, I’d be more worried about VW coming after me than the other way around,” said analyst Jim Hall of 2953 Analytics LLP in Birmingham, adding that Volkswagen AG had similar engines on the market before Ford. “There are certain parts of this you just can’t patent.”

Ford says that the key is in the control system that they developed, which allows fuel injection levels to be adjusted hundreds of times per second.

Comments

  • ronaldjriley

    Ford has along history of being late to the invention party and of being rather belligerent towards those who are actually producing important inventions.

    Ford is not alone, in that all the auto companies have treated inventors poorly and all of them file large quantities of patents on minor incremental improvements. The problem is that quantity is not a good substitute for quality.

    Many tech companies are suffering from the same problems which have wrecked havoc on the auto industry and the will eventually implode in the same way.

    What happens to companies who can no longer produce breakthrough inventions who also alienate those who are capable of producing those inventions? Look at the auto industry and especially Ford to see what happens.

    It all started with Henry Ford and his conduct with inventor George B. Selden. That case was the start of the auto industry's anti inventor business model.

    Recently a movie about inventor Bob Kearns was released on DVD. Its name is Flash of Genius. If you want to understand why Ford and other automotive companies are troubled watch it to understand Ford’s mentality.

    There is only one thing standing between America's current standard of living and a long painful decline. That is American ingenuity as personified in America's independent inventor and the small businesses which are founded on and prosper as a result of their inventions.

    While transnational corporations systematically steal and ship the fruits of American ingenuity to low wage countries those inventors who manage to survive create jobs and prosperity in America.

    American inventors need the public to support American inventors in their fight against transnational patent pirates. Tell members of congress that Patent Reform should be killed.

    Ronald J. Riley,

    I am speaking only on my own behalf.
    Affiliations:
    President – http://www.PIAUSA.org – RJR at PIAUSA.org
    Executive Director – http://www.InventorEd.org – RJR at InvEd.org
    Senior Fellow – http://www.PatentPolicy.org
    President – Alliance for American Innovation
    Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
    Washington, DC
    Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 – 9 am to 8 pm EST.

  • ronaldjriley

    Ford has along history of being late to the invention party and of being rather belligerent towards those who are actually producing important inventions.

    Ford is not alone, in that all the auto companies have treated inventors poorly and all of them file large quantities of patents on minor incremental improvements. The problem is that quantity is not a good substitute for quality.

    Many tech companies are suffering from the same problems which have wrecked havoc on the auto industry and the will eventually implode in the same way.

    What happens to companies who can no longer produce breakthrough inventions who also alienate those who are capable of producing those inventions? Look at the auto industry and especially Ford to see what happens.

    It all started with Henry Ford and his conduct with inventor George B. Selden. That case was the start of the auto industry's anti inventor business model.

    Recently a movie about inventor Bob Kearns was released on DVD. Its name is Flash of Genius. If you want to understand why Ford and other automotive companies are troubled watch it to understand Ford’s mentality.

    There is only one thing standing between America's current standard of living and a long painful decline. That is American ingenuity as personified in America's independent inventor and the small businesses which are founded on and prosper as a result of their inventions.

    While transnational corporations systematically steal and ship the fruits of American ingenuity to low wage countries those inventors who manage to survive create jobs and prosperity in America.

    American inventors need the public to support American inventors in their fight against transnational patent pirates. Tell members of congress that Patent Reform should be killed.

    Ronald J. Riley,

    I am speaking only on my own behalf.
    Affiliations:
    President – http://www.PIAUSA.org – RJR at PIAUSA.org
    Executive Director – http://www.InventorEd.org – RJR at InvEd.org
    Senior Fellow – http://www.PatentPolicy.org
    President – Alliance for American Innovation
    Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
    Washington, DC
    Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 – 9 am to 8 pm EST.

  • ronaldjriley

    Ford has along history of being late to the invention party and of being rather belligerent towards those who are actually producing important inventions.

    Ford is not alone, in that all the auto companies have treated inventors poorly and all of them file large quantities of patents on minor incremental improvements. The problem is that quantity is not a good substitute for quality.

    Many tech companies are suffering from the same problems which have wrecked havoc on the auto industry and the will eventually implode in the same way.

    What happens to companies who can no longer produce breakthrough inventions who also alienate those who are capable of producing those inventions? Look at the auto industry and especially Ford to see what happens.

    It all started with Henry Ford and his conduct with inventor George B. Selden. That case was the start of the auto industry's anti inventor business model.

    Recently a movie about inventor Bob Kearns was released on DVD. Its name is Flash of Genius. If you want to understand why Ford and other automotive companies are troubled watch it to understand Ford’s mentality.

    There is only one thing standing between America's current standard of living and a long painful decline. That is American ingenuity as personified in America's independent inventor and the small businesses which are founded on and prosper as a result of their inventions.

    While transnational corporations systematically steal and ship the fruits of American ingenuity to low wage countries those inventors who manage to survive create jobs and prosperity in America.

    American inventors need the public to support American inventors in their fight against transnational patent pirates. Tell members of congress that Patent Reform should be killed.

    Ronald J. Riley,

    I am speaking only on my own behalf.
    Affiliations:
    President – http://www.PIAUSA.org – RJR at PIAUSA.org
    Executive Director – http://www.InventorEd.org – RJR at InvEd.org
    Senior Fellow – http://www.PatentPolicy.org
    President – Alliance for American Innovation
    Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
    Washington, DC
    Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 – 9 am to 8 pm EST.

Categories & Tags: |