Schneider Metal Mfg. Co. v. Ernst, Inc., Civ. A. 9010.

• Decision Date: 28 March 1952
• Docket Number: Civ. A. 9010.
• Citation: 103 F. Supp. 762
• Parties: SCHNEIDER METAL MFG. CO. v. ERNST, Inc.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Pennsylvania

103 F. Supp. 762

SCHNEIDER METAL MFG. CO. v. ERNST, Inc.

Civ. A. 9010.

United States District Court W. D. Pennsylvania.

March 28, 1952.

Brown, Critchlow, Flick & Peckham, Pittsburgh, Pa., Mason, Kolehmainen, Rathburn & Wyss, Chicago, Ill., for the plaintiff.

Christy, Parmelee & Strickland, Pittsburgh, Pa., for the defendant.

FOLLMER, District Judge.

The plaintiff, Schneider Metal Manufacturing Co. (hereinafter referred to as "Schneider") brings this action against the defendant, Ernst, Incorporated (hereinafter referred to as "Ernst") alleging infringement of Patent No. 2,107,574,¹ issued February 8, 1938, to Rudolph W. Lotz (of which plaintiff is the assignee) for a "Collapsible Sidewalk Sign Support," which will be referred to as the "Lotz" patent. Defendant denies infringement and also sets up the defense that the Lotz patent discloses no patentable invention.

From the pleadings and proof I make the following

Findings of Fact

1. The collapsible sidewalk sign manufactured by the defendant and sold to the

Pennzoil Company is the same as that made in accordance with the Lotz patent aside from minor substitutions of mechanical equivalents but without omission of any essential element or change in functions.

2. Rudolph W. Lotz, on application filed August 16, 1937, obtained a patent, No. 2,107,574, issued February 8, 1938, covering a "Collapsible Sidewalk Sign Support."

3. The arrangement in Lotz of the legs and sign carrier, whereby each leg respectively of one pair (one on each side of the sign carrier) at its upper end joins a leg of the other pair at a point on such leg below the upper end thereof, so that the first leg and the lower portion of the second leg form an inverted V and with the side of the vertically disposed sign carrier attached to the upper end of the second leg and at a lower point on the side of the sign carrier to the first leg at some point thereon distanced from the upper end of such leg, thus forming a triangle, with one of the three points of connection to be detachable so as to permit collapsing of such sign support, is fully anticipated by Patent No. 301, 392, issued July 1, 1884, to Justus H. Rudolph for a "reversible blackboard."

4. Any changes such as the use of metal instead of wood and the joining of the legs by rivets or bolts in parallel planes instead of hinging in the same plane, and any new functions obtained thereby, were fully known in the prior art and are fully covered by the disclosures contained in Patent No. 1,924,352, issued August 29, 1933, to Walter Edwards for a sidewalk sign in so far as any of the claims of the Lotz patent are involved.

5. There is nothing new in either the elements or the functions involved in the claims of the Lotz patent and there is no novelty or invention disclosed therein.

Discussion

Plaintiff's patent (the Lotz patent) covers a sidewalk sign support. Lotz states that it relates "to improvements in collapsible sidewalk sign supports which are cheap, durable and efficient and which may be folded to occupy a very small space so as to enable them to be packed and shipped in very flat cartons,"² and which "can be very easily set up and collapsed, respectively, by unskilled persons."³ In his description, he refers to the use of channel iron, in one instance using the term "preferably",⁴ but none of the claims are limited to any type of material. In the description he refers to the legs as "arms 4 of a U-shaped support 5",⁵ and Figure 1, as can be seen in the sketch of Lotz' design also shows such construction, but he also says, "Obviously, the middle or crossbar portions of the arms or legs 4 and 9 may be omitted if desired, said arms constituting supporting legs whether connected, as shown, or not."⁶ The claims merely refer to pairs of supporting legs. With reference to one pair of legs the description states, "The said terminal end portion 8 of each of the arms 9 is offset slightly inwardly from the body portions thereof and the arms 9 of the member 10 are thus pivotally secured to the arms 4 of the member 5."⁷ Figures 1, 2, and 3, also thus illustrate it. None of the claims, however, make any reference thereto, only requiring that the said pair of legs be "pivotally secured to," or "engaged with," or have a "connection between" them and the second pair of legs. There is a provision in claim 4 as to "said legs being offset laterally from each other," which quite clearly has reference to a requirement that the legs move in adjacent planes and this could be with or without any additional clearance between such adjacent planes. Any spacing desired for clearance between the two legs could be accomplished equally as well by the use of washers, spacing sleeves or bushings, or any other method. Although apparently a collapsible structure is contemplated in the objects of the patent, and although Lotz also states, "thus enabling the device to be disposed in a carton of a width substantially equal to the width of said arms and middle portion of the member 1 (vertical side of sign support) and of the members 5 and 10, (crossbars between the pairs of legs) as shown in Fig. 2",⁸ only claims 1, 4, and 6 require any detachability at any pivotal connections for such collapsing, and only claim 4 requires that the legs be offset laterally so that it would collapse in a single plane thickness.

But, in any event, what is there that is unique about any of these matters? Walter Edwards, in 1933, obtained Patent No. 1,924,352⁹ for a sign support designed, as he says, primarily for use on sidewalks, which had among its objects that it would "hold to dimensions which will allow of its acceptance by the Post Office for shipment assembled",¹⁰ and "which may be folded into a small and compact article for storing."¹¹ Edwards in his application filed August 2, 1932, just as does Lotz in his application filed August 16, 1937, includes a drawing (Fig. 1) showing the use of channel iron with each pair of legs formed of one piece with the crossbar forming a so-called U shape. The one pair of legs is also (as in Lotz) shown with the terminal end portion of each of the legs (called arms in Lotz) offset slightly inwardly from the body portions thereof, but (as in Lotz) the claims are not limited to channel iron or any particular material, nor to any particular method of obtaining a clearance between the legs moving in parallel planes, the claims (as in Lotz) merely calling for pivotal connection and supporting legs without any reference to such one piece U-shaped formation of the legs. Within the claims the construction could be (as in Lotz) with the spacing between parts accomplished by the use of such suitable and well known methods as washers, spacing sleeves and the like, as well as by offsetting slightly the end portions of such legs.

Anyone who has constructed or even seen the well known "wooden horse" or "trestle" is familiar with the ordinary support made of two straight legs joined at their apex to form an inverted V and with a cross brace, thus assuming a shape in the form of the letter A. Edwards modified this basic construction by making the brace of a long and short arm connected by a swivel joint. Since the vertical frame of the sign carrier must be fastened to the legs at their junction and to the cross brace, he also provided moveable swivel points of connection between the ends of the braces and the legs so that the legs could be folded without removing any bolts or other connections. Plaintiff naively points to the fact that Figure 1 in Edwards' patent shows legs of equal length and that with the crossbar forming the U-shaped legs it would not "nest" in a single plane thickness. Any high school student, assigned this problem, would immediately perceive that lengthening one pair of legs approximately one inch would permit such "nesting." Of course, the point of junction of the vertical sign support with the cross brace would have to be adjusted accordingly and the laws of physics pertaining to balance and the center of gravity invoked by either calculation or experimentation to determine the proportionate lengths of parts in order to attain any required degree of stability. However, those laws have never been patented. They may be found in any good machinist's handbook or even in the average high school book on physics in which the authors so frequently feel compelled to call attention to the classic example of the leaning tower of Pisa. Nor does Edwards mention any requirement that the legs be of equal length, or that there be a crossbar between the legs, and any straight pair of legs bolted or riveted together in parallel planes will thus fold to single thickness. The Edwards stand, as he clearly intended, can be constructed to fold in a single plane without the removal of any bolts. Simple and obvious alterations to reduce cost of construction present themselves to the ordinary mind.¹² One of them is to disconnect one leg from the sign support and the brace from the other leg, swing the two parts together and rejoin to the other leg. At this point the brace is eliminated and there is nothing in Lotz that is not covered. And this formation is not new. Justus H. Rudolph on July 1, 1884, obtained Patent No. 301,392¹³ for a "reversible blackboard" which incorporated this identical method of support,¹⁴ in which patent he had in mind "to simplify and cheapen the general construction of such articles," and "so that the holder, when not in use, may be folded up against the frame, out of the way."¹⁵

Plaintiff says this does not anticipate because it is a blackboard, not a sidewalk sign, and the drawing shows the legs, made of wood, hinged together so that they move and fold in the same plane to a double thickness and with one pair of legs having a slight curve at the end where it joins the blackboard frame, and the claim requires that the legs be "hinged." The answers are obvious. Anyone who has traveled a country road has seen the framed ...