Apple的「橡皮筋效果（Rubber Band Effect）」專利，U.S. Patent No. 7,469,381， or '381 patent，就是讓三星去年被判賠十億美元的數個蘋果專利中的那個「橡皮筋」（滾屏回彈）效果專利，其曾經被USPTO判定為無效，但USPTO後來又翻案，認為其為有效。

該橡皮筋效果／滾屏回彈專利在2011年曾受到審查，當時被判定為有效。但蘋果與三星的地院判決出爐後，去年（2012年）10月，美國專利商標局卻下達了該滾屏回彈專利的所有請求項無效的初步決定。今年（2013年）4月的USPTO最終裁決只承認3項請求項（第14、17、18項請求項），而作為該訴訟核心的第19項請求項則被認定為無效。但蘋果提訴願到PTAB後，美國專利商標局再次審查了該專利，在今年8月22日撤銷了4月份的裁決，再次確認了包含第19項請求項在內的4項請求項的有效性。（雖然USPTO這樣翻來覆去，也不是第一次了，但這也是很不常見之事。）

現在，Apple這個專利已經被USPTO再審查兩次，都判定為有效，且Apple以此專利在日本提告Samsung侵權，也於今年六月在日本法院獲得勝訴判決。另，Samsung提請高法官於重審時（其去年原地院陪審團判定之賠償額，由於計算錯誤，正在北加州地院由高蘭蕙法官主持重審中），請求法院再審查此專利的有效性的Motion，也被高法官於本月中駁回了。所以，這個專利的有效性，歷經專利局與法院的多次審查，可說是越來越堅實了。

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http://www.idownloadblog.com/2013/06/13/rubber-band-patent-good-to-go/

Florian Mueller of FOSS Patents is reporting at 06/13/2013 that Apple has just informed Judge Lucy Koh of the US District Court that the US Patent Office will be issuing a reexamination certificate, confirming four claims of its ‘rubber banding’ pantet (or U.S. Patent No. 7,469,381).

“Apple’s notice to the court points out that this will already be the second reexamination certificate confirming claim 19 of this patent. A previous one issued on April 26, 2011, presumably in response to a reexamination request filed by Nokia (raising different invalidity contentions). As a result of this new reexamination certificate, claim 19 will enjoy an enhanced presumption of validity against the invalidity theories the patent office evaluated. Instead of invalidation in mid-2017 or later, this patent has now been confirmed in mid-2013.”

Mueller also provides an image of the header of the USPTO’s notice:

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http://www.technobuffalo.com/2013/06/22/apple-beats-samsung-on-rubberband-patent-in-japan/

Apple scored another win in its worldwide legal battle with Samsung today in Japan, where a Tokyo court ruled that the South Korean tech giant infringed on Apple’s famous “rubber band” patent in the UI of some of its older smartphones.

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http://www.patentlyapple.com/patently-apple/2013/08/samsung-denied-retrial-of-bounce-back-patent.html

Late Thursday US District Court Judge Lucy Koh issued a ruling denying a Samsung motion for a new trial regarding the "bounce-back," or '381 patent. Apple made the case that twenty Samsung smartphones and two tablets had infringed upon their '381 patent technology, which covers the "bounce-back" feature. The patent also includes a host of touch-screen actions, including dragging documents.