在專利法35USC251則規定，可於領證後兩年內提出實質擴大範圍的申請專利範圍，但仍不能超出原說明書的技術範圍
[原文]
§251. Reissue of defective patents Whenever any patent is, through error without any deceptive intention, deemed wholly or partly inoperative or invalid, by reason of a defective specification or drawing, or by reason of the patentee claiming more or less than he had a right to claim in the patent, the Director shall, on the surrender of such patent and the payment of the fee required by law, reissue the patent for the invention disclosed in the original patent, and in accordance with a new and amended application, for the unexpired part of the term of the original patent. No new matter shall be introduced into the application for reissue.
若已領證專利有瑕疵、或是想要修正/新增較大或較小的專利範圍，在沒有new matter的原則下可以提出reissue申請案
The Director may issue several reissued patents for distinct and separate parts of the thing patented, upon demand of the applicant, and upon payment of the required fee for a reissue for each of such reissued patents.
可以對一件已領證的專利案提出多個reissue申請案
The provisions of this title relating to applications for patent shall be applicable to applications for reissue of a patent, except that application for reissue may be made and sworn to by the assignee of the entire interest if the application does not seek to enlarge the scope of the claims of the original patent. No reissued patent shall be granted enlarging the scope of the claims of the original patent unless applied for within two years from the grant of the original patent.
兩年內可以提出擴大範圍的reissue申請案，否則不予專利
舉個案例:
蘋果電腦公司的RE40,153（2008年3月18日公告，申請於2005年5月27日）專利案，是個有名的多點觸控再領證專利案：
Multi-touch system and method for emulating modifier keys via fingertip chords
原來母案是US6,570,557（2003年5月27日公告，申請於2001年）
母案僅獲得11項專利範圍
從時間點可以看出來，Apple在原母案公告後兩年的最後一天提出reissue，能夠『擴大』原申請專利範圍
名稱沒變：MULTI-TOUCH SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR EMULATING MODIFIER KEYS VIA FINGERTIP CHORDS
主要專利範圍第1項也沒有變，但範圍就是不夠好：
1. A multi-touch surface apparatus that interprets 4-finger chords performed concurrently with other input activity as modifiers of that input activity, thereby avoiding awkward thumb or pinky reaches for conventional modifier keys, reducing hand strain and reducing the tendency of hands to drift off of home row, the apparatus comprising:
multiple-touch sensing means that reports the locations and times of finger contacts with a surface;
modifier configuration means that establishes modifier zones as horizontal bands across the surface and associates each modifier zone with one or more modifier types;
synchronization detection means that scans for modifier chord touchdowns consisting of substantially simultaneous touches by four and no more than four digits of a hand;
modifier zone selection means that selects modifier types for the chord according to which modifier zones said simultaneous touches fall within;
chord cancellation means that cancels a modifier chord if the remaining unsynchronized digit from its hand touches before other modifiable input activity commits the chord;
modifier applicability search means that commits the modifier chord and sends modifier press signals corresponding to the chord's selected modifier types to a host computer upon detection of
modifiable input activity that occurs substantially between touchdown and liftoff of the modifier chord; and,
chord liftoff detection means that reports when none of the digits originally constituting the modifier chord are touching the surface and sends modifier release signals to the host computer accordingly.
相對的Reissue申請案則增加了不少範圍，先是增加了Claims 12-24的申請範圍，之後又增加到46
項，之後USPTO有發出一個Final Rejection，聲明Claims 1-11,13-21,23-37,39-41,43-46可核准，其他的並未符合112的規定，最後經提出Notice of Appeal，附帶修正與刪除，順利獲得專利
核准後，經重新編排項目編號，成功地增加了一些「擴大」的「方法」與其他特別的裝置的申請專利範圍，其中元件明顯變少（實質範圍擴大），主要項如：
12.A method of controlling a modifier on a multi-touch surface having a key layout thereon, the method comprising:
activating the modifier by simultaneously dropping a plurality of fingertips of a hand into a modifier zone on or near a home row of the key layout; and
maintaining activation of the modifier by leaving at least one of the plurality of fingertips in contact with the modifier zone.
17. A multi-touch surface having embodied thereon a key layout, the key layout comprising
at least one modifier zone on or near a home row of the key layout wherein a modifier will be activated by the simultaneous touchdown of a plurality of fingertips within the at least one modifier zone and maintained by leaving at least one of the plurality of fingertips in contact with the modifier zone.
20. A method of processing incoming signals from a multi-touch surface, the method comprising:
detecting modifier chords by monitoring the incoming touch sequence for simultaneous touchdowns of a plurality of fingertips of a hand within one or more predetermined modifier zones; and,
if a new modifier chord is detected: allocating a corresponding modifier state data structure; and appending the modifier state data structure to a modifier chord state chain; and
checking for cancellation of a modifier chord; and,
if cancellation of a modifier chord is detected: recording either a modifier chord liftoff time or modifier chord cancellation.
22. A multi-touch surface apparatus comprising:
a multi-touch surface that reports the locations and times of finger contacts with a surface;
a synchronization detector that scans for modifier chord touchdowns consisting of substantially simultaneous touches by a plurality of digits of a hand in a pre-defined modifier zone on the multi-touch surface and sends modifier signals accordingly; and
a chord liftoff detector that reports when none of the digits originally constituting the modifier chord are touching the surface and sends modifier release signals accordingly.
40. A multi-touch surface apparatus comprising:
a multi-touch surface that reports the locations and times of finger contacts with a surface;
a synchronization detector that scans for modifier chord touchdowns consisting of substantially simultaneous touches by a predetermined combination of digits of a hand in a predetermined arrangement;
finger arrangement matcher that selects a modifier corresponding to the modifier chord and sends modifier signals accordingly; and
a chord liftoff detector that reports when none of the digits originally constituting the modifier chord are touching the surface and sends modifier release signals accordingly.
我覺得，此案例告訴我們幾件事：
- 美國的reissue給專利權人極大的保障
- reissue雖有風險（應又會經過另一次實際審查，有被核駁的風險），但仍是十分有用，尤其是能夠「擴大」核准後的申請專利範圍
- 原說明書應要寫得完整，即使申請時不確定是否有價值，但是經過幾年後，會發現可核准的範圍應該是怎樣的
- 只有美國有reissue的方案，花錢就有
- 原母案將被放棄
- reissued的案子如有與母案實質相同的專利範圍，在法律上有相同效果的保護效果，相同的專利權期限
- reissued內核准的範圍不能限制或是影響在reissue核准前已經進行相關技術的製造、提供販賣、美國境內使用、進口的行為
- 但以上行為仍會被判斷侵害reissued案中已經在母案核准的範圍
- 在reissue核准之後仍從事相關技術的製造、使用、販賣、進口核准前已有的商品，仍會產生侵權的問題，但法院為了公平起見，會給予適當保護
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