Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?
This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.
Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.
Jump in the discussion.
No email address required.
Notes -
@gattsuru
I was curious about a gun related question, and you seem super knowledgeable.
Could the patent office be a distributor of 3d printed gun files?
Guns are patentable.
Patents are made publicly available.
Patent files can include PDFs. PDFs can contain enough information that a 3d printing file format is extractable.
States would have to sue the patent office to stop them from distributing the stuff.
Presumably they would just refuse your patent, or tell you to knock it off.
I know it has "this one weird trick" vibes. But on some level it has to work. A 3d printable gun design is patentable. And there are legitimate reasons for wanting such a patent. It's just a question of how easy it is to take the patent details and convert it to 3d printable file.
The government must grant patents, which I wasn't sure was the case. So maybe this has merits. In practice I think you would struggle: the judgement of 'valid against prior art' is somewhat subjective and is also a high bar to clear even when you're getting a normal patent. I suspect the patent office would find it fairly easy to deny your claim. "Design" or 'Marketing' patents are much easier to get.
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link