EDITH L. ERKERT, Ph.D.

Patent Agent

Phone: +1 (412) 741-8400
Fax: +1 (412) 741-9292
Email: eerkert@ferencelaw.com

Edith Erkert is a patent prosecutor with extensive experience procuring patents for clients predominately associated with the technology sector as well as the biotechnology, immunology and genetic sectors. Edith has been registered to practice in front of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office since 2006 and has written and prosecuted numerous patent applications across a diverse array of fields. She frequently communicates with Patent Examiners during prosecution of the patents as well as the clients to provide recommendations regarding patent prosecution strategies. Additionally, Edith regularly communicates with and assists foreign attorneys in their efforts to procure international patents for clients. A primary focus of Edith’s responsibilities is the coordination and review of Information Disclosure Statements (IDS) and retrieval of the proper documents necessary for submittal of the IDSs to the USPTO. She also oversees the coordination of timely client communications pertaining to current USPTO prosecution responses handled by the firm. After receiving her PhD in Immunogentics, Edith was a Patent Agent with Wood, Phillips, Katz, Clark, & Mortimer in Chicago where her primary focus was serving large pharmaceutical companies.

A sampling of the subject matter of the patent applications Edith has written and/or prosecuted include:

·        Immunotherapy

·        Electronic devices generally (e.g., computers, mobile phones, tablets, etc.)

·        User input devices (e.g., display screens, keyboards, microphones, cameras, stylus, etc.) and corresponding user input techniques (e.g., touch input, handwriting input, voice input, gesture input, etc.)

·        Graphical user interfaces

·        Stand-alone and integrated virtual digital assistant technologies

·        Natural language processing techniques and implementations

·        Security-based authentication and access techniques implemented in end-user products, applications, and systems

·        Augmented and virtual reality systems and applications

·        Home automation systems (i.e., smart homes)

·        Sensors (e.g., motion sensors, infrared sensors, etc.)

·        Vehicular automation processes

·        Wireless communication, network communication, and telecommunications

·        Real Time Location System (RTLS) technologies

·        Medical devices

·        Hospital workflow analysis techniques and subsequent implementations

·        Drone detection systems

·        Methods and products related to the collection, analysis, and subsequent utilization of user context data

·        Methods and products related to water collection, analysis, and purity determination

·        Methods and chemistry related to treatment of fluids

·        Mechanical devices

·        Video processing including video masking and overlay techniques

·        Autostereoscopic systems and devices

·        Conversational agent design and application

·        Internet of Things (IOT) systems, communications, and applications

·        Cloud-based storage, marketplaces, encryption, and communication

·        Photonic harvesters

·        Data encryption techniques

·        Information extraction techniques

·        Computer processing techniques

·        Design patents

Bar Admissions

  • U.S. Patent & Trademark Office

Education

  • Ph.D, Immunogenetics, Northern Illinois University
  • MS, Immunogenetics, Northern Illinois University
  • BS, Chemistry and Biology (dual major) MacMurray College

Professional Associations & Memberships

  • International Society of Animal Genetice
  • American Intellectual Property Law Association
  • American Association for the Advancement of Science
  • Sigma Xi Society
  • Phi Sigma Society
  • Women in Bio (pending)
  • New York Academy of Science