Opinion ID: 867144
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Diamond v. Diehr

Text: The claims at issue in Diehr were drawn to processes for curing synthetic rubber that included “the use of a mathematical formula and a programmed digital computer.” 450 U.S. at 177. The claimed methods included steps for operating a rubber molding press that included constantly determining the temperature inside the mold, repetitively calculating the necessary cure time using a mathematical formula known as the Arrhenius equation, and opening the press whenever the elapsed cure time equaled the calculated necessary cure time. See id. at 179 n.5. The Supreme Court held the claims to be patent eligible, a conclusion that was “not altered by the fact that in several steps of the process a mathematical equation and a programmed digital computer are used.” Id. at 185. In contrast to Benson and Flook, the claims in Diehr employed a mathematical concept but did “not seek to preempt the use of that equation. Rather, they [sought] only to foreclose from others the use of that equation in conjunction with all of the other steps in their claimed process.” Id. at 187. In particular, the Court distinguished Flook on the basis that the claim there provided no substantive details regarding the method’s actual performance—rather, “‘[a]ll that it provides is a formula for computing an updated alarm limit.’” See id. at 186–87 (quoting Flook, 437 U.S. at 586). In contrast, in Diehr, the claimed process incorporating the Arrhenius equation also called for steps including “constantly measuring the CLS BANK INTERNATIONAL v. ALICE CORPORATION 13 actual temperature inside the mold,” a step that was said to be new in the art. See id. at 178–79. The Court also explained that a claim “does not be- come nonstatutory simply because it uses a mathematical formula, computer program, or digital computer” because “an application of a law of nature or mathematical formula to a known structure or process may well be deserving of patent protection.” Id. at 187. Because the applicant claimed a specific application, rather than an abstract idea in isolation, the claims satisfied § 101.