The dispute over the invention of the sticky note is revived: Who invented the sticky note?

For this little piece of paper, the American industrial giant 3M has quarreled with an inventor for decades, and is now in court again.

3M said that the sticky notes were invented by its own researchers Arthur Fry and Spencer Silver in 1974, went public in 1977, and began mass sales in 1980.

Inventor Alan Amoran insisted that he was the father of sticky notes. In 1973, he invented the product that will be sold in the world in 1973, one year earlier than 3M said invented, but he did not apply for a patent.

Amorun is 67 years old and has invented electric water guns, digital photo frames and other items, and holds 39 patents in the United States. He told the Associated Press reporter that the inspiration for the invention of sticky notes came from chewing gum. At the time, he was looking for a way to put a note on the refrigerator door to leave a message for his wife. When using gum to stick the note on the refrigerator, inspiration flashed.

Amorun said that he took a sticky note to attend an exhibition in New York and met two 3M company executives, but the two sides did not reach a deal.

3M Company said that Silver invented a self-adhesive, and Frye thought of using this self-adhesive to make stickers, and the post-it was born. 3M has more than 100,000 patents in the United States, and this humble piece of paper is one of the best-selling products.

In 1997, Amorun sued 3M in court, seeking to identify himself as the inventor of the post-it notes. The two parties finally reached a settlement, but did not disclose the content of the settlement agreement.

After nearly 20 years, Amorun sued 3M again on the grounds that the other party violated the settlement agreement. Amorun said that the settlement agreement stipulates that both parties will not attribute the invention of the sticky note to their own names in the future, but 3M breached the contract. He also claimed 400 million US dollars from 3M.

"I only ask them to admit that I am the inventor (of the post-it)," Amoran said. "I ask them to stop claiming to be the inventor. As long as they insist on doing this, it will damage my reputation."

3M denied Amoran's claims, insisting that Frye and Silver were the "only" inventors, the invention process "had no involvement or inspiration from Amoran", and the settlement agreement "did not say anything to 3M." What set limits".

3M intends to request the court to dismiss Amoran's lawsuit. The court asked the two parties to first try to reach a settlement within this year.