United States Supreme Court Cases & Opinions

U.S. Supreme Court

Toledo Pressed Steel Co. v. Standard Parts, Inc., 307 U.S. 350 (1939)

Toledo Pressed Steel Co. v. Standard Parts, Inc.

No. 166

Argued March 1, 1939

Decided May 29, 1939*

307 U.S. 350

Syllabus

1. Patent No. 1,732,708, Claims 1, 2, 5-7, 11-13, to Withrow and Close, relating to a burner for outdoor warning signals, diminishing liability of flame extinguishment by wind and rain, held invalid for want of invention. P. 307 U. S. 356.

2. Aggregation of two old devices, productive of no new joint function, is not invention. P. 307 U. S. 356.

Page 307 U. S. 351

3. Evidence of unsuccessful efforts upon the part of a few others, not familiar with the prior art, to attain the result achieved by the patented device, of acceptance of licenses by manufacturers not shown to have made wide or successful use of it, and evidence of its utility and commercial success held insufficient to establish novelty in this case. P. 307 U. S. 356.

93 F.2d 336 affirmed.

99 F.2d 806 reversed.

Certiorari, 305 U.S. 667; 306 id. 623, to review three decrees in infringement suits. In the first two suits, which involved the same claims, relief was denied by the court below. In the third suit, which involved some of those claims and some others in addition, relief was granted.