There are very few hardware configurations which are "novel"--------most are "Public Domain", as witness how similar the circuitry is from competing companies.
Back in the 1920s/'30s, the then, large Radio/Electronics companies tried, & failed, to suppress the propagation of knowledge about this then, new field.
"Radio" magazines published circuits using the latest designs, Amateur Radio operators made breakthroughs in HF Communications, in many cases, leading the major companies, tube manufacturers published details on all their new components (they wanted to sell them, & restriction of knowledge restricted their sales).
In Oz, manufacturers of radios did pay "lip service" to the patent claims, as witness the "ARTS & P" stickers on older radios, but other countries did not.
From that time, "Public Domain" reigned supreme, until fairly recently.
People take their "IP rights" to ridiculous lengths, sometimes.
One company I worked for a few years ago wouldn't let us look at the schematic of their "mother board"
(it was really just a interface board), which made troubleshooting a bit difficult.
I pointed out to them that if anyone possesed IP rights to the stuff on that board, it would be National Semiconductor, or Texas Instruments.
They were adamant, however, & didn't change their ruling till they received a batch of faulty boards from their supplier.