Patenting measurements

Abstract At the European Patent Office (EPO), an invention can only be patented if it has technical character and solves a technical problem. According to established case law, in line with probably universal agreement, measurement methods have the required technical character. In its decision G1/19, the Enlarged Board of Appeal has confirmed this principle and stated it extends to what are called indirect measurements. This question is gaining increasing attention, following G1/19, as a potential argument to acknowledge a technical contribution made by an otherwise entirely computer-implemented (‘numerical’) invention, and it may be relevant for any method of analysis, testing or diagnosis of technical devices or patients, for instance in the context of digital twins. Against this backdrop, the article investigates what may or may not be considered an (indirect) measurement for the purpose of patentability.