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Preliminary U.S. Patent Research on the USPTO web site
Suzanne L. Holcombe, MILSGovernment Information SpecialistOSU, 501 Edmon Low Library(405) 744-6546, [email protected]/patents/
Search patent literature to supplement your research
For ideas to improve existing research For new areas of research To see if a product has already been
developed
USPTO ESPACENET: European Patent Office
IP: Patents
Patents reveal solutions to technical problems, and they represent an inexhaustible source of information
“A patent document has much more detailed information about a technology than any other type of scientific or technical publication. It is also a unique source of information; on average, 70% of the information disclosed in patents is never published anywhere else.” WIPO
Preliminary v. Professional
A search done on the USPTO Web site for U.S. patents or trademarks is a PRELIMINARY search (does not include other countries, etc.) Searching is complex and time consuming
Before applying for a patent or trademark, contact a patent attorney to have a professional search done.
The Patent and Trademark Library at OSU
Part of the USPTO’s Patent and Trademark Depository Library Program: a nationwide network of 84 libraries set up to disseminate patent and trademark information and support the intellectual property needs of the public.
We are located on the 5th floor of the OSU Library and we have a Web site.
Call to make an appointment for assistance with a preliminary U.S. patent or trademark search.
Intellectual Property
Property that can be protected under federal law. Patents Trademarks Copyrights
What is a Patent? (U.S..)
Provision in Title 35 of the United States Code (U.S. Law)
Must be a new and useful machine, item of manufacture or composition
Must be non-obvious, and reproducible by one skilled in the art
Patent grants the right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a period of time, but it is publicly disclosed
Three types of patents: utility, design, and plant
What cannot be patented?
An idea: inventions must be reducible to practice
Laws of nature/naturally occurring articles Scientific principles Methods of doing business
Exceptions: software and Internet methods of doing business
Utility Patents What we think of as a “patent” Protect how the item WORKS Legal language defines the actual
parameters of the protection Length of protection is 20 years from
date of file, provided maintenance fees are paid
Applications are published 18 months after filing (American Inventors Protection Act AIPA)
Potential Utility Patents:
Chemical compositions: toothpaste
Articles of manufacture: tennis ball
Machines: drill
Processes: “Data storage array method and system”
Stephen McKeever, OSU Physics Dept.
Assigned to the OSU Board of Regents
A bimodal method for determining an unknown absorbed dose of radiation. An irradiated material is illuminated with ultraviolet or visible light and the luminescence which is emitted from the material is detected. The illuminating light is pulsed, with pulse widths varying from 1 ns to 500 ms. The luminescence emission from dosimetric traps is monitored after a delay following the end of the illumination pulse.
Current U.S. Class: 250/459.1; 250/484.5
Method for Determining an Unknown Absorbed Dose of
Radiation…
Design & Plant Patents
Design patents protect how the item LOOKS Less expensive to obtain, protect for
14 years
Plant patents protect a variety of plant such as roses, begonias, etc.
Patents Worldwide
Most industrialized countries offer inventors protection in the form of a patent. Standards vary from country to country.
If an invention has been patented in one country, it cannot be patented in another: it has already been patented in the “world.”
There are international treaties that allow U.S. inventors to obtain patent protection in other countries if they take certain required steps (See WIPO, http://www.wipo.org/).
Search Worldwide Patents: Espacenet via European Patent Office
USPTO Web Site
See the USPTO website http://www.uspto.gov/ for basic information about patents and the patent process: Search issued and pending patents How to apply for a patent Fees and payments (see Patent Assistance
Center). (The basic filing fee for a utility patent is $500.)
File and check status (attorneys) See also Nolo Press’s title: Patent It Yourself, available
at the Library or via http://www.nolo.com/
Searching U.S. Patents on the USPTO Site
The complete images of all patents (back to 1790) are available online ONLY if searching by class/subclass.
Searching by keyword will ONLY retrieve patents back to 1976 (also inventor, assignee, etc.)
Site is updated daily
The full-text of a patent will include “drawings” or “pictures.”
USPTO requires that the AlternaTiff plug-in be installed to see drawings (TIFF format) http://www.alternatiff.com/
U.S. and International classification systems
There is a U.S. and an international classification system which classify patents by technology groups.
Noted on the first page of a patent It is important to determine the appropriate
class(es)/subclass(es) for your invention and to examine all of the patents in that class(es)/subclass(es).
There are 450+ U.S. classes
Every one of these (subclasses) is a LIST of patents.
Each list may have as few as 40 or as many as 500+ patents in it.
All the patents on 43/9.4 meet the criteria of Fishing, Nets, Trawl, Bottom running sled.
USPTO class/subclass system, example
http://www.uspto.gov/go/classification/ (where 043 is replaced by the class you’re investigating)
Steps to Starting a U.S. Patent Search
1. Start at http://www.uspto.gov/ 2. Go to Patents Search Advanced Search (green box) 3. Think of words that describe your research/invention and combine
them together using ‘and.’ Consider: Function Structure
4. Look through the list of patents retrieved and locate a patent that is in your area of research.
5. Note the class/subclasses on this patent. 6. Plug these in at http://www.uspto.gov/go/classification (or
Espacenet http://ep.espacenet.com/) 7. Click on the red P’s and examine all patents in those subclasses.
Also search by Inventor, Location, Date, etc.
USPTO Patents Search http://www.uspto.gov/
1. Keyword
2. Class/Subclass
3. Applications
4. Espacenet
Atomizers that can generate very small droplets
Example searches atomizer and fuel and spray and
(micro$ or nano$)
abst/atomizer and abst/fuel and abst/spray and abst/micro$
Search atomizer and fuel and spray and (micro$ or nano$)
abst/atomizer and abst/fuel and abst/spray and abst/micro$
Scan down through the list of patents until you find one that looks close to your research. Remember that this search will only retrieve patents back to 1976.
Liquid Atomization Methods and Devices. 104 patents into the list of 520 patents.
Click here to see the full-text and images of the patent. Requires plug-in. Read the claims to see what this patent protects.
Note classes and subclasses. If this patent is close to your idea, all of the patents in these classes/subclasses should be examined.
Class 239 Fluid Sprinkling
Click on the red P’s to see the patents in any of the subclasses. You can view patents back to 1790.
Click on the subclass numbers for definitions or more information about the subclass.
This is the Definition for subclass 5, Of fuel injection. Note the suggestions for other subclasses to search.
Search Published Applications
Once Classes/Subclasses for your research have been determined, and patents reviewed, search Published Applications.
Search International Patents
