IP High Court, Reiwa 5 (Gyo-Ke) 10107 [Induction heating coil unit] <Presiding Judge Hibiku Shimizu>
Updated: 2 days ago
Article information
Article type: Case note
Category: Patents
Topics: Inventive step, Motivation and teaching away, Claim interpretation, Patent corrections
First published on this website: October 2, 2026
Case number (as stated in the source): Reiwa 5 (Gyo-Ke) 10107
Display and classification checked: October 2, 2026 (not a re-review of the legal analysis)
IP High Court, Reiwa 5 (Gyo-Ke) 10107 [Induction heating coil unit] <Presiding Judge Hibiku Shimizu>
1. Claim 1: No inventive step
The wording “composed of…” does not limit the structure to being made only of that material; including the material as part of the structure is sufficient.
Judgment excerpt (abridged):
Claim 1 merely specifies a case composed of electrically insulating ceramic or resin and housing the heating coil. Neither the claim wording nor the detailed description suggests that the case must consist exclusively of those materials. A case including them is sufficient.
Neither the claim nor the detailed description assigns “unit” a special meaning or suggests a restriction on its structure. An “induction heating coil unit” therefore simply means a constituent unit that includes an induction heating coil.
2. Claim 2: Inventive step affirmed
The cooling-path structure of Ko 4 (an induction heating cooker) is unclear. Ko 5 (an electric cooker) differs from invention 2's acute-angle arrangement and partition in the placement of its inlet/outlet ports and its cooling path, which is divided into multiple passages.
There is no motivation to combine or modify these teachings; the invention was not readily conceivable.
3. Claim 3: Inventive step affirmed
The claimed “flow rectifying portion” branches or merges gas flows. Ko 5's partition plate discharges the flows while keeping them separate and has no function of merging them inside the case.
4. Claim 4: No inventive step
An “induction heating coil unit” simply means a constituent unit including a coil. Even Ko 5's finished electric cooker qualifies as a “unit,” because it can be a constituent unit of another system.
Original article: https://lnkd.in/emRshmhs
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Update and correction history
Substantive corrections and supplements are recorded separately from classification, related-article, and display maintenance.
October 2, 2026: First publication of the author's LinkedIn text. Article type, classification, issue tags, source, and consultation guide were added.
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October 2, 2026: Updated topic tags.
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