Task One LLC is a consulting firm specializing in Intellectual Property, Business Development, and Strategic Planning Services.
Intellectual Property Services
We provide patent and related intellectual property services pertaining to software, firmware, and algorithms related to streaming and multimedia applications. Our expertise includes the following specializations:
Evidence of Use Claim Charts
Our firm specializes in generating evidence of use claim charts with specific examples of infringement for each individual assertion in independent and dependent claims. Creating evidence of use claim charts requires deep knowledge of debugging, monitoring, and reverse-engineering processes, in addition to the evaluation of public API (Application Programming Interface) and any and all available software from publicly available sources. The combination of skills required for this type of deep analysis comes from our years of experience in evaluating patents and understanding their application to various technology fields. Many times, a patent claim one field of technology may have applications in another technical field. Our firm will provide both guidance as well as an interpretation of a patent and its potential application to your targeted technology field.
Prior Art Searches
In performing prior art searches, our primary aim is to validate or invalidate patent claim(s) per the law that is laid out by USC 102 and USC 103. In our opinion, performing a thorough prior art search is ideally the first step in both defensive and offensive patent strategies. In an offensive patent enforcement scenario, it may be helpful to determine the validity of a patent before the start of acquisition or prosecution activities. In defensive patent cases, the discovery of prior art may lead to outright invalidation of a patent and hence void its assertion rights. And while the assumption of validity upon grant is a reasonable starting point, there may be a number of reasons why a particular piece of the prior art did not present itself during the examination phase. We perform prior art searches according to the following general steps:
Patent Claims Analysis and Standard Claim Chart Creation
We examine patent claims for both offensive and defensive purposes. After thoroughly reviewing the patent and ensuring adherence to USC 112, we evaluate each individual assertion and limitation of the claim under review, in order to evaluate its technical merit and validity. Once the overall validity of a patent claim is completed, we present evidence of its applicability for either offensive or defensive purposes. In conjunction with patent claims analysis, we are often requested to prepare a claim chart. Claim chart generation typically requires a thorough understanding of the claim and the underlying invention, as well as the infringement source. Our methodology in preparing claim charts goes well beyond simple keyword matches and relies upon both logical and technical constructs. We provide a detailed document for both our claim chart analysis as well as claim charts, including all supporting technical references and their application to the claim(s) under review.
Intellectual Property Development
Companies vary in the importance they place on intellectual property. With our co-founder holding over 50 issues patents, Task One holds intellectual property in high regard, and as such can aid like-minded clients in developing their intellectual property portfolio. In this process, we generally hold interviews with engineers, product managers, and other stakeholders in one-on-one or group settings, review their past work and make an initial assessment for potential areas for intellectual property development. Subsequently, we perform a brief prior art search for the most promising ideas, follow up with individuals to gather additional details where necessary, and make a final recommendation to the client for a list of possible inventions.
We provide patent and related intellectual property services pertaining to software, firmware, and algorithms related to streaming and multimedia applications. Our expertise includes the following specializations:
- Online streaming (Live or VOD) for both client and server applications
- Video and audio compression and decompression standards
- Visual search, trick play, and stream indexing
- Media guides, TV guides, and all related technologies
Evidence of Use Claim Charts
Our firm specializes in generating evidence of use claim charts with specific examples of infringement for each individual assertion in independent and dependent claims. Creating evidence of use claim charts requires deep knowledge of debugging, monitoring, and reverse-engineering processes, in addition to the evaluation of public API (Application Programming Interface) and any and all available software from publicly available sources. The combination of skills required for this type of deep analysis comes from our years of experience in evaluating patents and understanding their application to various technology fields. Many times, a patent claim one field of technology may have applications in another technical field. Our firm will provide both guidance as well as an interpretation of a patent and its potential application to your targeted technology field.
Prior Art Searches
In performing prior art searches, our primary aim is to validate or invalidate patent claim(s) per the law that is laid out by USC 102 and USC 103. In our opinion, performing a thorough prior art search is ideally the first step in both defensive and offensive patent strategies. In an offensive patent enforcement scenario, it may be helpful to determine the validity of a patent before the start of acquisition or prosecution activities. In defensive patent cases, the discovery of prior art may lead to outright invalidation of a patent and hence void its assertion rights. And while the assumption of validity upon grant is a reasonable starting point, there may be a number of reasons why a particular piece of the prior art did not present itself during the examination phase. We perform prior art searches according to the following general steps:
- Review the patent and understand the details pertaining to the claim(s) under review
- Perform prior art search using Google patents, USPTO, and other available means
- Perform a literary document search using publicly available databases
- Review the inventor backgrounds, publications, and standards body attendance records (where applicable)
Patent Claims Analysis and Standard Claim Chart Creation
We examine patent claims for both offensive and defensive purposes. After thoroughly reviewing the patent and ensuring adherence to USC 112, we evaluate each individual assertion and limitation of the claim under review, in order to evaluate its technical merit and validity. Once the overall validity of a patent claim is completed, we present evidence of its applicability for either offensive or defensive purposes. In conjunction with patent claims analysis, we are often requested to prepare a claim chart. Claim chart generation typically requires a thorough understanding of the claim and the underlying invention, as well as the infringement source. Our methodology in preparing claim charts goes well beyond simple keyword matches and relies upon both logical and technical constructs. We provide a detailed document for both our claim chart analysis as well as claim charts, including all supporting technical references and their application to the claim(s) under review.
Intellectual Property Development
Companies vary in the importance they place on intellectual property. With our co-founder holding over 50 issues patents, Task One holds intellectual property in high regard, and as such can aid like-minded clients in developing their intellectual property portfolio. In this process, we generally hold interviews with engineers, product managers, and other stakeholders in one-on-one or group settings, review their past work and make an initial assessment for potential areas for intellectual property development. Subsequently, we perform a brief prior art search for the most promising ideas, follow up with individuals to gather additional details where necessary, and make a final recommendation to the client for a list of possible inventions.
Business Development and Strategic Planning
At Task One, we specialize in helping companies seeking initial funding rounds with their business and strategy needs. Our services include business plan creation, financial analysis, and venture identification. Our co-founder, Dr. Congcong Zheng, is a tenured professor of Management at San Diego State University, with deep community ties to entrepreneurship organizations in the San Diego metropolitan area.
Business Plan Creation and Financial Modeling
Many founders and executives are inundated with requests and problems on a daily basis , and they often lack the time to develop long-term visions and plans. We help clients to develop a long-term plan (3 to 5 years) to guide business growth or to raise external capital. Our business planning process starts with understanding the client’s business processes, routines, and personal goals. Together with this knowledge, we apply our strategic planning methodology to analyze our client's internal strengths and weaknesses, identify external opportunities and threats, and develop a unique business plan for our client. Finally, we complete the SWOT analysis and business plan validation process by applying the plan to existing and potential customers to ensure its validity and accuracy.
Venture Funding
As a Southern California based company, Task One has ties with local incubators, venture firms and seed-fund organizations. We can engage your organization and lay out a plan for getting your idea funded at the idea stage all the way to series-A funding.
At Task One, we specialize in helping companies seeking initial funding rounds with their business and strategy needs. Our services include business plan creation, financial analysis, and venture identification. Our co-founder, Dr. Congcong Zheng, is a tenured professor of Management at San Diego State University, with deep community ties to entrepreneurship organizations in the San Diego metropolitan area.
Business Plan Creation and Financial Modeling
Many founders and executives are inundated with requests and problems on a daily basis , and they often lack the time to develop long-term visions and plans. We help clients to develop a long-term plan (3 to 5 years) to guide business growth or to raise external capital. Our business planning process starts with understanding the client’s business processes, routines, and personal goals. Together with this knowledge, we apply our strategic planning methodology to analyze our client's internal strengths and weaknesses, identify external opportunities and threats, and develop a unique business plan for our client. Finally, we complete the SWOT analysis and business plan validation process by applying the plan to existing and potential customers to ensure its validity and accuracy.
Venture Funding
As a Southern California based company, Task One has ties with local incubators, venture firms and seed-fund organizations. We can engage your organization and lay out a plan for getting your idea funded at the idea stage all the way to series-A funding.