Table of Contents Search Center...4 I. Recent Searches...4 a) Date...4 b) Search String...4 c) Result Count...4 II. Patent Number...4 a) Patent Number...4 b) Publication Number...4 c) Application Number...4 III. Date Search...5 a) Application Date...5 b) Issue Date...5 c) Assignment Date...5 IV. Text Search...5 a) Title...5 b) Abstract...6 c) Reference/Citations...6 d) Claims...6 e) Specifications...6 V. Name Search...6 a) All...6 b) Inventor...6 c) Original Assignee...7 d) Assignor (Assignment)...7 e) Assignee (Assignment)...7 VI. US Classification Search...7 VII. Start New Search...7 VIII. Save Search Steps...7 IX. Applied Search Criteria...8 a) #...8 b) Operator...8 i. And...8 ii. Or...8 iii. And Not...8 c) Filter...8 d) Criteria...8 1
e) Step #...8 f) Results #...8 g) Actions...8 i. Edit...9 ii. Delete...9 X. See Results...9 Results Summary...9 I. Actions...9 a) Export...9 b) Save Search...9 II. Edit Initial Search...9 III. View Initial Search...9 IV. Start New Search...9 V. Current View...9 a) Summary...10 i. Patent Number...10 ii. Publication Number...10 iii. Application Number...10 iv. Title...10 v. Issue Date...10 vi. Publication Date...10 vii. Application Date...10 viii. Abstract...10 xi. Actions...10 aa. View Patent Profile...11 bb. Add to Set...11 b) List...11 i. #...11 ii. Patent Number...11 iii. Publication Number...11 iv. Application Number...11 v. Title...11 vi. Issue Date...11 vii. Publication Date...11 viii. Application Date...11 ix. Actions...12 aa. View Patent Profile...12 bb. Add to Set...12 2
Patent Profile...12 I. Patent Details...12 a) Patent Number...12 b) Publication Number...12 c) Application Number...12 d) Issue Date...12 e) Publication Date...12 f) Application Date...13 e) Inventor(s)...13 f) Original Assignee(s)...13 g) U.S. Classifications...13 II. III. IV. Patent Abstract...13 Assignment History...13 a) Assignor(s)...13 b) Assignee(s)...13 c) Conveyance...13 d) Date...13 References/Citations...13 a) US Patent Citations...13 i. Patent No...14 ii. Publication No...14 iii. Application No...14 iv. Title...14 v. Issue Date...14 vi. Publication Date...14 vii. Application Date...14 b) Foreign Patent Citations...14 i. Patent Number...14 ii. Reference...14 c) Non-Patent Citations...14 i. References...14 V. Specifications...15 VI. Claims...15 My Searches...15 My Sets...15 3
Search Center I. Recent Searches Recent Searches displays the last 5 searches performed in the database. a) Date The Date column provides the date the search was performed. b) Search String The Search String column provides brief description of the search, mainly the number of filters that were applied. c) Result Count The Results Count column provides the number of patents the search yielded. II. Patent Number The Patent Number modal allows a user to search through all available patents by Patent, Application and Publication Number. The default setting allows for a Patent Number search. To perform a search based on a Patent Number, select the type of number, enter the number into the search field and click Add. To remove a number you have added, simply select the number and click Remove. Remove All will remove every number entered into the Selected Patent Numbers section. Once all desired numbers have been added, click Apply. a) Patent Number When Patent Number is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents based on their individual Patent Numbers. The Patent Number is assigned by the USTPO when the patent has been approved and granted. b) Publication Number When Publication Number is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents based on their individual Publication Numbers. The Publication Number is assigned by the USTPO after the initial review period, when the patent application has been made public. c) Application Number When Application Number is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents based on their individual Application Numbers. The Application Number is assigned by the USPTO when the patent is initially filed. 4
III. Date Search The Date Search modal allows a user to search through all available patents by Application, Issue and Assignment Date. The default setting allows for an Application Date search. To perform a search based on Date, select the date type, and the Date operator that best fits your search. Once you have chosen the operator and specified the search date(s), choose Apply. a) Application Date When Application Date is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents that have an Application Date for a specified point in time. The time period can be adjusted by selecting the Date Operator of Is, After, Before, or Between. The Application Date is the date the application for the patent was filed with the USPTO. b) Issue Date When Issue Date is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents that have an Issue Date for a specified point in time. The time period can be adjusted by selecting the Date Operator of Is, After, Before, or Between. The Issue Date is the date that the patent was approved and granted to the filer. c) Assignment Date When Assignment Date is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents that have an Assignment Date for a specified point in time. The time period can be adjusted by selecting the Date Operator of Is, After, Before, or Between. The Assignment Date is the date that ownership or right of a patent application or patent was transferred from one entity to another. IV. Text Search The Text Search modal allows a user to search through all available patents by specific keywords found within the Full Text of a Patent, Title, Abstract, References/Citations, Claims and Specifications. The default setting allows for a search within the Full Text of Patent. To perform a Text Search, type a keyword into the search field. Once you have chosen to search within the Full Text of Patent, Title, Abstract, References/Citations, Claims, Specifications or a combination, click Apply. a) Title When Title is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents with Titles that contain specific keywords. The Title is the name given to the patent by the filer. 5
b) Abstract When Abstract is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents with Abstracts that contain specific keywords. The Abstract section of a patent includes a brief summary of the invention. c) References/Citations When References/Citations is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents with References/Citations that contain specific keywords. The References/ Citations section of a patent includes a list of relevant prior art, added by both the applicant and examiner, which can include technical journals, textbooks, handbooks and sources. d) Claims When Claims is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents with Claims that contain specific keywords. The Claims section of a patent defines the protection an inventor seeks to be granted by applying, and being granted a patent. e) Specifications When Specifications is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents with Specifications that contain specific keywords. The Specifications section of a patent provides a definition of the invention outlined in the patent application. V. Name Search The Name Search modal allows a user to search all available patents by specific names of All, Inventor, Original Assignee, Assignor (Assignment), and Assignee (Assignment). The default setting allows for a search of All. To perform a search based on Name, type a name into the search field, click Add. Once you have chosen to search by All, Inventor, Original Assignee, Assignor (Assignment), or Assignee (Assignment), click Apply. a) All When All is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for a name associated with a patent within all of the Name Search categories (Inventor, Original Assignee, Assignor (Assignment), or Assignee (Assignment)). b) Inventor When Inventor is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents with a specific inventor s name. The Inventor is the individual given credit for creating the invention. 6
c) Original Assignee When Original Assignee is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents with a specific Original Assignee. The Original assignee is the individual or company who first received the transfer of a patent or patent application from the owner of record. d) Assignor (Assignment) When Assignor (Assignment) is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents with a specific Assignor within the patent assignment. The Assignor (Assignment) is the owner of record of a patent application or patent, registered with the USPTO, who is transferring ownership. e) Assignee (Assignment) When Assignee (Assignment) is selected, a user can narrow their search by looking for patents with a specific Assignee within the patent assignment. The Assignee (Assignment) is the entity that is receiving the transfer of a patent or patent application, registered with the USPTO, from the owner of record. VI. US Classification Search The US Classification Search modal allows a user to search through all available patents by US Classification Number or Description. The US Classification system provides examiners, patent offices, and others a means to organize patent documents according to technical features of the invention. To perform a search based on US Classification, type a US Classification Number, or Description into the search field, select the desired number or description and click Add. If more than one option is present, ctrl+ click on all desired numbers or descriptions and click Add. Add All will add every number that was pre populated and displayed from the search. To remove a number you have added, simply select the number from Selected US Classifications and click Remove. Once all desired numbers have been added, click Apply. VII. Start New Search Once all desired search criteria have been selected, the users has the option to start a new search directly from the Search Center. Clicking on the Start New Search button will remove all search criteria. VIII. Save Search Steps Once all desired search criteria have been selected, the user has the option to save the search steps from the Search Center. To save search steps, click Save Search Steps, name the search and click Save. The search steps will be saved in My Searches. 7
IX. Applied Search Criteria Every time the Apply button is chosen, the filter being applied will be displayed on the right hand side of the screen. a) # The # column provides the search step number, in order of application. b) Operator The Operator column provides users with the option to choose a Boolean operator between each search step. i) And When And is chosen, the results will reflect patents that contain all criteria connected with the And operator. ii) iii) Or When Or is chosen, the results will reflect patents that contain any of the criteria connected with the Or operator. And Not When And Not is chosen, results will reflect patents that do not include the criteria chosen immediately after the operator. c) Filter The Filter column provides the search modal that was used for that search step. d) Criteria The Criteria column provides the specific number, date, keyword, or classification chosen for that search step. e) Step # The Step # column provides the number of patents found based on that particular criteria only. f) Results # The Results # column provides the number of patents that search step yields in the database, based on all previous criteria applied to the search. g) Actions The Actions column allows you to make changes to that search step, including Edit and Delete. 8
i) Edit Edit allows a user to make changes to a specific search step without having to start a new search. When Edit is chosen, the criteria modal will open with information as it appears in the search step. ii) Delete Delete allows a user to eliminate a search step they no longer need, or want in their search. X. See Results Once a user is satisfied with their search, and all criteria has been chosen, they can click See Results. This will take the user to the Results Summary page. Results Summary I. Actions Actions allow a user to Export or Save Search within the Results Summary. a) Export The Export action allows a user to export their list of results in Excel. b) Save Search The Save Search action allows a user to save their current search strategy for future use. All Saved Searches are accessible on the My Searches page. II. III. IV. Edit Initial Search The Edit Initial Search button allows a user to return to the Search Center to make changes to their search strategy. When clicked, the user will be directed back to the Search Center, with the initial search pre populated. View Initial Search The View Initial Search button allows a user to view the search used to generate the current set of results. When clicked, the search criteria will appear at the top of the screen. Start New Search The Start New Search button allows a user to begin a new search in the Search Center directly from the Results Summary. When clicked, the user will be directed back to the Search Center, with all search steps removed. V. Current View A user has the ability to choose between two results screen views, Summary or List. 9
a) Summary Summary View displays Patent Number, Publication Number, Application Number, Title, Issue Date, Publication Date, Application Date and Abstract. It also allows users to View the Patent Profile and Add to Set. i. Patent Number The Patent Number is assigned by the USTPO when the patent has been approved and granted. The user can click on the patent number to download a.tif file of the actual patent document. ii. iii. iv. Publication Number The Publication Number is assigned by the USTPO to a patent after the initial review period, when the patent application has been made public. Application Number The Application Number is assigned by the USPTO when the patent is initially filed. Title The Title is the name given to the patent by the filer. v. Issue Date Issue Date is the date the patent was approved and granted by the USPTO to the filer. vi. Publication Date The Publication Date is the date the patent application was made public. vii. Application Date The Application Date is the date the application for the patent was filed with the USPTO. viii. Abstract The Abstract includes a brief summary of the invention. ix. Actions Actions allow a user to either view the Patent Profile or add the patent to a set. 10
b) List aa. bb. View Patent Profile View Patent Profile allows a user to navigate to the Patent Profile page detailing the specific details of the chosen patent. Add to Set Add to Set allows a user to add the specific patent to a previously created set, or a new set. To save to a set, click the link and enter a new set name or choose a previously created set from the dropdown, click Save. i) # # provides what number out of the total resulting patents, that particular patent is. ii) iii) iv) Patent Number The Patent Number is assigned by the USTPO when the patent has been approved and granted. The user can click on the patent number to download a.tif file of the actual patent document. Publication Number The Publication Number is assigned by the USTPO to a patent after the initial review period, when the patent application has been made public. Application Number The Application Number is assigned by the USPTO when the patent is initially filed. v) Title The Title is the name given to the patent by the filer. vi) Issue Date Issue Date is the date the patent was approved and granted by the USPTO to the filer. vii) Publication Date The Publication Date is the date the patent application was made public. viii) Application Date The Application Date is the date the application for the patent was filed with the USPTO. 11
ix) Actions Actions allow a user to either view the patent profile or add the patent to a set. aa) bb) View Patent Profile View Patent Profile allows a user to navigate to the Patent Profile page detailing the specific details of the chosen patent. Add to Set Add to Set allows a user to add the specific patent to a previously created set, or a new set. To save to a set, click the link and enter a new set name or choose a previously created set from the dropdown, click Save. Patent Profile The Patent Title is displayed at the top of the page. I. Patent Details Patent Details includes Patent Number, Publication Number, Application Number, Issue Date, Publication Date, Application Date, Inventors(s), Original Assignee(s), and U.S. Classifications a) Patent Number Patent Number is the number assigned by the USTPO when the patent has been approved and granted. The user can click on the patent number to download a.tif file of the actual patent document. b) Publication Number Publication Number is the number assigned by the USTPO to a patent after the initial review period, when the patent application has been made public. c) Application Number Application Number is the number assigned to the patent by the USPTO when the patent is initially filed. d) Issue Date Issue Date is the date the patent was approved and granted by the USPTO to the filer. e) Publication Date Publication Date is the date the patent application was made public. f) Application Date Application Date is the date the application for the patent was filed with the USPTO. 12
e) Inventor(s) Inventor(s) is the individual or individuals given credit for creating the invention. f) Original Assignee(s) Original assignee is the individual who first received the transfer of a patent or patent application from the owner of record. g) U.S. Classifications U.S. Classifications is the number assigned by the USPTO based on technical features of the invention. II. III. Patent Abstract The Patent Abstract is a brief summary of the invention. Assignment History Assignment History displays the details of any assignments tied to the patent, including Assignor(s), Assignee(s), Conveyance and Date. a) Assignor(s) Assignor(s) is the name(s) of the owner(s) of record of a patent application or patent who is transferring ownership. b) Assignee(s) Assignee(s) is the name(s) of the entity(ies) that is receiving the transfer of a patent or patent application from the owner of record. c) Conveyance Conveyance is the reason or brief description of why the assignment is occurring. d) Date Date is the date that the patent assignment was made official. IV. References/Citations References/Citations section of a patent includes a list of relevant prior art, added by both the applicant and examiner, which can include technical journals, textbooks, handbooks and sources. a) US Patent Citations US Patent Citations provides a list of US patents relevant to the patent in question. i) Patent No. Patent Number is the number assigned by the USTPO when the patent has been 13
approved and granted. ii) iii) iv) Publication No. Publication Number is the number assigned by the USTPO to a patent after the initial review period, when the patent application has been made public. Application No. Application Number is the number assigned to the patent by the USPTO when the patent is initially filed. Title Title is the name given to the patent by the filer. v) Issue Date Issue Date is the date the patent was approved and granted by the USPTO to the filer. vi) Publication Date Publication Date is the date the patent application was made public. vii) Application Date Application Date is the date the application for the patent was filed with the USPTO. b) Foreign Patent Citations Foreign Patent Citations provide a list of foreign patents that are relevant to the patent in question. i) Patent Number Patent Number is the number assigned by the foreign governing body when the patent has been approved and granted. ii) Reference Reference is the description of the aspect of the cited patent that is similar to the patent in question. c) Non-Patent Citations Non-Patent Citations can include technical journals, textbooks, handbooks and sources. i) References Reference is the description of the aspect of the cited patent that is similar to the 14
patent in question. V. Specifications Specifications provides a definition of the invention outlined in the patent application. VI. Claims Claims defines the protection an inventor seeks to be granted by applying, and being granted a patent. My Searches My Searches is the location of any searches a user saves during their search. My Sets My Sets contains all of the saved patents a user saves to a set during their search. 15