The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-03-11
MATIC TIRE IN COURT.
Pa1ENT ON IHIM FOR UEHICLES
DECLARED INTALID.
United states supreme Court Decides That
Any One Can Use Them without Paying
Royalties Pneumatic Tires First Men.
TONED by an LngIish Inventor in 1919.

United States supreme Court Decides That
Any One Can Use Them without Paying
Royalties Pneumatic Tires First Men.
toned by an English Inventor In lS48.
The patent on pneumatic rubber tires for road
vehicles which was granted in March. 1898 BY
the Commissioner Of Patents has been declared
invalid by the Supreme Court Of the United States
ana anybody and everybody may Use The tires
without fear Of being required 10 pay royalties.
The case has been In The courts six years. u
was started by the Hickory Wheel Company
which is one Of the corporations owned by Col
u a Pope. the bicycle man. Sterling Elliot.
the League bicycle man, declared that the pneu-
matte tire was Lis invention and after his appli-
cation had been rejected by the patent exam
liner and the Board Of Appeals in the Patent Office,
he finally got his patent from the Commissioner
himself and then transferred ii to the Hickory
Wheel Company, In the meantime pneumatic
tires for racing rigs had attracted attention beca use
Of the remarkably fast time made by horses dra W.
Ing them aud practically all the wagon manu-
factulrrs who made such rigs ana the lighter
wagons on which such lIrcS could ba used had
begun 10 manufacture them. After the patent
was granted the Hickory v heel Company sent out
a legal notice Warning all the wugonmakprs that
they were iniringers ana warning all wagon users
not 10 use pneumatic tired vehicles unless they
were equipped with III. hickory wheel. At the
same time agents were sent around to the man
uiac,urels proposing an agreement that estab-
llshed a royalty Of 500 On every sulky or other
pneumatic tired vehicle made. these agents
said that the money would not he paid by tho
manufacturers but by the purchasers Of the ye-
hCles, The proposition vas made rnOng others
to ", S Frazier q Co, carriage manufacturers
Of Aurora. They dec!aed 10 fight the patent
They refused the proposition and went ahead
making pneumatic tired sulkIrs. The Hickory
" heel Company Instantly Instituted PROCEEDINGS
Tor an injunction and Tor damages ana II Is this
suit that has Just been finally determined lis
cas-" was originally lefor" Hlird States Circuit
Judge GrusSCup IN Chicago lie decided in
1895 that the Patent was invalid for want Of nov
city ana the decision Of the supreme Court sus-
tdins him
While all the manufacturers Of wagons and
sulkles we're Interested IN the case, Frazer Il Co.
fought - 'lnnr, Il scheme for u pool to help TO
deirHy u.r expenses falling through Whils
the case was before the courts evidence was taken
In many states, II came out that the first pneu-
matte sulky seen in the | nilcl States was brought
here by, NJ, = t"tcham, n Canadian banker in
1901 Mi ketClam had a log ma med Doc and
the sulky was hitched to this dog which gave
t;otting exhibitions he sulky was pact ally
n nio1,Gl OF the pneumatic tired sulhies made later
and alleged to infringe the patent 81 the Hickory
" heel Company. This original bneuinatic
tired Sulky was introduced in evidence. Among
The witnesses " no testified in the case were RUhert
Bonner, J Malcolm Forbes, j II. Steiner and
c, : Ca1rrv,
The Supreme Court in deciding the case,
said 1T Is u bald agrrr-Huou Of parts,
Old IN the art, each part operating In the old end
usual way, without my seI llHuCe Of inv ntiu n
In the mechanical means bv Nhich new or useful
result Is brought about, ana even II the comlina-
ton were Otherwise pAtcu'nlle, he previous
state of the art shows u was not new ~ this IAtcLt,
Pneumatic tires had been used am fully dey.i,
oped before In connection -.-h hcvcles, as early
as 1891. Solid rubber and cushioned tires had
been used long before and Sore familiar 10 the
public These, and the pneumatic tire. which
now takes their place, had also leen used uprn
slnhn wheels II all sizes, such ms are called for by
this patent"
tn" court called attention 10 the fact that Ihe
ADVANTAGE Of pneumatic tires had lppn pointed
out by Thompson, an English inventor, rs long
ago as lSil