IN THE MATTER OF WILSON’S PATENT

REPORTS OF PATENT, DESIGN, AND TRADE MARK CASES EDITOR: FRANK G. UNDERHAY,' M.A., BARRISTER-AT-LAW 15TH JANUARY, 1936. [No.1 IN THE OOURT OF SESSION IN SCOTLAND-OUTER HOUSE. Before LORD OARMONT. October 23rd, November 20th, 1934, February 12th and 13th, and March 19th, 1935. 5 IN THE MA'lTNR OF WILSON'S PATENT. Patent--Petition for extension of term-Suggested except1:onal case and 1:nadequacy of remuneratio'flr-" Profits made by the Patentee as such "-Sums paid to Patentee for services as d£rector of limited company working Patent under licence-Returns paid to Patentee from wms invested by h1:m in company 10 -Patents and Designs Acts, 1907 and 1919, Section 18, subsections (4) and (5). In 1919 a Patent (No. 147,983) was granted to Wilson for" an improved "method of and apparat,us for uSt in making faced concrete building blocks " 01' slabs and the like". The method related to (1) the forming of a concrete block face upwards in a mould, and coating the face while still moist with a 15 layer of cement and depositing pebbles on the wet surface and allowing the whole mass to set in the mould, and (2) a machine for depositing the pebbles evenly on to the face of a block 1:n the mould. The invention was p1'oved to be of considerable merit and utility. The remuneration received by the Patentee and afterwards by his widow as the person succeeding him in right of the 20 Patent amounted to £8,653. In addition the Patentee had received payment as managing director of a lim'ited company which worked the Patent under licence from him and alw dividends on capita.l invested by him in the limited company. . The widow of the Patentee and the limited company petitioned for an 25 extension of the term of the Patent. The Court refused an extension of the term, holding that the remuneration of the Patentee and the Petitioner had not been inadequate. The Court held A Vol. LIII] No. 1.J REPORTS OF PATENT, DESIGN, AND TRADE MARK CASES [Vol. LIII. In the jlIatter of Wilson's Patent. This was a Petition hy Mrs. Catherine Wilson, Glasgow, as Executrix- 5 Nominate of her late husband Walter Wil.~on, and as an individual, and Wilson's Terrazzo Manufacturing Co, Ld., Glasgow. The Petitioners prayed the Court to extend the term of Letters Patent No. 147,983 of the 2'2nd of April, 1919, for a further tel'm of five years, or such 10 lesser term as the Court might deem proper. The Complete Specification contained inter alia the following Claims:" 1. A method of making a faced concrete block or slab or the like for USI' " in structural work, consisting in first forming the block or slab face up in a "mould, then, whilst the face of the block or slab is still moist, coating the "face with a layer of cement, then depositing pebbles or stone chips auto- 15 " mati cally or otherwise on to the wet cement and whilst it is still wet washing " or spraying the surface with water, and finally allowing the whole mass to set " in the mould, substantially as hereinbefore described. "2. A machine for use in facing concrete blocks, slabs and the like, in which " a piece of cloth or other flexible material, fixed at its one end, passes around 20 " a slide within the framework of the machine on to a roller or equivalent, " characterized in that as the cloth or other flexible material is wound on and " off the roller, the slide is simultaneously traversed to cover and uncover the "mould whilst acting to maintain the cloth or other flexihle material tightly " stretched so that chips or pebbles laid on the upper surface of the stretched 25 " cloth can be deposited evenly on to the face of the block or slab or the like "within the mould. " 3. A machine for use in facing concrete blocks or slabs or the like, com" prising a framework having a slide therein,a roller or equivalent with cloth " or other flexible material thereon carried by the frame, one end of the cloth 30 " or other flexible material being passed around the slide and secured to a fixed " portion of the frame, means for rotating the roller or equivalent, and spring, "weight, or equivalent means, acting in conjunction with the slide and roller " whereby, as the cloth is wound on and off the roller, the slide is simultaneously " traversed to cover and uncover the mould whilst acting to maintain the cloth ;~5 "tightly stretched. '" 4. A machine for use in facing moulded concrete blocks or slabs and the "like, having its parts constructed and arranged substantially as described "and illustrated." The Petition was presented on 23rd of October, 1934, when intimation to the 40 Comptroller-General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks and to the Solicitorto the Board of Trade was ordered and answers were allowed to be lodged within 14 days from the 7th of November. On the 20th of November the time for lodging answers was on the application of the Petitioners prorogated till the 21st of December and the Petition allowed to be amended. The time limit 45 for the presentation of the Petition had expired before the statutory advertisement had been made. The Lord Ordinary, following the decision in. Re Linden' 8 further that in reckoning the amount of profit.~ made by the Patentee as IJU.ch, sums received by a Patentee for services as managing director of a limited company working the Patent under licence, and dividends on capital invested by him in such limited company we1'e not to be taken 1:nto consideration, 3 Vol. LIII.] REPORTS OF PATENT, DESIGN, AND TRADE MARK CASES [No. 1. In the·jJf atter of Wilson's Patent. .A. 2 Patent, (1897) 14 R.P.C. 643, allowed the Petition to be presented before the statutory advertisements had been made. Answers were lodged on the 19th of December. The Petition was sent to proof. . . The following were the averments made in the Petition so far as material 5 for the purpose of the Report:" (2) That prior to the year 1919 it was known to face buildings with ' Dorset " , Peas', that is, small round pebbles imported from Dorset. These were " applied by a process known as 'Pebble Dash', the part of the building to " be covered being coated with a coating of wet cement and the pebbles dashed 10 "thereon so as to adhere thereto and produce the 'Pebble Dash' surface. "Mr. Wilson experimented for some years prior to 1919 with pre-cast and "reinforced blocks, slabs and beams with the object of dispensing, so far as "possible, with stonework, brickwork and woodwork in <buildings. In order to " produce durable and good weathering blocks he carried on further experiments 15 "in 1919, especially with the view of producing building blocks and slabs "having a pebble-faced surface which would be practically integral with the " blocks or slabs, the blocks to be adapted to be taken to a building and fitted " in place, thereby obviating the 'Pebble Dash' process and the expense and "time involved in carrying out the same. Finally he applied for the Patent 20 "147,983 as aforesaid, and this Patent covers a special method of manufac (...truncated)