Re Roy's post:
One of my favorites is U.S. patent #6,025,810, "Hyper-Light_Speed
Antenna" (Strom). Besides sending the signal at a speed faster than
light and penetrating known RF shielding devices, a side benefit is
that it can be used to accelerate plant growth. I've read many patents
which are as fundamentally flawed, but this one has the advantage of
being so obviously wacko that nearly anyone but the overly credulous
can see from it just how little a patent really means as an indication
of technical merit.

Roy Lewallen, W7EL
---

I am convinced that this application was intentionally filed to point
up the bogosity(?) of the system. It was the claim for improving
plant growth that convinced me.

In general, I agree with your contention that patents are granted
unless there's some clear problem (perpetual motion), with the idea
that they'll let the would-be infringer fight it out to invalidate it.

The PTO is full of good people, but grossly underfunded, and without
sufficient institutional gumption to try and fight the tide of patents
for the unpatentable and obvious.

Jim, W6RMK