One Sandwich Short of a Picnic
David Adams of the Guardian (UK) writes about Mcdonald's efforts to secure a patent on sandwiches:
(McDonald's) has filed patents in Europe and the US that claim the "method and apparatus for making a sandwich" as its intellectual property. Patent application WO2006068865 relates to the "pre-assembly of sandwich components and simultaneous preparation of different parts of the same sandwich". It covers the "simultaneous toasting of a bread component" and heating a "meat and/or cheese filling". And it says the company has invented a way to add garnishes and condiments using a "sandwich assembly tool". Lawrence Smith-Higgins of the UK Patent Office said: "McDonald's or anyone else can't get retrospective exclusive rights to making a sandwich. They might have a novel device but it could be quite easy for someone to make a sandwich in a similar way without infringing their claims." McDonald's would not comment.
Here is what appears to be one of the patent's claims:
A "bread component" is then placed over the cavity and the assembly tool "inverted" to tip out the contents. "Typically, a sandwich filling will thereafter be placed in the bread component," the 55-page patent explains. "Often the sandwich filling is the source of the name of the sandwich, for example - ham sandwich."
Commentary
Two comments. First, there is a common misunderstanding about patents like these, what are known as business method patents. Wht McDonald's appears to be after is to be granted on its way of making a sandwich or burger, plus a few of the things it uses (and possibly developed) that speed the process of making fast food. While this is not the same things as patenting the idea of a sandwich, the distinction is often lost of the layperson and the results is the business method patents have gotten a bad rap. In this instance it is not hard to see why.
Second, it is interesting to recall that in the United States when we think a lawyer, specifically a prosecutor, highly skilled we say he or she could "indict a ham sandwich". Now we need to say that when they have gone mad, lawyers try to patent one, but only after all they've put all the HamBurglars are safely behind bars.
Links: Carnival of Insanities #17