,• \ ~<--~ ) I \\ l -I : .:+ I ';._ 

. . WAR lliMRTME~F·-·-ID:A2-=t2..QB1-C:z1-1:5::----------~--

0ff1ce of the Cb .. ;f of the Air Corps 

Washington 

~~ :&-1 ~""'" Memorandum for 

~ ~'·-=r ~~~~~ 

-O-·• ~ Cl'..J\.~ \J , To c, r.:...4. 

-- o_ c..~k 

0.4 r--t~ ~ t,.,....;.. 

('(I. \..• s:"-~·,.QN~-~- ~ 

~····,r\i''t'"'· ~vi \ 

t:.U.1.. ~-f,,~--"" 117~·--,~~~ 

Q...i.,~'\ tt·~. 'rt...: ~~ ·\.~~ 

4' f'\,,,,. .. ., \. ('· lcl.. ....~!>,'~'"' { tA',.,; '4f ... ._. 

~~~~-·'\t,, .. l u~ .. ) .. ,, _., ~l~-~~I ~ 

~-~,,., ~ G.t-..~ 

- l ~ 

~ ~ ..-.. ~ ~--. 

'{}.\ i·~"'"·!~ \; ) ) ~-· ~ 

r'V\..M u ~~ (),.,, ' ~ 

~~ -~ ... J *\J"'t"'l.:~ ~ 

~., fl ..... t .. ft ~,p -~· ~-t '• ... ~ 

..... .. ·. 

,. ~ '~ 

u..~ """ ~ ~- ~ .,. 

~::&:::'"'' I -r '«..... - Cl.A. -.. 

CHAS. A. ROWE 

Patents Section, S. C. 

Room 1054 Branch 1313 

@'pp roved for Release by NSA on 09-13-2013 pursuantto E .0. 1352a 
WAR l&'\RTMENT 'R:lt'F ID :-:A2._,-7~-:2'->--8H!Z~S..----------- __ Off ice of the Ca..d of the Air "CO?ps 

Washington 

Memorandum for 

• ~u~.r~""~ 

~ ~~~~ f"'"'~ - c- •. 1...- 1::. ' i;o f.$.., CL~ .,,s ~~ .-~._..-..i,.._..,. _ _,,, 

h ........,...,,,~ ~ ~4-~ ~··~ et,o.,, 

~ ~. ~"",..,,tSt ..... ~ 

"A~~~-~ 

~.~~'. ~ ~­

~ I 0 ~ ···1,..~ 

~~ ~v~~i 

~~-~~ 

"'A>·.f ~~· (\.,,J.r~ I ~· 

f...A.A. IJ.,..t. ~. ~ 

d'-~ ~~ .,..,...0. ~· 

~~. 

_.,. """'" . ... ' """"" ~< .. ~<.~. ~..\..,.,, 

-\ C),..~ ~ ~ ~-

~~ (k ~-.i~· .~· 

~..:-~. i 

~.a_ . .P 

CHAS. A. ROWE 

Patents Section, S. C. 

Room 1054 Branch 1313 
I· 

• 

REF ID tA272825 

BJ:RARDINI V. TOCCI 329 

12] In a case where the parties are not willing to rest their final 

bearing _upon the papers presented for the consideration of the application fQr preliminary injunction, or where the attention of the defendants' has not been called to the patents by prior adjudication 

sustaining their validity, it seems to this court that exceptional circumstances must be shown to justify the use of a prelimin;ory injunction in advance of the taking of testimony. Wright Co. v. HeringCurtiss Co., 180 Fed. 110, 103 C. C. A. 31; Same v. Paulhan, 180 

Fed. 112, 103 C. C. A. 32. 

The withholding of such an injunction will facilitate and quicken 

the final hearing of the case. The granting of such an injunction 

may prevent the hearing of the case, even if any valid defense exists, 

or may lengthen the time necessary to take the testimony, both because no immediate haste is called for on the part of the complainant, and because the defendants are anxious to get away from the 

scope of the preliminary injunction, even at the expense of unnecessary taking of testimony. 

For these reasons this court' has set forth the questions as they 

occur upon this application, and has indicated its impressions of the 

scope of the proposition ·advanced, but will refuse to make an ultimate determination until the parties leave the matter in its hands 

for final determination. 

Motion for preliminary injunction denied • 

DF.RARDT~l v. TOCCI. 

(Ofr<'Ult ·Court', S. D. New York. July 3, 1!111.l 

1. PATE:<ITS (§ 328•)-SUBJECTS OJI' l'ATENTS-ARTS-SYSTEM OJI' CODI!! 1\fESSAOES. 

'l'he Berardlnl pntent, No. 188!),00.t, for a "<•ode mei;snge," but whleh is 

really for a system of devising code ruessages, is not for an art in the sen«e of the patent Jaw, and is void. Claims 7 and 8, which are for a n•cord hook for use In drafting and deciphering code messages, are also 

void for lack of im·entlon. 

2. PATENTS (§ 328•)-INFRI:SGEMF.Nl'-CODI!! l\IESSAGE. 

Tile nerardini patent, :Xo. 880,005,, tor a code message, held not' infringed. ·· 

In Equity. Suit by Michael Berardini against Felice Tocci. On 

final hearing. Decree for defendant. 

Action upon· letters patent issued to complainant and numbered 

889,094 and 889,095. All the testimony in the case was adduced in 

open court. 

l\Ir. Von Dricsen, for complainant. 

Mr. Hardie, for defendant. 

HOUGH, District Judge. [1] The first patent, 889,094, is described as "for a code message." Its history is this: Complainant 

is a banker of this city, dealing principally, if not wholly, with his 

fellow countrymen, who often wish to transmit comparatively small 

•For 11thw caaea •H aame topic .r. I NVMBll ID Dec. A Am. lli11s. 1907 t11 date, A Rep'r ln1e"• 
... ,. • REF 

sums of money to Italy ~er do it .qt&~y. : He keeps a list of his 

customers in awr~ ~- auc~· '' 411 .• ~ .. Jiven .boo~ is to be 

found then~~ of..,e pel'SOll wbQ ~ .~ ~t ~~ ~ 

~e of th~~r~ • whom he so r . dfl$$ ,,~( the 

pllyee. : ~s. 1ine ts . :numbered, and d ... . . . · ~ Ut the 

United Si!ite1Land in Itlly. Thus it is seen' ~f: , . me of the book 

enables any one having access thereto •d. W~k 'Oirpish~. with a 

given numbe.r 0

to identify by that numbeti·.~·~itter imd.,. payee, 

with the latter's address. .· · · • · ;; ? · • 

Complainant made known to his Italian customers thaf~ would 

transmit money by telegraph in any sum ·which was a. rqult,iple ol 10. 

If, therefore, any person whose name wais. inscribed in complainant's 

book, and also in that of complainant's cortesPondent in· Italy, wished 

to transmit 100 lire to the individual in: Italy whose name iμid address were also to be found in both books, a code message reading 

"12584" would produce that result; "l" being the number of hundreds of lire to be transmitted and paid, and "2584" being the record 

number on both sides of the Atlantic of remitter, payee, and payee's 

address. Five figures being the limit of transmission at one-word rate 

by trans-atlantic cable, the system as above explained is only valid 

for record numbers .from 1 to 9999, and also only for hundreds of 

lire. Within these limits many scores of remittances might be made 

in a single cable ~ssage, and by the prefixing of a word arbitrarily 

agreed upon .it might lie stated that the first figure stood, not for 

hundreds of :ure, but for thousands or for tens. ·If all .the figures 

necessary to conv~;the meaning did not amount to five, prefatory 

ciphers wou14 be ~ in, so that every given message .would consist 

of a series of b19CkS:o£ five figures each, all to be read tn the manner 

above suffipe.ttJi'"· ~ribed. This obviously exposed the Italian correspondence charge<f. with paying .the orders, to many risks from errors in cable transmission, and complainant therefore added to his 

figures in blocks of five a statement in uncoded language of the number of remittances intended to be cQvered, the total vaiue of the 

remittances in money, and the sum total of the ciplier-numbers used 

to indicate remitter, .payee. and address. 

It is obvious that this is realty a system of telegraphic remittance, 

and it is this system which is described in the specification of the 

patent, with many amplifications and variations; e. g., for the use of 

the system. when the record nuq:ibers extend to and beyond 10,000, 

and for the use of ·tetters instead of figures by an arbitrary pre-ar-

' ranged equivalence·;between figures and letters. Vet the claims of 

the pate~t f~om Vt~,~ a~e not for a s.yst~!'l nor method of. telegrap~ic 

commumcatton, bl.\f ~re tn language best dlustrated· by claim 4, which 

is as follows : · · ··· ·· · · 

A code me11aage comprising a flerles or elements, the number> of which la a multiple of the number of elements ~stltutlng fl·~e unit, each code 

unit consisting of two portions. oue of whic6 indicates the value or amount 

of tbe order, while the other ls a record mark identifying the parties to the 

transar.tion, the message also including means lndicatlDS the value of the 

eiements repreeentlq the amounts of the ordera." 
REF ID:A272825 

'BERARDI:Sl T. TOCCI 331 

Claims 7 and. 8 are each for a "record book for use in drafting 

and deciphering code messages," and containing the information above 

sufficientlv set forth. 

It must be obvious, from the description of the system above given, 

that it would be (humanly speaking) impos;;ible to so distribute error 

in telegraphic transmission as to permit the receiver of the me~,;agc 

intended to direct the payment of (say) 20 different sums to 20 different people to think the mes~age correct when it was really incorrect, 

after he had tested it bv the additional information as to the mnnber 

of payments intended, the total of such payments, and the total of the 

arl>itrary key numbers. Yet while the receiver might detect error, 

he couill not locate it, and it would be nece~sary tu a:'k (perhap5) 

for seYeral repetitions of the mes;;age until acrnracy had been reached. 

To this point the second patent (889.0')5) is directed. This invention consists in the application of an ohl (though perhaps not very 

\\'ell known) arithmetical curiosity to the business of sending figures 

hy telegraph. 

The patentee learned th::.it, if any number of numerals arranged in 

columns as for addition be alh1ec1. each horizontal line amt each perpendicular column separately. the gr::.ind total obtained by the lwrizontal addition of the digits will be the same as the grand total of the 

perpernlicular addition of digits. 

Tl:erefore this patentee prnp•)Ses that the tran~mitter of the mes-

~age arrange his figures in block;; of five as for ad• lit ion, and, ha,·ing 

added the digits used both horizontally and perpenolicnlarly, he shonld 

then add to a cable sent accurcling to the sy~lL'm of the earlier patent 

a line of fignres containing- the tot::.ils of the dig-ital horizontal and 

perpendicular addition above c\e,<cribed. Assuming this last transmission to be correct, experiment will show that certainly one, and 

possibly t\\'O or three, errors in tran;:;mission of the ori~in::.il blocks 

uf five numerals can be detected, and correction made without repetition of the cable. There iore complainant claims as his invention 

(taking the first claim as an examplar): 

"A cooc me><!'age compri~ing n 1n1mlier of rode unit!< eaeh co11~bti11g of a number of elements having a numerkal !'ignifka11re and test totals indieatinl:' 

tile pro1)er result:,; of the n<luitiou ot said elements upon tlle arran;;Pmt>nt of 

said units in columns and rows." · 

The foregoing is thou~ht to be a fair summary of cnrnpb inant's 

addition to the sum of lmm::.in kno\\·lcdge as revealed by these patrnts. 

As to claims 7 and 8 of the earlier patent, it is ~ntfo.:icnt to s::.i,· that 

they are overwhelmingly shown to embody a system of a;;~(g11ing 

arhitrary meanings to words and figures which is very old in cable 

co<le systems. They are thereil>rc Yoid fc1r lark of inn'ntion. 

[ 2) As to the secoml patent, it is enough for the puqJO~es of this 

case to point out that, whatever may be the merits of di~ital addition 

of code numbers as a· means of detecting errors in the tratbmi,.;,.;ion 

of the same, there is no proof that defendant ever usell that method, 

and therefore the bill as to the second patent 11111st be dismi~setl. 

The evidence reveals that for a verv short time tleiemlant, \Vho is 

also a banker transacting the same k(nd of business as complainant, 

------------------·---·-··-·-·~-·-·~-. 
100 FlmEHAL m-:Pon·rREF 1n : A212 a 2 s 

did use for tl1e same purpose as does the complainant a system :;f 

telt:graphic transmission of money which inv0lvetl the use of arbitrarv 

words and figures in suhstantially the same way as complainant use;! 

them, and he <lid adtl statements of the number of payment;; onleretl, 

totals of such payments, anti totals of key numbers. \Vith slight 

variations there was a time for a few weeks, shortly before the beginning- of this suit, when the practical method of transmitting money 

to Italy u•cd by both parties herdo was the same. 

It woulc I, I think, be quite possible, if the earlier pate!nt were for 

a combination of elements pro1lucing a new result, to show, first, that 

the cll·lllents were not new, amt that the result was not new; but 

the patent must be judged accordin~ to its wording, ancl claims 1 to 

(j thereoi are not for any "compo~iti• m of matters," nor a manufacture, nor a machine, but they arc for (co nomine) a "code mes~a~c,'' 

ani.I it necessarih· follows that a cocle mcs;;a~e must be an art within 

the meaning- of Rev. St. ~ 4~86, a;; amencle(t by :\ct :\larch 3, 189i, 

c. 3'Jl. § 1. 29 Stat. 692 (U. S. C'omp. St. 1901, p. 3382). 

It might be enoug-h to Lhmtly hulcl that a code mes!'age cannot he 

an art, hut that perhaps is interpreting the mere langu:ig-e of th<." 

claims too narrowly. It is therefore thought better to im1uire what 

is an "art'' within the meaning- of the patent laws. 

"In the !'cni:c or tl!t• pntl'nt law nn nrt Is not a mere ab::it.ractlon. A systNn of tr:llls:ll'tlni; hnsi11c""'· 1lii.:1·111111t>1'fl'fl from tlw IDl'lllll:I fur <'arrylng nut 

the.• !'yst1•111. is 111•t, within tht> mo!'t lih('l·al h11t•rpr!'tutlon of tbe tt>rm, nn nrt. 

A1h·ic·1• is ll•)t patt>ntnhlr." llntl!l !:o;t•euril.\", !'t<."., Co. v. I.orral11e Co., 100 Fed. 

4\iU, i-i c. c. A. 4;-,i. ,ma. 24 J,, It. A. ( x. s.) OH~. 

A 1•ato•nt will 111>t he •·Jwh1 valhl for a prinl'iple, or tor an illt>ll, or any 

other iu,~l'I.! uh,;tnH'liou." Fuller , .• Ycutzer, IH t:'. 8. ::?SS, 24 L. Ed. 10:1. 

Spt:!aking of a patent which resulted in famous litigation, Shepley, 

J., saicl: 

"It must ht~ sm•t:tint>d, If it lie 1111st:1inl'tl, as a patent for an art. The statute tc>rm 'nrt.' ui::ecl ns it is in the se1111e ut the e11111loymeut of mPuns to a d<'i<ir1•cl PIHi or the 111lnpt:1tlo11 or p11w1•rs 111 the nnrur•nl world to the Ul'PR or 

lifl•. h1 pt>rhnp!'I 11 l.Jt!tlt•r lt!rm tha11 tilt' Wl•rd 'lllt'thod" m•ed hy the 1•:1tr11tt•i·. or tlw worl.I 'J'l'111·1!:<s." the tl'Tm of tll•serlptlo11 u,;('(} lty the exJ>l'l't!I. A 11rol'Pss 

PO uomiue Is nut rnutle 1lll' 11u1.J,;l'l't of I\ 11nt.ent in the net or Congress; nn nrt 

mny n•qnir'e one or mon! pro1·1•!'"l'K or 111:H·hlr1c11 In order to pt·111ll1l·e n l't'rtain 

rl.',..ult or mnnnf:wtnre. 1t l!'I for the 1lii<1·on·r~· or 1m·t•ntlon of i'l•me prnetienl 

nwt11111l or 11w:111s uf pr•>1lul'im~ nn l'~Sl'llliul l't'!'lllt or effect t h:it a pntent, i11 

gr:rnkd. not for t ht> l'l'~ult nr 1•ff1•1·t itsC'l r. 'l'ro~·!'R' or '1ueth1Jil.' wllen nsl'cl 

to 1·,•prl'sl.'11t the 1111·:1:.s or pro1h11.:i11~ n he11l'!ic'ial t'l'Rult. ure in law syno1iy111r111K wir h •n rt," pro\" i·lc·•l the ll!!'ans are 11o•t 1•1I1•1·te1l by mt>chnuisw or lllecllank:il 1·11111ui11atiun." l'ipcr v. U1·uw11, 4 Fi,.11, l'at. Cas. li:i. l:'ctl. Clls. Xo. 

11.180.l 

If, therefore, this patent be construed as no_t merely for a thing 

callec.J. a "code message," but for a system of transmitting code messages, for a process or method of cable co~1munication in cipher, the 

1 NoTE.-The pRtent thnt \VfiR lnYoh"ed in this mse was also tP!'ted in 

PIJt!'r '"· :.\loon, 10 H1:1td1t. ~IH. Fctl. Cas. :So. 11,1~2. Ilrown v. I'ipl'r. !"ll 

U. i:::. :~i. ::.>a J,. E1!. 1911, the de<'i,.lon of 8ht>plt>~· •• T., wns re,·ersed, but without 

RffP1·ti11i: tht• i111p11rtnnce of the abov~·quoted discussion of the meanin; of the 

1tatutory wo1·d "art." · 

.. -···-----------

• 
.. 

REF ID:A272825 

PAltSONS :SO:S-SKin CO. '\". F.. J. \nLT.15 CO. •l•, .... ,,, ... c

1

uestion ari!:.c;; whether such a procc!C":;: or Stt('h an art is pakntahle 

11pon the evidence. Xumcr.ous ca:.<cs ha,·e been cited relating to 

patents for i1Hlex bociks, checks. and check book~. and certain arrangement5 of printing UPllll bl1oks of account. Ji.:-hmon \". J('hn:.<tnn 

(C'. C.) ({)Fed. 618: Carter Crume C'o. v. :\ml•ric:m S:dc~hn•'k l'n. 

( C. C.) 12-l Fed. 903; Thnmson , .. Citizen,,.;' eank. 53 FeLI. 2;;0, 3 C. 

C .. \. 518; \Yaring- , •. J(1hnson (C. C'.) 6 Feil. ::f'lO; Du:..:·an ,._ 

Crc"g' (C. C'.) 48 Fed. 227; Safcg11arcl :\cct. C\~. , .. \\'c~l:ngt"n 

( C. l:'C.) 86 Feel. 146. Upon exami11ati1111 ead1 of t:1r"c ca:;.c;. \J, ,\,\~ 

1;l) more than a particular book, pamphlet, t'r :.<hl'l't l)f 11:q·0

cr trl'atc•\ 

to a partic.ular !C"t\"le of printing. or arran~c·.l in a panicnlar m:mnl·r, 

could he patented· as an article oi m:mufal·tnrc, whkh i~ a;. mud1 as t<.1 

:;a\· that the paper, ink, and perhap;. hi111li11g-. when arr:m;.:cll as a 

eoi11po:.<ition of matter, became patentable by the prc:::rn-:c of lltility, 

1wn:lty, ancl invention. 

Such is not and cannot be the ca~e here. Xo particular C"•:-lle mc,:.-

sage can be pro1lueed which in c\·cry CXl'lllplar thl'l'l'•ii i,:. the sin~lc 

!'tthjcct of this patent. Indeed, thc cl;dm,,.; arc mi:<nomcr:<. 'l'he p:1tc11t 

is not intended to be for a code 111e~:<ag-c, in the ;.cn::c that patent,; 

have been g-rantcd for hooks of a pcl·uliar kind. The p:.tcnt is rcall~· 

iur a system of dc,·ising code mc,:.~a;..:-e::, an.1 a::: ~urh ( up•·>n a mn,;t 

lihcr:i.1 reading- of the claims) it i:.< in my jmlgmcnt ,,Jin,)xit'\:5 to 111,~ 

remarks aho\·e quoted from I-fotcl Security Co. v. Lorraine Co. Tht• 

paknt is really for advice. It is .for an art only in the sense that •)l~l' 

:.<peaks of the art of paintinf!, or the art of curdng the thrnwn 1>:1,:.l: -

ball. Such arts, however iug-cnious, llifticult, or amusini;, arc 11..:it 

patentable within any statute of the lJnitc<l States. 

The bill is dismis,,cd, with costs. 

---- ------

rAni:;oxi:; NOS-SKlll CO. et nl. v. P. .• T. WTT.T.lS CO. 

(Cil'('Uit Court, s. n. Sl'W Yorlc. !!:l'Jlil•mhl'r rn. 1{111.) 

1. PA'l'E!'ITR (I ~~&•l-i;:nT t-'OR Isnu'."10F.~m:.;1·-F.1-TF.C'T o.- Pnron Th:cr;::1o:'I'. 

"'lu•r!', In nn infl'in:.::"m"ut f<nit. nn nlll';:::1•1l nntic-i11:1tl11;::: 1•nlPnt w:u1 In 

tlw r1•1•1w1J nnrl •li>'"ll""''" i11 till' hriPfs 111 lhl' Cin•nil c.111rr 111' .\11pl':1J..:. 

thr cll•d,.;i1111 sn,.;i11i11i11.1:" thP 1•:1l•·11t i-:hnnltl Ju• 1.•1111,.11·111•.t II" 11\·1·1·1·111i11:.:: 

,.:nch C'lnhn of nntidpation, :11111 ;::Jwuld lll' followt••I in thnt l't',;Jlt'l't hy 11 

Ci1'1·nit ,~11Ul't of Ollfltlll'l' dl'l'llll. 

[Ed. Xot1·.-For otlwt: eas<"'• l!l'(' Paleuts, Crut. J>ii:. §§ fl:.!0-tl:.?;;; D1•1·. 

Dh~. § ~2& :• CourtR. C'!>nt. rnir. § :.:~~. 

OJll'rntlnn nnc1 !'ITt•ct of llccl,:inn in 1>q11lt:ihll~ i:nit for f11frill.1:"l'llll•nt. 

see nt,te to ""•'l'tiuglwuse J-;Jt•ctric & ::Ufg. Co. , •• Stanlt'.r l11,.:t1·u1111•11t Ct> .. 

68 C. C. A. 5.U.] 

2. PATE:STS Cl 328•)-Y .AJ.IDITY A:ll'D lNl'lllXGI:llEXT~ll.\l:S TIRE FOR Al."TO· 

llOBILES. 

T11e I'nrson;:: 11ntt•nt. ~o. 7:!3.::?!l!l. for nn nrmor for J'D(•unmtic tirl.'i:. 

held not nntl('J)lalt~d. rnlid. nml l11fri11,1?l'!l. 

•For other cu.sea HO &am~ topic & § 1n:~1111m In Dec. & Am. D111s. l~·Oi to date, & llep'r l11d.,:i;e11 

---------------------............ _ _.........,_.,,,..... _______ .... ____ ., ______ . --· .