Pioneer Patents

Pioneer patents are entitled to much broader protection under American patent law that those that are deemed to be improvements in an existing technology. In Westinghouse v. Boyden Power Brake Co., the Supreme Court defined a pioneer patent to cover “…a function never before performed, a wholly novel device, or one of such novelty and importance as to mark a distinct step in the progress of the art, as distinguished from a mere improvement or perfection of what has gone before." The court cited the examples of Elias Howe’s sewing machine, Samuel Morse’s telegraph, and Alexander Graham Bell’s telephone. Judge John R. Hazel adjudicated the Wright’s combination of movable aerodynamic surfaces for pitch, roll and yaw control to be a unique solution to the problem of aeronautical balance and navigation, not just an improvement on what had been tried before. It was therefore entitled to be considered a pioneer patent and given a “liberal interpretation.” The concept of a pioneer patent is unique to American patent law, which partly explains why the Wright brothers had more difficulty defending their patent in Europe than they did at home.

Pioneer Patents