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Patent Quality Assurance Program. Office of Patent Quality Assurance (OPQA). Commissioner for Patents. Deputy Commissioner for Patent Operations. Office of Patent Quality Assurance. Chemical Disciplines Supervisory Quality Assurance Specialists. Electrical Disciplines - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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Patent Quality Assurance Program
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Office of Patent Quality Assurance (OPQA)
Deputy Commissioner for Patent OperationsDeputy Commissioner for Patent Operations
Office of Patent Quality AssuranceOffice of Patent Quality Assurance
Chemical DisciplinesSupervisory Quality Assurance
Specialists
Chemical DisciplinesSupervisory Quality Assurance
Specialists
Mechanical Disciplines & Designs
Supervisory Quality AssuranceSpecialists
Mechanical Disciplines & Designs
Supervisory Quality AssuranceSpecialists
Electrical DisciplinesSupervisory Quality Assurance
Specialists
Electrical DisciplinesSupervisory Quality Assurance
Specialists
Technology Center 2100Computer Architecture Software &
Information Security
Technology Center 2100Computer Architecture Software &
Information Security
Technology Center 2600Communications
Technology Center 2600Communications
Technology Center 2800Semiconductor, Electrical, Optical Systems &
Components
Technology Center 2800Semiconductor, Electrical, Optical Systems &
Components
Technology Center 1700Chemical & Materials Engineering
Technology Center 1700Chemical & Materials Engineering
Technology Center 3600Transportation, Construction,Electronic CommerceAgriculture,National Security Licensing & Review
Technology Center 3600Transportation, Construction,Electronic CommerceAgriculture,National Security Licensing & Review
Technology Center 3700Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing,
Products & Designs
Technology Center 3700Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing,
Products & Designs
Technology Center 2900Designs
Technology Center 2900Designs
Review Quality Assurance Specialists Review Quality Assurance Specialists Review Quality Assurance Specialists
Technology Center 1600Biotechnology & Organic Chemistry
Technology Center 1600Biotechnology & Organic Chemistry
Commissioner for PatentsCommissioner for Patents
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Office of Patent Quality Assurance
Independent office reporting to the Deputy Commissioner for Patent Operations
Examination quality review staff is comprised of 38 Review Quality Assurance Specialists (RQAS) and 7 Supervisory Review Quality Assurance Specialists (SRQAS)— OPQA staff is organized by discipline (Chemical, Electrical and
Mechanical); RQASs review patent applications in the general subject matter area of their own examining expertise
All RQAS and SRQAS have Full Signatory Authority and substantial patent examining experience in their area of expertise; many have served as Supervisory Patent Examiners for at least several years
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Role of the Office of Patent Quality Assurance
Quality Review— U.S. Patent Application Quality Review
• End Process Reviews• In-Process Reviews
— PCT Quality Reviews— Technical Support Staff Quality Review
Training and feedback to examining Corps
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U.S. Patent Application Quality Review
Allowance Reviews— Initiated in 1974 when USPTO established a separate office
dedicated to reviewing patent quality— Review of 5901 randomly selected applications conducted
after the mailing of the Notice of Allowance but prior to patent grant
— Provide a Corps-wide estimate of quality within a +/- 0.5% sample error margin
— Allowance is considered to be in error if one or more claims are deemed to be unpatentable over prior art or other statutes
— Error rate is the percentage of reviewed allowed applications that contain at least one unpatentable claim
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U.S. Patent Application Quality Review
In-Process Reviews (IPRs)— Initiated formally in 2003 as part of the USPTO 21st Century Strategic Plan
quality initiatives— Review of 4625 randomly selected applications with Office actions issued prior
to allowance or appeal— Provide a Corps-wide estimate of quality within a +/- 1.0% sample error margin— Evaluate whether the application examination has been conducted to conform
with current law and Office procedure• Assess whether rejections are proper• Assess whether examiner failed to make proper rejection• Evaluate search quality
— Application is considered to be in error if examiner made an improper rejection or failed to make a proper rejection
— Error rate is the percentage of reviewed applications that contain such an error
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Training and Feedback Utilization of RQAS expertise through the sharing of best practices
with the Technology Centers in an effort to improve the quality of examiners' work product. — RQAS’s assist with training and quality initiatives in the Patent
Examining Corps— Analyze trends and provide reports to Technology Center
Managers— Develop and deliver training at TC, Work Group, Art Unit and
individual examiner level• Perform in-depth reviews of individual Art Units and
develop training tailored to specific needs— Perform special projects based on individual Technology
Center requirements
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Anthony Caputa, Quality Lead 571-272-0829
Kay Kim, RQAS 571-272-0983
Gerald Leffers, RQAS 571-272-0772
Susan Loring, RQAS 571-272-0984
Johnny Railey, RQAS 571-272-0985
TC1600 Quality Program
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Refresher Training Course
Joint project between TC1600 and OPQA Small, interactive classes 3-5 week course (39 hours) on major examining topics
— Claim interpretation and searching— Action writing— 35 U.S.C. 101; utility and double patenting— Restriction— 35 U.S.C. 112 first paragraph; enablement and written description— New matter and priority— Art rejections— Responding to arguments including Affidavit and interview practice— 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph
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Art Unit Rolling Reviews
Joint project between TC1600 and OPQA Review the work for an individual art unit for a set period of
time Provide feedback from the reviews in an art unit meeting
— Common issues/informalities— Examples discussed in depth
SPE provides detailed feedback from the reviews to each examiner individually
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Second Pair of Eyes Reviews
Focused internal review of allowances Benefit
— Allows a comparison for judging progress against our quality targets
— Identifies problems that can be addressed by training— Provides feedback to individual examiners on a case-by-
case basis
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Examination Conferences
Patentability— Confer with 2 SPEs or SPE and primary prior to allowance— Mandatory for junior examiners; voluntary for primaries
Appeal— Mandatory in all cases with appeal brief filed— Confer with 2 SPEs
Pre-Appeal— Upon request— Confer with 2 SPEs
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Examiner Resources
Mentor Meetings Brown Bag Seminars Web Resources
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Examiner Resources-Technical Skills Enhancement
Technology Fair Biotechnology Chemistry Pharmacology Partnership Lecture
Series Examiner Education Program
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WEPAC-Workgroup Examination Practice Advisory Committee
Examiner representatives from each Art Unit. Purpose: to identify patent problematic issues Goal: to increase consistency and efficiency throughout the TC
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Quality Matrix
Oversight and management of Review Processes and Quality Initiatives
Consultation on practice and procedural questions Facilitate Resolution of errors alleged by OPQA Coordination of cases between the BPAI and TC1600 Current Staff
— Yvonne Eyler 571-272-0871— Chris Low 571-272-0951— Dave Nguyen 571-272-0731— Jean Witz (Appeals) 571-272-0927