Computer simulations and representations
This page is for developing explanations of why a computer simulation of a patentable idea is not patentable.
Using an existing computer system to simulate some invention does not mean that computing system becomes the new invention.
Example: ABS
Anti-lock braking is patentable, and that is not a problem. What about giving ABS functionality to a car in a computer game?
Computer games and reality are really very different. In a computer game, a braking technique works if the programmer wants it to work. There's no need to test it out. Software is much simpler in that respect.
Second, software is different from hardware because of the costs involved. Real ABS in a real car is something that cost a lot of money to develop and test and to mass produce. Putting ABS functionality into a car in a computer game could be done by an enthusiast, and mass production only requires putting one copy on a website.
Related pages on ESP Wiki
- Analyses of the patentability of specific ideas
- Cabinet for the blind example - does it matter if a book is read by a person or a computer?
- Anti-lock braking example - what if it's in a computer game?
- Software does not make a computer a new machine
