Plumtree Software, Inc. v. Datamize, LLC
United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
473 F.3d 1152 (2006)
Kevin Burns of Datamize, LLC (defendant) developed a software authoring tool by December 1994 and, before the critical date one year prior to his February 1996 patent application, arranged with a trade association (SIA) to provide a software package for a touch-screen kiosk in exchange for waived fees and floor space. Plumtree Software (plaintiff) sought a declaratory judgment that Datamize's patents were invalid under the on-sale bar, and the district court granted Plumtree summary judgment.
Whether, for a method or process invention, the on-sale bar applies only if there was an offer to sell, or an offer to use, all claims of the patented process more than one year before the application date.