In the world of intellectual property, Abel + Imray has been at the forefront of innovation for 150 years. In 1871, two engineers and leading patent agents founded the firm. Since then, our experience and legal expertise has protected thousands of ideas and brands.

Charles Abel was already an experienced patent agent with extensive technical knowledge in chemistry and mechanical engineering. His business connections across Europe also helped gain prestigious clients, many of whom stayed with the firm long after Abel’s death. John Imray brought a background in engineering and a shrewd commercial mind, often appearing as an expert witness in cases before the courts.

It was in the Summer of 1871 that Abel and Imray started filing their first UK patent applications for clients of the newly established partnership. One of the very first was No. 1894. This was for the ‘ventilating hat’, designed by Paris’ Achille Chevrillon to keep heads cool in tropical countries. Further notable patents followed, including No. 2081 in May 1876 for ‘Gas Motor Engines’ on behalf of German engineer, Nicolaus August Otto, who built the first working 4-stroke engine. Two months later, the Stag trade mark No. 8193 was registered for dairy food colourants by the company, R.J. Fullwood & Bland Limited. It’s still in force today, making it the oldest live trade mark on our records.

Imray served as CIPA’s first ever vice-president and as second president (1884 to 1886). Abel then became CIPA president (1897 to 1899). Since those early days, Abel + Imray has counted a further five presidents among its past partners and consultants, including, most recently, Richard Mair: CIPA president 2020-21.

In terms of patent applications this decade, one was filed by us in 1892 for the first Diesel engine. Invented by Rudolf Diesel from Berlin, he described it as: ‘A Process for Producing Motive Work from the Combustion of Fuel’. Around the same time, an artificial silk similar to ‘Rayon’ was developed by French engineer and industrialist Comte Hilaire de Chardonnet. While working with Louis Pasteur on a remedy to the epidemic that was destroying French silkworms, a darkroom spillage led to Chardonnet’s discovery of nitrocellulose as a possible alternative to real silk. Abel + Imray filed one of the key UK patents for this new material in 1886.

This magnetic wire recorder used a magnetisable material, such as a steel wire or strip, which moved past a recording head fed with an electrical signal representative of the sound to be recorded. The head magnetised the material in dependence on the electrical signal such that the signal, and therefore the sound, could later be reproduced by performing the process in reverse.

Abel + Imray’s filing of the telegraphone patent, enabled Poulsen to be the first to publicly demonstrate the principles of magnetic recording. With his assistant, Peder Oluf Pedersen, he later developed other magnetic recorders that recorded on steel wire, tape, or disks. While none of these devices had electronic amplification, the recorded signal was still strong enough to be heard through a headset or transmitted on telephone wires. At the 1900 World’s Fair in Paris, Poulsen even had the chance to capture the voice of Emperor Franz Josef of Austria – creating what is believed to be the oldest surviving magnetic audio recording today.

Oliver was particularly concerned with trade mark matters – which continue to be an important part of Abel + Imray to this day. Some of the most well-known trade marks we have registered over the last 150 years are: Heinz, Hyundai, Kia, Radisson, Rentokil, Bovril, and Vaseline.

Other patents Oliver Imray filed at the turn of the century included No. 15,435 in 1901. This was for an American invention of a newly improved web printing machine, which worked by supplying paper from one or more rolls (webs) which were then printed, folded, cut and delivered as a complete product.

Then, with the war finally coming to an end, Oliver Imray filed a UK patent for ‘Improvements in Machine Guns’ on behalf of the Colt’s Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company, Connecticut, U.S.A. Patented via Abel + Imray in 1919, the invention centred around the firing mechanism of recoil-operated, automatic machine guns. This new development was based on how the barrel and breech mechanism interlocked and then unlocked the energy stored in the gun’s reaction spring – making reloading safer and faster.

One of the elegant inventions we filed in 1923 was a handy and inexpensive accessory for smokers. A small, ring-shaped cigarette and cigar holder that, when placed on a flat surface, inclined away and removed the risk of scorching from burning tobacco. In 1924, Abel + Imray also filed patent No. 217,282 on behalf of the Kellogg Company for new food processes. These were designed to improve the taste and nutritious qualities of cereal and bread products through the addition of minerals and vitamins to the whole grains or dough.

Things were changing at Abel + Imray, too. Oliver Imray (senior) retired in 1921, but the firm’s partnership retained ties to its founding fathers. Oliver Young Imray remained a partner, alongside four new equity partners who joined the firm in this year: A G Bloxham, T Shields, J W Waghorn and A Hicks. As the decade drew to a close, the office moved down the road to its new residence: 30 Southampton Buildings, Holborn, London.

In October 1935, a young Frank Hooker joined the clerical department of Abel + Imray – and continued working beyond his 60th year with us until 1996 as a loyal and much-appreciated part-time member of staff in our foreign patent department, despite reaching his official retirement age in 1985. A. J. S. Evans also joined in the 1930s after having been involved in the milestone Celanese v. Courtaulds case.

A few months before war was declared on Germany, we completed a specification for a new and improved type of filter used in photographic colour film. Our London office then became a casualty of the German Air Force in November 1940, when bombs fell on and badly damaged 30 Southampton buildings – as well as destroying many papers and records inside. As a consequence of the war, Abel + Imray’s business links with Europe were also severed temporarily, and the post war years were spent slowly building the firm back up.

It was a hard-fought case, finally decided in the House of Lords where it was found that the British Celanese process was a ‘mere collocation’: put simply, known things interacting in an unsurprising manner. Almost 70 years later, the concept of mere collocations being unpatentable was still quoted in UK case law – and the House of Lords. And since they first met in court, both Celanese and Courtaulds have been Abel + Imray clients.

The post-war years also saw Abel + Imray get the business back on its feet, albeit slowly. A. J. S. Evans became a senior partner in 1950, but before then, Abel + Imray only had two partners – W. W. Groves and H. W. Waghorn – from 1945 to 1949. This was the only time in the 20th century our firm was at the absolute minimum required for a partnership to be considered viable.

According to its patent specification No. 998,007, completed in 1961, this invention used one pulse time for the calling line identity and another pulse time for the called line. By allocating four-digit directory numbers to these identities, a storage system for information passed between any two lines could be set up.

When we moved our London office to High Holborn a year later, typewriters were still standard. But our centenary was also the year of the microprocessor, an invention which eventually paved the way for office computers.

At its peak our translation team had five full-time in-house translators who were working on patents primarily drafted in German and French, but also Dutch, Italian, Spanish and occasionally Russian. One of the most difficult challenges for the team was to translate pharmaceutical text from Chinese into Spanish, in the days before computer-aided translation. Nowadays, our team, assisted by a range of technology manage a steady stream of French and German translations for R.71(3)EPC Communications – translating claims into English in the final stage of European patent applications. They also interpret International PCT Applications, which is crucial for cases to be able to enter the national phase in countries such as the USA, Australia, and UK where the text needs to be in English.

Not only was our German office invaluable for clients and colleagues, it also allowed us to forge connections with EPO staff, following the newly introduced European Patent Convention (EPC). European companies could now get patent protection in the UK without the need to argue before the UK Patent Office, requiring English translations only at the point of grant. Likewise, we were now able to patent technology in Europe directly. Abel + Imray needed to swiftly adapt to this new way of working. And our Munich office was key to that. Meanwhile, securing a residence for the firm in Munich’s newly developed “Arabellapark” allowed attorneys to spend more time in the city and make the most out of our newfound European presence. Their soundtrack was provided by Queen, Elton John and Donna Summer: our Munich flat was part of the same building as the iconic Musicland studios.

Closer to home, the 1970s also saw us working for Black and Decker. With Abel + Imray attorneys responsible for the majority of their 1970s patent filings, we protected a diverse range of innovations – from pressure-fed paint rollers and jig-saws, to improvements to the iconic Workmate.

Key to our work for the Post Office was having the attention to detail in keeping accurate and complete records, as well as a deep understanding of our client’s business – from the technology that powered telephone exchanges, to the intricacies of submarine cables. We brought that knowledge to the table when BT sought ownership of many of these patent rights, which was crucial for a transaction of this size and scale. Recording BT as the new IP rights holder at patent offices across the globe was a truly international effort.

Julian Bardo, who led the office opening, was leaving much of his London client base in the safe hands of his colleagues – and expanding the firm’s reach. It was a bold move, but it brought success. Our firm could service businesses nationwide, attracting new clients and working with innovators such as Sir Clive.

With Abel + Imray among the first patent and trade mark firms in Bath, Queen Square was the beating heart of the city’s legal sector. Working from elegant townhouses wasn’t without its quirks, however – one junior attorney even temporarily called a kitchen her office. So, as our regional work and reputation grew, we expanded into numbers 2, and 3 Chapel Row.

During the mid-90s, the companies and clients we acted for covered many industries: industrial chemistry, pharmaceuticals, food and drink, publishing, automotive, telecommunications, electronics, computing, defence and aviation. To mention but a few.

Our equity partners were Dave Darby, Tony Coulson, Pat Barry, Janet Senior, Julian Bardo, Richard Mair and Ceris Humphreys. Compared to other patent attorney firms in the UK at this time, our firm was considered slightly more balanced in terms of the male to female partnership ratio and relaxed when it came to office etiquette. Suits and ties, however, still appeared to be mandatory attire, for the men at least – which might explain why Jim’s mother felt compelled to buy him a shiny new briefcase for his first day in the office.

Having represented many brands over the years, we developed our own visual identity and unveiled the first Abel + Imray logo in 2000.

A year later, it was proudly used in our new Cardiff office. Our presence in Wales was in part thanks to Julian Bardo and an approach by Welsh Water which, on the cusp of privatisation, needed some quality IP advice. Following this and other successes, enquiries began to flow from local premier law firms – and soon after, our name was on Wales’ IP map.

Seven years after opening our Cardiff office, we moved our Bath base from Georgian Chapel Row to open-plan offices at Westpoint Building, creating even better opportunities to collaborate.

With so much change afoot, it was time for a new look for Abel + Imray. In collaboration with Bath-based design agency Mytton Williams, we exchanged our ampersand – and Abel + Imray was born. This alteration was accompanied by a design aesthetic that was anything but beige. The bold new palette featured a dark pink pantone, now synonymous with our firm’s forward-thinking reputation.

This space for reflection crystallised our own ‘why’ – to look after your ideas so you are free to do what matters most to you. And caring about looking after our clients’ IP in mainland Europe, post-Brexit, saw us open our Spanish office. This meant that Abel + Imray could continue to provide a full range of IP services across the continent, and in particular before the EUIPO in Alicante.

Whether based in London, Cardiff, Bath or Spain, our teams were able to adjust rapidly – and admirably – to the demands of lockdown and working from home, continuing to deliver the Abel + Imray standard.

Led by managing partner Matthew Critten, our firm is confident we will have become even stronger after such a tough year. We look forward to growing our client base and delivering valuable IP work for a prosperous future.