Our partner John Kensett, along with many of us, greatly enjoyed the privilege of INTA being in London this year and being able to meet old friends and make new acquaintances. In one of these meetings, with a colleague from Hong Kong, he was reminded of an interesting patent that he drafted, and the firm prosecuted, way back in 1993. This was for a timepiece. However, it was no ordinary timepiece - it was a timepiece in the form of a construction that was to form part of the top of one of the tallest buildings in Hong Kong, the Central Plaza.
Central Plaza (Hong Kong) - Wikipedia
The patented timepiece, which still to the best of our knowledge functions perfectly today, is formed of concentric neon bands which display different colours for 15 minute periods and from which an observer can tell the time by referring to a guide to the various colour combinations possible.
The building itself was, at its time of construction, the tallest reinforced concrete building in the world and even now is the third largest tower in Hong Kong. The clock can therefore be viewed over a wide distance and it is a nice thought that millions of residents and visitors to Hong Kong are likely to see it every day, and thus view the concrete (pun intended) embodiment of a patented invention that Dolleymores helped to protect.
The UK Patent is GB2281420B and the clock is known as the Lightime™. John has visited Hong Kong and did of course spend too much time staring at the top of the Central Plaza Building.