finally reading tr reid's book the chip. a lot of new information. didn't know anything about the patent war between texas instruments and fairchild that went on for 10 years.

robert noyce got it first, his application moved through the patent office faster than those from kilby (texas instruments), even it was the second version of the patent. robert n. noyce semiconductor device-and-lead structure, filed july 30, 1959.

kilby's patent miniaturized electronic circuits, filed february 6, 1959.

the case went to the patent interference department and kilby got the patent granted back at 1964, but the fairchild patent lawyer didn't give up ...

the problems with kilby's patent were the drawings.

by 1964, the time borovoy took over on behalf of fairchild, the industry had largely determined what an integrated circuit would look like; it didn't look anything like the drawing in kilby's patent application.

kilby - noyce. borovoy's line became the weakness on interconnections. on november 6, 1969, tr reid writes on, the court issued its opinion:

this time, the decision dealt exclusively with the difference between 'laid down on' and 'adherent to'. the judges had found roger borovoy's argument appetizing - and swallowed it whole. 'kilby has not demonstrated' the opinion said 'that the term laid down had ... or has since aquired a meaning in electronic or semiconductor arts which necessarily connotes adherence.'

once again robert noyce was the official inventor of the microchip. ellsworth h. mosher, the lawyer for texas instruments (ti) tried to turn it around again, writing to the supreme court, but six month later the answer came back: denied.

it was on fairchild to 'exploit its patent', but as reid says, fairchild and texas instruments and other companies had already cut a deal in 1966:

ti and fairchild each conceded that the other had some right to the historic invention. the two companies agreed to grant licences to each other for integrated circuit production. any other company that wanted to enter the market then had to arrange separate licences with both texas instruments and fairchild.

jack kilby's nobel lecture from 2000: "turning potential into realities: the invention of the integrated circuit".

sometimes i am astonished when people ask for money for an article/speech that was held as i am concerned in a public domain.worldscinet wants me to pay 19,90 $ for it. hombre, what for?? copy and paste?