United States Rifle Cartridge Co v. Whitney Arms Co
| Decision Date | 19 April 1886 |
| Citation | 30 L.Ed. 53,118 U.S. 22,6 S.Ct. 950 |
| Parties | UNITED STATES RIFLE & CARTRIDGE CO. and another v. WHITNEY ARMS CO. and others. Filed |
| Court | U.S. Supreme Court |
F. H. Betts and J. E. Hyndon Hyde, for appellants, United States Rifle & Cartridge Co. and another.
B. F. Thurston, for appellees, Whitney Arms Co. and others.
This was a bill in equity for the infringement of letters patent granted May 7, 1872, to John W. Cochran, for an improvement in breech-loading fire-arms, of which one of the plaintiffs was the owner and the others were the exclusive licensees. The answer denied that Cochran was the original inventor, and alleged that his application, upon which the letters patent were issued, was made and filed in the patent-office on May 6, 1868; that for more than two years before that date the thing patented had been in public use and on sale with his consent and allowance; and that long prior to that date the invention had been abandoned by him to the public. A general repplication was filed, and evidence taken, by which the material facts appeared to be as follows: On January 10, 1859, Cochran filed an application for a patent for this invention, which on February 8, 1859, was rejected by the commissioner of patents for want of novelty; and on February 20, 1860, was withdrawn by Cochran, and $20 refunded to him, at his request, agreeably to the act of July 4, 1836, c. 357, § 7, (5 St. 120.) At various dates from November 19, 1861, to February 11, 1868, 18 patents were granted to other persons for the same devices, or their equivalents, and the defendants bought some of those patents, and afterwards manufactured fire-arms under them. On May 6, 1868, Cochran filed a new application, which was rejected by the examiners, on the ground of abandonment. On June 9, 1869, Mr. Commissioner FISHER, on appeal, affirmed their decision. His opinion is published in the Decisions of the Commissioner of Patents for 1869, p. 30. On appeal to the supreme court of the District of Columbia his decision was reversed. On July 7, 1870, he rejected the application; but on December 5, 1870, Cochran filed a formal renewal of his application, under the act of July 8, 1870, c. 230, § 35; and on May 7, 1872, the patent sued on was granted to him by Mr. FISHER'S successor. During the time between the applications of 1859 and of 1868, Cochran applied for and obtained 22 other patents, 9 of them for improvements in breech-loading fire-arms, some of which he sold for considerable sums. He...
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