[JRMichler]

Patent law worldwide is based on a few simple concepts:

1) The inventor tells what (s)he invented - what it does and how it works, and does so in enough detail that any person who is "skilled in the art" can make something like it.

2) In return for telling the world about it, the inventor gets a monopoly. That monopoly lasts for 20 years from the date the inventor applies for the patent. When the 20 years is up, anybody can copy the patent.

3) During the 20 years, it is illegal to make something from the patent unless you have the patent holder's permission. It is both legal and ethical to invent around the patent.

4) Anything publicly disclosed, such as by posting to this forum, cannot be patented afterward. After a patent application is filed, the inventor is free to tell the whole world about it, such as by posting to this forum.

Patent law also specifies that patent applications get published. US patent applications are published 18 months after the initial application date. They get published even if they do not result in a patent.