Mindef denies copying doctors’ mobile clinic idea
The Ministry of Defence (Mindef) has denied allegations that it infringed the copyright of two doctors over their “clinic on wheels”, according to The Straits Times.
In defence papers filed on 1 November last year, Mindef said that the doctors’ patent for a mobile casualty station is invalid as the invention is not new, involved “no inventive step” and was “not capable of industrial application”, the broadsheet reported.
The ministry is represented by law firm Wong & Leow LLC, and Yahoo! Singapore understands that there will be a hearing before the High Court next Thursday.
The newspaper reported that MobileStats Technologies – formed by cardiologist Dr Mak Koon Hou, 50, and Dr Ting Choon Meng, 52, a general practitioner who is also chairman and chief executive officer of HealthStats International – has issued a writ of summons to the ministry for allegedly infringing the doctors’ model of a mobile casualty station.
MobileStats Technologies was formed eight years ago to promote their vehicle called “Station With Immediate First-Aid Treatment” or Swift for short. According to ST, it is a 10-tonne truck which opens up into a resuscitation area consisting of a built-in suction system for removing blood as well emergency life-saving devices.
The doctors, who claimed to have designed and acquired local and international patents for their mobile medical station, discovered Mindef’s version of the vehicle after the ministry announced plans to use it at the National Day Parade last year, ST said.
Upon checking, Yahoo! Singapore found that MobileStats Technologies had filed a patent application on 27 Dec 2002. Stating its invention as “A Mobile First Aid Post”, the application was made by both Ting and Mak who also listed themselves as its inventors.
The document also showed that the patent was last renewed on 5 December 2011 and is due for another renewal on 12 December this year.
The doctors who are represented by Bih Li & Lee said they held meetings with Mindef a few years ago to discuss the mobile station and how it can be utilised by the army, but that there was no follow-up by the ministry.
