Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1895-09-20
CREAM SEPARATOR PATENTS

important DEGREES and Injuncti0ns AT
fecting Centrifugal Seperators.
There have recently been several impor-
tant decisions in the United States courts re-
garding centrifugal cream separator patent
rights, which are deserving of the attention
of those interested in any way IN thee ma
chimes
On June Il, Judge Coke, sitting in the
United States court for the northern district
Of New YORK, at Canandaigua, y. y. granted
a degree, inclusive of a perpetual Injunction,
sustaining the material claims o: the Won
Bechtolsheim patent, No 432, 7l9. better and
commercially known a. the alpha" De La
val patent, in the suit OF the Delaval Separa-
tor company OF New York against Samuel
Hotchkiss of Delaware county, \. y, who
had been making and selling cream sepa-
rator with an interior bowl device, thus held
TO infringe the Alpha" patent az charged
by the De Laval company.
Following this decision, Judge Wallace, sit
ting in the United States court at Syracuse,
n. Y, on August 20, granted an Injunction
against John Houston of Hamden, Delaware
county. y Y, an owner and user of one of
the so called Hotchkiss separators, which IN
Junction Restraints Houston from the further
use of such machine.
These decisions are Of no interest to cream
erymen and dairymen, and for that matter
to the public generally, since it Is maintained
that the centrifugal cream separator, which
has already revolutionizhd the existing con-
ditious of the separation Of cream from
milk, is soon to be introduced in form for
| household use, that We may perhaps grind
the cream for our coffee as We now do the
coffee itself.
The centrifugal separator patents have
! long been in litigation. The DeLaval com
pany was practically the pioneer in the in
PRODUCTION of these machines, but of late
years various concerns previously making
gravity cream setting appliances have taken
M the manufacture OF the centrifugal ma
chimes "a we'll The DeLayal company has
bitterly resented this trespass upon its claim
ed rights, and infringement proceedings
under its patents, in which II claims to have
Invested and expended nearly a million
dollars. have been brought IN several states
In its later machines the DeLaval com
pany has practically abandoned the Older
types of separator construction and no"
uses what il termed the alpha" process
consisting of an interior device dividing the
milk in the revolving separator bowl 1t Il
this new aud improved Alpha patent
which the United States courts now sustain
aud hold other machines to infringe In the
use OF bowl dividing appliances. The sub
iect thus becomes one of considerable I'm
portance TO users of separators, both those
who may already be using some possible In
fringing machine, and those contemplating
the purchase of a separator
1t is not definitely known how broad the
scope of the present decisions may be "a re
CARDS their immediate bearing upon the
manufacture and use of asserted intringnG
machines other than the ones specifically
sued upon in these actions, bat 1t WILL not o'
amiss for buyers to be careful IN tina
respect.
1t will be noted that in the decisions rem
dered the user IL held equally responsible
with the manufacturer, and IN simple pro
lection of self interests any purchaser OF al
appliance the subject Of pending litigation
or likely to be involved in costly infringe
menta proceeding should exercise due eau
ton.