Race Against Time: Tracking Down a 55-Year-Old Book in Just 48 Hours
While working with various cases of prior art searches, our grit and investigative approach have helped us sail the boat every time. These skills were not developed overnight; each case has contributed to honing them.
Eventually, these same skills helped us track down a 55-year-old book in just 48 hours. To top it off, the book was 2,000 miles away – what followed next was a race against time.
While it may not directly correlate to our prior research, it perfectly encapsulates our driving principle: “If it exists, we will uncover it”, regardless of how far or how old it is.
Background About The Case
The case started right after we had delivered a prior art project to Samuel – a Senior Litigator in one of the top USA firms. He was very specific with this request and the timeline, which was merely 48 Hours. He needed crucial information for one of his cases, hidden within the pages of a very old book (publication year: 1968). Upon hearing his request, I thought, “How difficult could it be? We’ll find a PDF or an online version, and we’re good to go”.
I couldn’t have been more wrong.
How The Tables Turned
I quickly rallied my team, armed with the best search tools and databases.
What we thought would take minutes turned into a couple of hours as we combed the internet, scanned every digital archive, and navigated countless free-to-access virtual libraries. The elusive book remained out of reach, taunting us. By this time, our only luck was finding physical hardcovers, which would take weeks to arrive. Our frustration was palpable, but we weren’t about to give up.
Finally, A Ray Of Hope
While the team relentlessly searched for the book, I had to drop it off and go for a meeting with my Group Manager. I mentioned my predicament to him in passing, and he casually suggested something to change our search. “Why not check the Singapore Library?” he proposed. “Heck! Why didn’t I think of it?” I said in my mind.
You may ask why Singapore. Well, because our Director, Deepak Syal, was in Singapore then.
Eager to explore this new lead, we quickly set our sights on the Singapore Library’s collection. Our hopes soared when we found the book, but realized it was also unavailable for lending or online rental.
This is where the story gets even more intriguing. I quickly reached out to Deepak and explained the situation’s urgency, and he agreed to embark on a whirlwind mission.
With limited time on his hands and a flight to catch (can you believe our luck?), Deepak rushed to the library.
He secured a precious copy of the elusive book and promptly sent us pictures of its contents. The clock was ticking, and we needed to extract the vital information our client sought. It wasn’t over yet.
(snapshot of one of the chapters that Deepak sent)
The Final Sprint
Amid our excitement, we realized more information from the book was required. We sheepishly asked Deepak for another chapter, and he willingly obliged. Picture this: Deepak sprinting up to the 7th floor of a library to retrieve more pages while we held our breath. (My sincerest apologies, Deepak!)
(Snapshot of emails received from Deepak on Sunday afternoon)
The adventure was exhilarating, but the real reward came when we delivered the extracted material to Samuel. The words “Thank you very much for your effort. This document will make us win the case.” were music to our ears. It was a moment of triumph, a reminder that we never shy away from challenges, no matter how daunting they seem.
While this specific case did not involve prior art searches, it serves as a prime example of our unwavering commitment to locating outdated, non-digitally accessible information for patent invalidity cases. Our dedication to thorough research and exhaustive data analysis allows us to uncover valuable evidence and successfully challenge the validity of patents that may otherwise remain unchallenged. Obviously, the client trusted us with this important requirement due to their firsthand experience with our services.
Facing obstacles in your patent validity or invalidity searches? Our investigative team is just a click away.
Authored by: Gaurav Dhiman, Akshita Varshney, and Najeeb Chodankar, Prior-Art Team
Edited by: Annie Sharma, Editorial Team
