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Once more, I will show my ignorance by asking the following questions:

(1)Does the Arduino group have a physical address? Are they a legal company, etc. If so, does anyone know their place of incorporation, etc.

(2)Does Arduino have a phone number?How does one communicate DIRECTLY with the Arduino group?

(3)Some of the boards, like the UNO, are stamped as MADE IN ITALY. Who is the owner/manufacturer of those boards?

amcduino

[Reply #1 on:]

From the Arduino web page:

Most of the official Arduino boards are manufactured by SmartProjects in Italy. The Arduino Pro, Pro Mini, and LilyPad are manufactured by SparkFun Electronics (a US company). The Arduino Nano is manufactured by Gravitech (also a US company).

For information about our products, see the hardware page. If you would like to distribute Arduino boards, please email distribution@arduino.cc.

Lefty

[Reply #2 on:]

Lefty

Thank you for your post, which does not answer my question. Does Arduino has a physical location as any other legal company?Do they have a phone number? From whom did this company in Italy and the two U.S.companies receive authorization to manufacture boards in the name of Arduino? There is a ton of boards produced in China and labeled "Arduino this" and "Arduino that". If the name Arduino is copyrighted, aren't these companies breaking copyright laws?How would I tell that an Arduino board has the blessing of whomever Arduino is?

amcduino

[Reply #3 on:]

I couldn't answer your questions other then provide you will their posted email address from their web site, so that you might at least have a starting point to get information from the source.

If the name Arduino is copyrighted, aren't these companies breaking copyright laws?How would I tell that an Arduino board has the blessing of whomever Arduino is?

This topic has been discussed a lot prior in this forum. The Arduino firm have made all their software and hardware design 'open sourced' which allows anyone to free copy, distribute, and even sell boards made from that. It would seem to be perfectly legal to do that.

 However the Arduino firm has copyrighted the name 'Arduino' and anyone naming their products as such would appear to be violating copyright laws. But in which countries such violation are actionable and enforceable I don't know.

 Indeed many of the Asian sellers on e-bay do mislead by duplicating all the silk screening information including the arduino name, place of manufacture, etc. That has caused many here to not be willing to buy from such sellers, no matter what the cost advantage might be.

 I am however a great supporters, and sometimes buyer, of 3rd party manufacturers that make either clone or 'improved' versions of an Arduino compatible design, as long as it's clear they are not misrepresenting.

 What else can one do? The Arduino company itself is the one burdened with taking any enforcement action, the rest of us have no "legal standing".

Lefty

[Reply #4 on:]

Hi Lefty

In order for a company to be able to go after people for anything, the company must be a legal entity and prove that a name or trade mark is theirs. Having said that, an individual can own a copyright and go after people infringing upon that copyright. I was most likely not a member of the forum when the topic came up for discussion. Why am I revisiting the topic. I and other people use or will use the name Arduino in publications, etc. Should we place the conventional copyright symbol after the name (the letter c inside a circle)?I am a stickler for copyright laws. I believe that people who write software should be paid for it and not have it pirated. I feel the same way about copyrights and trademarks. However, as you very rightly state, where can those laws be enforced? The answer is:the place of enforcement does not matter, integrity does. But again, out of curiosity, I would like to know where these people are located?There is an email address that one may use if they want to be a distributor. Who answers those emails? Who makes the decision?

As for the Chinese manufacturers, some of them (and I use them for purchasing) supply a board equal in quality and looks to the real (authorized) Arduino board, but without the Arduino name on it. That is perfectly OK, since the Arduino is an open-source system. Some others perhaps use the name to show that their product is equivalent in quality to the real McCoy. Go figure.

I would like to get your further views or anyone else's views

amcduino

[Reply #5 on:]

I and other people use or will use the name Arduino in publications, etc. Should we place the conventional copyright symbol after the name (the letter c inside a circle)?

No. The name "Arduino" is not copyrighted, it is trademarked. Names cannot be copyrighted -- the physical schematics, software, board designs, etc. could be copyrighted (but they are not, they are open-source).

Here are the two Arduino trademarks I found if you are interested:

http://tess2.uspto.gov/bin/showfield?f=doc&state=4002:fkgc1v.2.2
http://tess2.uspto.gov/bin/showfield?f=doc&state=4002:fkgc1v.2.1

Note that these trademark documents also list the name of the company ("legal entity") you are looking for, though possibly it is a the office of an attorney.

If you want to use the "TM" (or R with a circle) you can to alert others that the name is trademarked, but it's not really necessary. It's up to the holder of the trademark to enforce it -- your doing so could really just be a form of solidarity

Anyone who is a lawyer or has more info, please feel free to chime in and/or correct the above.

--
The Rugged Motor Driver: two H-bridges, more power than an L298, fully protected

[Reply #6 on:]

Hi RuggedCircuits

I tried to open the URL's you sent me but could not. I got a message "Session expired,etc."

Anyway, thank you so much for your useful information. So, are the Chinese who use the name Arduino on their boards not infringing on any copyright or trademark laws? Could I use the name Arduino in my book without worrying about it?

Best regards
amcduino

[Reply #7 on:]

I tried to open the URL's you sent me but could not. I got a message "Session expired,etc."

Hmph. That's annoying. Just start at the main TESS search screen and follow the links to search for trademarks:

http://tess2.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=login&p_lang=english&p_d=trmk

So, are the Chinese who use the name Arduino on their boards not infringing on any copyright or trademark laws?

If a manufacturer uses a trademarked name in making something that could reasonably be confused with the original product then it is a trademark violation. So yes, if a third-party manufacturer makes a board and puts the Arduino trademarked name/design on it, they are infringing because they are clearly trying to mislead people. I'm not clear on what the situation is if they just call something an "Arduino" but do not put the special design (with the infinity symbol) on it, that is, don't use the actual trademark image.

Could I use the name Arduino in my book without worrying about it?

In my opinion, which is just that and not legal advice, yes.

You could also (again...just an opinion) sell Arduino cookies without worrying about it. The reason there is that someone buying a cookie could not reasonably be misled into thinking they're buying an electronic device of the same name.

--
The Quick Shield: breakout all 28 pins to quick-connect terminals

[Reply #8 on:]

Hi RuggedCircuits

I noticed Sparkfun uses the name Arduino on their boards but place the letters TM as a subscript. Also, a number of Chinese companies uses the name Arduino, but not on their boards, to perhaps distinguish that the particular board is Arduino-compatible. I am not an attorney but I believe that such a use is cosher.

Thanks again for taking the time to clarify.

amcduino