interference

A priority contest in the USPTO to determine which of two or more parties was the first to invent commonly-claimed subject matter. MPEP 2300.01.

A multiparty priority proceeding in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office wherein two or more parties claim the same invention. The parties present evidence of conception and reduction to practice with a view toward proving who first invented the subject matter of the claims involved in the interference.

A proceeding for the purpose of determining which of two or more applicants for patents on the same invention is the legally recognized inventor. Such an action may take place between two or more applicants, two or more holders of patents, or an applicant and a patentee.

a proceeding, conducted before the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (Board), to determine priority of invention between a pending application and one or more pending applications and/or one or more unexpired patents

-- see MPEP 2300 for more

The effect of one crossing over event in altering the probability of another crossing over event occurring at a nearby location. This probability can be either increased (positive interference) or decreased (negative interference), but the latter is the more usual.

One crossover event inhibits the chances of another crossover event. Also known as positive interference. Negative interference increases the chance of a second crossover. See also: crossing over

The phenomenon of two or more waves of the same frequency combining to form a wave in which the disturbance at any point is the algebraic or vector sum of the disturbances due to the interfering waves at that point.

In general, extraneous energy, from natural or man-made sources, that impedes the reception of desired signals. 2. A coherent emission having a relatively narrow spectral content, e.g., a radio emission from another transmitter at approximately the same frequency, or having a harmonic frequency approximately the same as, another emission of interest to a given recipient, and which impedes reception of the desired signal by the intended recipient. Note: In the context of this definition, interference is distinguished from noise in that the latter is an incoherent emission from a natural source (e.g., lightning) or a man-made source, of a character unlike that of the desired signal (e.g., commutator noise from rotating machinery) and which usually has a broad spectral content. 3. The effect of unwanted energy due to one or a combination of emissions, radiation, or inductions upon reception in a radiocommunication system, manifested by any performance degradation, misinterpretation, or loss of information which could be extracted in the absence of such unwanted energy. [NTIA] [RR] 4. The interaction of two or more coherent or partially coherent waves, which interaction produces a resultant wave that differs from the original waves in phase, amplitude, or both. Note: Interference may be constructive or destructive, i.e., it may result in increased amplitude or decreased amplitude, respectively. Two waves equal in frequency and amplitude, and out of phase by 180°, will completely cancel one another. In phase, they create a resultant wave having twice the amplitude of either interfering beam.