What is being patented on the “Clapper”?

by david.mckenzie@mckenzieip.com What About Patents?

Why this Patent?

I grew up in the 80’s and am very familiar with the advertising jingle about a device you can use to turn on or off your lights with the clap of your hands. We knew it as “The Clapper” and the jingle went something like this “Clap on, Clap off, the Clapper.”

I wondered whether this idea was protected by patents. Patents, which by now, would have expired.

I started researching. Most of what I found was about Mr. Joseph Pedott and his marketing success.

Eventually, I did find a patent relating to the clapper idea, however this patent was filed in 1993, much later than the original design patent. Shown below.

I learned that the inventor of the 1993 patent is Sidney Boguss who later sold the patent to Joseph Pedott of Joseph Enterprises. Joseph Pedott owned the marketing agency which came up with the popular jingle, or what some might call an “Ear Worm”.

The earliest patent connected to the device advertised as “The Clapper” appears to be a design patent filed Nov 13, 1985.

Here is the design patent: Link

However, it look like there was prior art that prevented a US utility patent filing. For example, the design patent cites a TV commercial from 1981 that would have likely prevented a US utility patent filing.

As explained in this article, the original idea for the clapper came from two Canadian inventors.

It looks like they did not work to patent the idea early enough to get a US Utility patent.

Here is the top of the first page:

It is important to note that this is a design patent. The idea of a sound activated light switch is NOT what is protected here. Here, the design patent is protecting the ornamental look and design of the housing.

A later filed patent related to the clapper is US Patent 5,493,618 awarded to Carlile R Stevens and Dale E. Reamer.

Here is the link to that patent: Link

Here is the top of the first page:

This patent is also owned by Joseph Enterprises.  The patent expired in 2013.

What is Claimed?

To find out what is claimed as the new technology, the invention, we have to look at the claims.

This tells us what this inventor wants to protect as their own invention or innovation.

Typically, the first claim is the broadest and will give you a good idea of what the invention protects.

Here’s claim 1:

The claim includes 6 elements:

  1. Microphone
  2. Filter
  3. 1st Power Switch
  4. 2nd Power Switch
  5. Master Control Device
  6. Mode Selector

The switch works by the master control device (MCD) accepting a filtered acoustic signal. The MCD recognizes signals for the 1st switch or the 2nd switch. The MCD sends an output to either the 1st switch or the 2nd switch depending on which signal is received. The mode selector is for a separate operation mode.

What is New or Unique?

This patent application was filed some time ago and I was not able to find a history of what happened at the patent office.  Without the history it is hard to tell what elements of claim 1 are needed to get this patent allowed. One thing is clear, to infringe the claim you would need to have a device with two power switches. So, if you want to make one with one power switch then you would not need to worry about this patent.
Of course, you also do not have to worry about a device with two power switches because this patent is expired!

  • Originally Published on blogger.com March 7, 2023