Patentable subject matter under Article 52(2) and (3) EPC: a whitelist of positive cases from the EPO Boards of Appeal—Part 2
Stefan V Steinbrener · Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice · 2017
... The digital revolution has affected all fields of technology, with the consequence that technical solutions increasingly rely on software involvement, either to control technical products or processes or to control the computer itself. In Part 1 of the article, we have already encountered several examples of technologies involving computer programs. Further, we have observed that the patentability of computer programs depends on their nature or purpose, that is, whether they contribute to the technical solution of a technical problem. The mere fact that they are conceived to run on a computer will not suffice. They must provide a ‘further’ technical effect. Although the EPC does not define what a computer program is, more recent jurisprudence of the Boards has shed some light on the issue. In particular, pursuant to T 424/03, computer programs must be distinguished from computer-implemented methods: The claim category of a computer-implemented method is distinguished from that of a computer program. Even though a method, in particular a method of operating a computer, may be put into practice with the help of a computer program, a claim relating to such a method does not claim a computer program in the category of a computer program (point 5.1 of the reasons).1