[linux-audio-dev] Microsoft gets a patent on partitioned convolution

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Subject: [linux-audio-dev] Microsoft gets a patent on partitioned convolution
From: Anders Torger (torger_AT_ludd.luth.se)
Date: Thu Nov 06 2003 - 19:07:17 EET


This might be interesting to some of you:

The newly granted patent US6625629 "System and method for signal processing
using an improved convolution technique" owned by Microsoft, covers
partitioned convolution. The patent was filed in May 2000, and granted in
September 2003.

This is in most claims the same convolution algorithm previously patented by
Lake Technology with priority date back in July 7 1992, US5502747. And that
is in most claims the same algorithm as invented and published by Soo and
Pang and others prior to 1992, which is the same algorithm used in my
software BruteFIR.

Isn't the patent system wonderful? The requirements "new" and "non-obvious"
were in practice scrapped a long time ago...

Anyway, Microsoft does as far as I know not have the tradition to harass free
software developers as Lake has, so I don't think the fact that another one
owns the partitioned convolution algorithm will cause any more trouble.

It would be interesting to know what Lake thinks about this. If Microsoft has
patented it, they probably use it, and then Lake might want them to pay
royalty, or else....

/Anders Torger


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