Patents

General Information on Patents

Information on Patents

Glossary of Thomson Scientific Terminology (http://scientific.thomson.com/support/patents/patinf/terms/index.html)

Explanation of the key terms used in the patent process.

Patent Information (from U.S. Patent and Trademark Office) (http://www.uspto.gov/patents/index.jsp)

Links to services, guides, resources, and other sources of information about patents.

General Information Concerning Patents (http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/doc/general/): General information about patents and the operations of the USPTO. It attempts to answer many of the questions commonly asked of the Office but is not intended to be a comprehensive textbook on patent law or a guide for the patent attorney.

Patents (http://guides.lib.umich.edu/content.php?pid=35640)

Defines what a patent is and is not, what is patentable, how to search for patents, how to get patents, world wide patent protection, and other sources for patent information. Provider: University of Michigan Media Union Library.

The Lemelson-MIT Prize Program’s Handbook for Inventors (http://web.mit.edu/invent/www/handbook/)

Indexed guide addresses the independent inventor’s and aspiring entrepreneur’s most frequently asked questions.

Comparative Study on Biotechnology Patent Practices (pdf) (http://www.trilateral.net/projects/biotechnology/practices.pdf)

Trilateral Project 24.1 — Biotechnology, a comparative study of examination practices by the Trilateral Offices in the Field of Biotechnology (13Nov97). Provider: US, EPO, JPO.

Patent Classification Codes

For U.S. Patents

U.S. Patent Classifications (http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/ac/ido/oeip/taf/def/index.htm): Browse the U.S. Patent Classifications.
U.S. Manual of Classification (http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/ac/ido/oeip/taf/moc/index.htm): Search the U.S. Manual of Classification.
U.S. Patent Classifications with Definitions (http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/ac/ido/oeip/taf/def/index.htm): Patent Classifications. This page provides direct links into the individual U.S. Classification Schedule pages and the U.S. Class Definitions.

For Foreign Patents

Guide to the International Patent Classification (IPC) (pdf) (http://www.wipo.int/export/sites/www/classifications/ipc/en/guide/guide_ipc_2009.pdf): Explains the layout and use of the IPC symbols, as well as the principles and rules of the IPC and its interpretation. It also gives advice on how to classify patent documents according to the IPC.
International Patent Classification in 5 Languages (http://www.dagostini.it/patclass/patclass): 5-Language (English, German, French, Spanish, Italian) interactive patent terminology and classification by Giovanni D’Agostini.
WIPO List of States, other Entities and Intergovernmental Organizations — Standard ST. 3 (pdf) (http://www.wipo.int/standards/en/pdf/03-03-01.pdf): This Recommended Standard provides two-letter alphabetic codes which represent the names of States, other entities and intergovernmental organizations, the legislation of which provides for the protection of industrial property rights or which organizations are acting in the framework of a treaty in the field of industrial property.
Patent Kind Codes (http://www.cas.org/expertise/cascontent/caplus/patcoverage/patkind.html): This table from Chemical Abstracts Service identifies the various stages, by each country, that a patent application moves through during its life cycle.

History of Patents

History of Industrial Property Rights (http://www.jpo.go.jp/seido_e/rekishi_e/rekisie.htm): Includes brief overview of the establishment of the System of Industrial Property Rights, A History of System of Industrial Property Rights, Chronology, and Ten Important Inventors [in Japan]. Provider: Japanese Patent Office.
History of Patents (http://www.ipo.gov.uk/p-history.htm): From UK Patent Office, provides good overview of early history on patents.

Future Plans

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Reinvention Goals for 2000 (http://www.uspto.gov/web/menu/npr/npr.htm): Describes progress toward accomplishing its commitments as a High Impact Agency.

Famous Inventions and Patents

The Lemelson-MIT Awards Program's Invention Dimension (http://web.mit.edu/invent/invent-main.html): In 1994, one of America’s most prolific inventors of all-time, the late Jerome H. Lemelson and his wife, Dorothy, established the Lemelson-MIT Awards Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. This site includes information about the Lemelson-MIT Awards Program, many famous inventors in the “Inventor of the Week and archives” section, as well as Invention related links and resources covering areas such as hot research and development across the U.S., sites for kids and the kid in all of us, invention and innovation at MIT, resources for the inventor, invention extensions.
National Inventors Hall of Fame (http://www.invent.org/): Honors the women and men responsible for the great technological advances that make human, social and economic progress possible.
Famous U.S. Patents (http://www.ipmall.info/about/user11.asp): A User Guide included in the Franklin Pierce Law Center Intellectual Property Mall. This guide was donated by Professor Homer O. Blair.