The first silly patent that I want to talk about is titled,
“Device for the treatment of hiccups”. The patent number is US 7062320 B2. I
was interested in this because it had a biological aspect to it. This device
treats hiccups by “galvanic stimulation of the Perficial Phrenetic and Vagus
nerves using an electric current”. In the background portion of the patent, the
inventor mentions that the invention relates not just to a method and an apparatus
for the treatment. The reason why I though this patent is so crazy is because
everyone knows that hiccups go away after drinking water. So this got me
thinking what causes hiccups? My guess was that a lack of sufficient water
intake may cause hiccups, but I decided to check WebMD to see what they had to
say. According to WebMD, “A very full stomach can cause bouts of hiccups that
go away on their own. A full stomach can be caused by: Eating too much food too
quickly, drinking too much alcohol, swallowing too much air, smoking, a sudden
change in stomach temperature, emotional stress or excitement”. [2] Anyways,
that is beside the point—I just thought it was pretty interesting. The point is
that age-old cure for hiccups is so simple and natural. In modern society
(unless we are in the desert), it is so easy to find water. And usually hiccups
go away right after you drink a couple sips. When I was young, one of my
childhood friends told me that when I get hiccups, I should take a sip of water
with my head in between my legs (so upside down)—and for the longest time I
believed that and followed diligently.
Let’s see if this patent falls can be considered a valid
patent based on the criteria:
Non-obvious: This would also get a pass. It definitely is
not the obvious way of curing hiccups!
Novelty: I would give this a pass, as I don’t believe this
has been thought of or implemented before.
Enablement: I don’t think many people would buy this! It
wouldn’t do so well in industry, because people would probably be more afraid
of getting shocked than
Usefulness: Well, first of all, let’s just assume this works
and does in fact cure hiccups. Then, it is useful, but I don’t know how many
people would actually use it. Look’s like the biggest problem we have here is
enablement!
[1] https://www.google.com/patents/US7062320?dq=7062320&hl=en&sa=X&ei=VhVkU_bMKsO98gH0kIHICg&ved=0CDUQ6AEwAA
[2] http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/tc/hiccups-topic-overview
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