Patenting evolution in early modern europe
Patent law developed from the start of Early modern Europe in 1500 CE, when patents functionally did not exist in Europe. Patents that did exist were crude and nearly unenforceable. The first instances of patents being used in Europe that were meaningful were those that established tangible legal protections and unambiguous guidelines. Such patent law did not exist at the very start of the period of Early Modern Europe. Rather, this patent law first began to be developed in the first half of the era.
Inventions and Innovation[edit]
While printing existed in Europe before the era of Early Modern Europe, new printing techniques that were innovated during the era advanced printing substantially. Refinements to the printing press, such as techniques to decrease the cost of production of a press, techniques to minimize variable costs based on the amount of printing needed, and methods to streamline the process of printing in bulk meant that reading material could be created and distributed more quickly and more cost effectively. According to one examination of printing in the era, "the highly competitive commercial character of the new mode of book production encouraged the relatively rapid adoption of any innovation that commended a given edition to purchasers," which resulted in a rapid expanse of knowledge.
Another way in which printing was improved was through modifications to allow printing presses to more effectively create maps and charts. Because map making techniques were improved from advances and innovations in printing, maps could be created and distributed cheaply. When new geographical information was learned, updated maps could be created and distributed for minimal cost.
These innovations related to map making in Early Modern Europe had implications for trade. In addition to the influence of map making, "the boom of the early seventeenth century was caused by unsafe conditions on [previously used routes]." Map making techniques meant that information on optimal and safer trade routes could be spread and utilized more widely, which made trade more efficient.
Another benefit of this refinement to printing technology was the incentive system that it created. It has been found that "scientific procedures was, moreover, intensified by their further standardization through map printing—the innovation which saw the start [of further exploration]." Explorers, scientists, and entrepreneurs could explore foreign lands at lower risk and with less cost. This seemingly small improvement to printing technology encouraged scientific growth.
Additionally, it is important to note that innovation related to printing technology was not the only new innovation that influenced the increased usage of printing and the spread of information. It is reported that "it was not he printed word alone, but ‘intermixture and hybridity’ that characterized communication in the early modern era."
Patents and Patent Law[edit]
It has been found that "fixicity also made possible more explicit recognition of individual innovation and encouraged the staking of claims to inventions, discoveries and creations." Essentially, because it became much more viable to mass-document information, patents were possible. Without printing, patents could not exist, as information was difficult to nail down concretely without significant expense.
Further, again influenced by printing technology, patent law could be recorded. Because massive amounts of legislation could be recorded, distributed, and organized more easily, legal precedent started to be established over longer periods of time. Toward the end of the era of Early Modern Europe, copyright and patent law became increasingly refined and adopted. To a large extent, this has to do with precedent, as more and more cases occurred and patent law became more needed and more used, "each precedent became more permanent and hence more difficult to break." Legal teams, entrepreneurs, and inventors could look into what previous cases ruled about patent law and these rulings would be taken into account when making future legal decisions.
Patent Law was Harmful or Irrelevant[edit]
Creation of new technologies still had potential to make life easier and made potential to make profit for their creators. For example, "the water-driven silkmill was represented in Vittorio Zonca's 1607 Novo teatro di machine et edtficii well before most the related patents were granted." Complex machinery was created before patents. In the end, while innovation likely still would have occurred, the speed and breadth of innovation was increased because of patent laws.
References[edit]
- Febvre, Lucien, and Henri-Jean Martin. The coming of the book: The impact of printing 1450-1800. Vol. 10. Verso, 1997.
- Klitzke, Ramon A. "Historical Background of the English Patent Law." J. Pat. Off. Soc'y 41 (1959): 615.
- Eisenstein, Elizabeth L. The printing revolution in early modern Europe. Cambridge University Press, 2005. 24.
- Eisenstein, Elizabeth L. The printing revolution in early modern Europe. Cambridge University Press, 2005. 81.
- Chaudhury, Sushil, and Michel Morineau. Merchants, companies and trade: Europe and Asia
- Harley, J. Brian. "Silences and secrecy: the hidden agenda of cartography in early modern Europe." Imago mundi 40, no. 1 (1988): 57-76.
- Eisenstein, Elizabeth L. The printing revolution in early modern Europe. Cambridge University Press, 2005. 325.
- Eisenstein, Elizabeth L. The printing revolution in early modern Europe. Cambridge University Press, 2005. 93.
- Eisenstein, Elizabeth L. The printing revolution in early modern Europe. Cambridge University Press, 2005. 93.
- Biagioli, Mario. "From print to patents: Living on instruments in early modern Europe." History of Science 44 (2006): 139.
- Harley, J. Brian. "Maps, knowledge, and power." Geographic Thought-A praxis perspective (2009). 129.
- Smith, Pamela, and Paula Findlen. Merchants and Marvels: Commerce, Science, and Art in Early Modern Europe. Routledge, 2013.
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