1 What is the Online Filing software (OLF)? 2. 2 System requirements 2. 3 Setup and configuration 3

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1 Online Filing 5.00 ReadMe document Release 5.00, Build Last updated: 30/03/2010 Table of contents 1 What is the Online Filing software (OLF)? 2 2 System requirements 2 3 Setup and configuration Installation instructions Uninstall instructions Manual uninstall instructions Updating from version Updating from older versions Help Online help User Support What is new in each version? 6 6 Known problems and limitations 9 7 Hints for the installation of version Patent management system interface 10

2 1 What is the Online Filing software (OLF)? The Online Filing software (OLF) enables you to submit patent applications and subsequently filed documents electronically over a secure Internet link. A key benefit of this service is that you receive the receipt immediately. The receipt contains the application number as well as the date and time the application was received. With the Online Filing software you can file European patent applications (Form 1001) with e-filing-enabled filing offices in the EPO member states Entry into the regional phase (Form 1200) and subsequent documents (Form 1038) with the EPO PCT applications with the EPO and WIPO (RO/IB) and with e-filing-enabled receiving offices in the EPO member states (Form RO/101) National applications with e-filing-enabled national offices in the EPO member states (optional). The required plug-ins are made available, defined and maintained by the national offices concerned. See for a list of participating offices and supported procedures. Documents relating to opposition, appeal, revocation and limitation proceedings (Form EP(Oppo) and 1038) with the European Patent Office 2 System requirements Online Filing can only run on machines with Windows 32-bit operating systems. In order to run OLF, your system must have: Pentium GHz or better 512 MB RAM (depending on operating system) 1 GB hard disk free space USB interface or serial and PS/2 ports Supported operating systems for installing stand-alone or thin client software: Windows 2000 SP4 Windows XP SP2/SP3 Windows Vista SP1/SP2 Windows 7 Supported operating systems for installing the Online Filing server: Windows 2000 Professional SP4 Windows Server 2000 SP2 Windows XP Professional SP2/SP3 Windows Server 2003 SP1/SP2 Windows Vista SP1/SP2 Windows 7 Windows Server 2008 (For 64 bit systems, please contact User Support) Page 2 of 10

3 3 Setup and configuration If you are updating an existing configuration, go to section Installation instructions To install OLF, proceed as follows: Insert the installation CD into your CD-ROM drive From the install shield that pops up, install the following: Gemplus smart card reader driver GemSAFE Libraries 4.2x, or 5.2 ( 6.0 for 64 bit systems) Adobe Acrobat Reader v8.0 or higher Online Filing software v5.00 PatXML v1.3.4 (optional) Amyuni PDF converter (4.10 for Window 7 ) If the Installer does not pop up, open the CD in the Windows Explorer and double-click on the Superinstaller.exe file. 3.2 Uninstall instructions To remove the software from your computer, proceed as follows: Open the Windows Control Panel Go to Programs > Programs and Features > Uninstall or change a program (Windows 7 and Windows Vista) or Add or Remove Programs > Change or Remove Programs (Windows XP) Select Online Filing 5.0 from the list of applications that can be uninstalled by Windows Click on the Uninstall/Change button (Windows 7 and Window Vista) or Change/Remove (Windows XP) to uninstall OLF. If the uninstall program encounters errors, see the following section for manual uninstall instructions. Any other software which is part of the package has to be uninstalled in a similar way (e.g. GemSAFE libraries, Acrobat Reader, Amyuni PDF Converter). 3.3 Manual uninstall instructions Delete the EasyTeam key along with its contents from the Windows Registry Delete the keys for MClient.exe from the Windows Registry Delete the %WIN%\System32\GDS32.DLL file Page 3 of 10

4 3.4 Updating from version 4.00 Before updating, all applications in production mode must be either sent or deleted. All non-epc 2000 templates must be deleted and the trash should be emptied. Templates for EPC 2000 procedures will be migrated. The standard installation directory is now EPO_OLF5 (not EPO_OLF). We recommend deleting the EPO_OLF directory at the end of the installation process (confirmation in popup at end of installation). The predefined group Users can be renamed back to Users if its name has been changed. Original production and demo databases are backed up into the directory Unload\<date_time>\ and remain there after installation has been successfully completed. You should ensure that there is enough hard disk capacity. For data security purposes, we recommend at least three times the size of the production database (eolfi.gdb). Thin clients are not automatically updated. They should be updated manually. To do this, uninstall all thin clients (Control Panel -> Programs -> Uninstall a program). If you are working with the.msi file, it is not possible to directly overwrite (this only functions when working with the.exe file). When thin clients are installed via Windows Installer, after installation, the OLF500client.msi file and OLF500client.exe file are available in the directory EPO_OLF5\ThinClient_v500. If you want to install the thin client using the.msi file, the old thin client must be manually uninstalled first. This is not necessary if using the.exe file for installation. 3.5 Updating from older versions To update from versions 3.20 and higher: Run the OLF v4.00 and patches up to Build 228 or Build 229 installation on the machine with the existing OLF v3.20 installation and then install OLF v5.00. Follow the instructions given by the installer program. It is not possible to carry out a direct update from v3.20 to v5.00. Page 4 of 10

5 4 Help 4.1 Online help The CD includes a user guide, containing detailed help in the Manuals folder. The latest user documentation is available from the download centre on Note: Some of the screenshots may differ in minor details from the screens as implemented by the software. 4.2 User Support You can contact our EPO User Support team as follows: support@epo.org Tel.: +31 (0) Fax: +31 (0) Postal address: EPO User Support European Patent Office Patentlaan 2 NL-2280 HV Rijswijk The Netherlands If you contact the EPO User Support, please include the following information: the build number of the individual component (can be found in File Manager under Help > Info) your name, address, address and telephone number your hardware and software configuration a description of the problem, and what you were trying to do when it occurred. Page 5 of 10

6 5 What is new in each version? The procedures EP(1001E) and Euro-PCT(1200E) that were replaced by EP(1001E2K) and Euro- PCT(1200E2K) in version 4.0 following the implementation of EPC 2000 are no longer available in version 5.0. Compatibility with Windows 7 (32 Bit) The export functions have been standardised in File Manager, the form and Server Manager A blocked (disabled) user can be re-activated by an administrator or another user with user administration authorisation. Problems when attaching PDF documents have been fixed: PDF files containing pages in portrait and landscape format or pages that do not exactly match A4 format can now be attached to applications without any error messages. Attaching certified US priority documents is no longer a problem either. Fee calculation inconsistencies that occurred when importing forms and moving forms back to Draft status have been corrected. When signing applications with a smart card or soft certificate, a message box appears during the signing process to advise the user that it may take a while to generate the XML files and that the process is running smoothly in the background. Version 5.0 features WIPO's new PCT plug-in dated as well as a new WIPO certificate. New improved version of PatXML 1.4(optional) Client build Procedural changes and fee adjustments with effect from 1 April 2010, and with effect from 1 May 2010 in the case of Albania and various bugs fixed. Web service interface for patent management systems Automatic data transfer from existing to subsequent applications (EP(1001E2K) to EP(1038E) and PCT/RO/101 to Euro-PCT(1200E2K)) Soft certificate signatures in production mode Option to set up folders and subfolders for templates Compatibility with Windows Vista SP1 Assignation of folders to specific groups Language settings for File Manager and forms selectable independently of one another Individual network settings per user Multiple address book entries Live Update functions in Server Manager only Username login to Server Manager for users who are members of the administrator group Server Manager tool Dutch national plug-ins and French subsequently filed documents plug-in Enhanced Live Update system Smart card checker tool Updated PCT plug-in build 186e (we recommend installing PCT Update 2 afterwards to upgrade to PCT plug-in build 193e) New improved version of PatXML (optional) Improved PDF rendering of PatXML applications when filing PCT/RO/101 with the EPO Option to switch from CORBA to SOAP network communication protocol A number of defects fixed and change requests implemented Page 6 of 10

7 3.0SP Updated PCT plug-in build 176 EP fee schedule valid as from 1 April 2006 Updated URL for the DPMA (German Patent Office) server Updates for national plug-ins NL plug-in available from Dutch national office as a download Individual selection of ISA in Euro-PCT(1200E) possible Several defects fixed and change requests implemented (see list of fixed defects and change requests) New user-friendly interface New workflow system The new GUI will be generated by a specification in XML which will enable future plug-ins to be easily created The stand-alone, network and available national versions can be installed from the same installation file Ability to run in stand-alone or network modes, depending on installation MSI file available to allow command line install of network thin client modules Batch filing of applications New user version of PatXML Network server module now runs as NT services For the latest known issues, visit the Online Services website at SP5 New certificates (required in order to be able to file to our new 3.0 server as of 15 February 2006) Updated PCT plug-in EP fee schedule valid as from 1 April 2006 Defect with Korean priority fixed Issue of protocol implementation fixed 2.10 SP3 & SP4 Integration and support of Acrobat 7.0 implemented PLEASE NOTE: the PDF interface only works if Adobe Reader 7.0 is installed prior to the SP3 installation. Existing users need to back up data and reinstall the new software to take advantage of Acrobat 7 support. If a registration number has more than 9 digits, the check digit gets disabled; otherwise the software represents the number as usual. Support for Polish characters. Note: The GUI and the generated PDF form for Form EP1038 both contain a note to the effect that it is not yet possible to file opposition and appeal documents online. 2.10SP2 Opt-out option for extended European search report Automatic online debit orders Automatic selection of receiving office URL for PCT filings Attachment of digitally certified US priority documents under Other Documents Updated Amyuni driver for the generation of PDF files to version 2.20i-8 Support for new member states (Iceland and Lithuania) Support for new extension states (Bosnia & Herzegovina, Serbia & Montenegro) New version of PatXML 1.3 Page 7 of 10

8 2.10SP New PCT application form plug-in, now according to new 2004 PCT Rules Attachment of technical documents of PCT form RO/101 in XML format created with the help of PatXML (to download PatXML (8MB) go to Support for new member state (Poland) Network installation version now available (see Support for new extension state (Croatia) Subsequently filed documents can now be filed online using Form 1038 and attaching each document as a PDF file Attachment of technical documents of Form 1001 in XML format created with the help of PatXML (to download PatXML (8MB) go to PCT application and publication number fields have been adjusted to the new format, i.e. application numbers from 2004 onwards offer 6 digits, WO number is now 8 digits Note: it is now mandatory to enter a four-digit year for the PCT application number Address book import/export facility: means for exporting and importing address book data using the CSV format Live Update - automated update facility makes updating much simpler Online Filing is now Annex F XML compliant according to the trilateral agreement (see Applications prepared externally can be imported into or exported in XML format In all forms: the use of slashes ("/") is now allowed in the user reference Receipts can now be saved in a Wrapped Application Document (WAD) or unpacked WAD All special characters allowed by Windows can now be used on file names for attached documents (EXCEPT FOR the PCT procedure, which is maintained by WIPO!) SP3 Handling of sequence listing in computer-readable form (*.txt or *.app) possible for RO/101 Annotations to EPO included in EP1200 Romania added to list of designation states NTLM authentication to the proxy is supported 1.10 SP1 Support for the PCT/RO/101 procedure Support for new member state (Hungary) 1.10 SP1 Resolution of problems with proxy authentication experienced at some user sites Page 8 of 10

9 6 Known problems and limitations If you are using customised templates from earlier versions of Online Filing, some of the new features or bug fixes may not be available. We recommend that you verify the template and use the new standard templates as a basis. The OLF signature viewer only supports Acrobat Reader 5.0 and 6.01 and above or 7.00 and above. We advise checking for validation messages after filling a form. The administrative password is not recognised at the time of update from version 4.00 to 5.00 if it consists of just a space. The installation will work, however, if the password is changed to actual alphanumeric characters. Installation on certain versions of Windows 7 and Vista generates the error 'This program might not have installed correctly' a few times. We recommend selecting the option 'This program installed correctly' every time in order to allow the installation to progress. The user-defined description for 'other document' cannot be imported via the PMS/Gateway interface. This does not, however, cause any problems with regard to the processing of the document. While the Online Filing software is not a native 64-bit software, it can still work on 64-bit computers. However, at the point of installation, please change the path from C:\Program Files(x86)\EPO_OLF5 to C:\Program Files\EPO_OLF5, and contact User Support for the 64-bit Gemalto/GemSAFE libraries software. Page 9 of 10

10 7 Hints for the installation of version 5.00 The MS Arial Unicode font is required on the machine which carries the Online Filing software (i.e. the local machine in the case of local installation and the server machine in the case of server installation). This font can be installed from the Microsoft Office package (see fonts directory) or ordered and installed separately (see It is not required on the thin client machines. For information about updates, fixes and patches, users should check on If you have activated Live Update, you will normally be notified automatically. However, for technical reasons the EPO may sometimes not be able to provide these software components via Live Update. Users wishing to be automatically informed of OLF updates, fixes and patches should therefore sign up for the RSS feed or consult the "hot news" section on If you have backed up your database with the server manager of v4.00, please restore the database in v4.00 only. Backing up in v4.00 and restoring in v5.00 is not possible and will produce a "dynamic SQL error" message. If this error message appears, you will have to do a clean installation of v5.00. This means that you will have to uninstall your previous version (v4.00) and start a completely new installation process with v Patent management system interface Online Filing v5 offers a Web service interface for users' patent management systems (PMS). To use this interface, your PMS must be able to generate applications in WIPO standard Annex F XML format communicate with the Online Filing Web service. For more information consult the PMS Development Kit, available from To be able to carry out production filings from your PMS via the Online Filing PMS interface, your PMS must first be approved by the EPO. Find out more about obtaining approval under Products and Services Online Filing PMS interface. Page 10 of 10