NEW patent for LEGO-like block with integrated circuits

[johnsocal]

Check out this patent from Texas Instruments @ http://www.google.com/patents/about?id=5MjyAAAAEBAJ&dq=LEGO

[Siegfried]

Silly patent. It's derivative at best.

[johnsocal]

Here's LEGO's original minifigure design patent from 1979, which expired a while back @ http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2009/11/1979-LEGO-minifig-patent.html

Edited February 20, 2011 by johnsocal

[freakwave]

Here's LEGO's original minifigure design patent from 1979, which expired a while back @ http://blog.makezine...fig-patent.html

What has that to do with the above mention brick apart from referring to a patent?!?

It would be more interesting to see the patent that LEGO filed for this items:

Part 4758

Light & Sound, Flashing Lights Brick (4771)

and Light & Sound, Police Siren (4774)

The year of release says 1986 which makes 2011, the year of filing the TI patent very close to the 25 years period for the protections.

Basically eveybody who makes an USB stick now (nearly) violates this patent.

In my opinion this is trolling and just a rip-off of a prior-art, I hope that TI will not be granted this non-invention as this has been around already.

[fred67]

Check out this patent from Texas Instruments @ http://www.google.com/patents/about?id=5MjyAAAAEBAJ&dq=LEGO

Wow... how'd you come across that?

I didn't download the PDF, just read what was on the page... "derivative" doesn't begin to describe what a ripoff this is.

Not just ripping off TLG, but Lifelights, too.