Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Searching for

Patents

Michael Ladisch UCD Library

michael.ladisch@ucd.ie

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Why Perform a Patent Search?

• getting a general idea of how an

application and patent is structured to

help in the preparation of your own

application

• learning more about a new field

• for market information

• competitor tracking

• technology tracking

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Types of Searching

• Text searching

• Classification searching

• Combinatory searching

• Date Range searching

• Discipline specific searching (Chemical

structures, Substances)

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Text Searching

• Identify keywords

• What problems does the invention solve?

• What is the invention (what are its physical

components)?

• What does the invention do?

• Use alternate terminology

• VoIP = Voice over the Internet Protocol; IP

telephony; Broadband telephony; Internet

telephony; Voice over Broadband

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Text Searching

• Use Boolean operators

• bicycle AND wheel (returns records that contain

both terms)

• bicycle OR tyre (returns records that contain

either terms)

• bicycle NOT tyre (returns records that contain

bicycle, but not tyre)

• Combine Boolean operators

• bicycle AND (rim OR wheel OR tyre)

• (bicycle AND wheel) NOT tyre

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Text Searching

• Use Wildcards * ?

• analy?e returns all records containing a variation

of a word – analyze, analyse

• electron* returns all records containing words

starting with electron, such as electron, electrons,

electronic, electronics

• Keep in mind the differences in American

and English spelling!

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Text Searching

• Use Quotation Marks “”

• “lithium battery” returns all records containing the

words in exactly that order as a phrase

• Without quotation marks you will get also records

where the words ‘lithium’ and ‘battery’ occur

unrelated to each other

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Classification Searching

• Different classifications

• IPC (International Patent Classification)

• Agreed internationally

• Published by World Intellectual Property

Organization (WIPO)

• ECLA (European Classification)

• Based on IPC, but adapted by EPO to own

requirements

• Published by European Patent Office (EPO)

• USPC (United States Patent Classification)

• Published by United States Patent and

Trademark Office (USPTO)

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Classification Searching

• IPC (International Patent Classification)

• http://www.wipo.int/classifications/ipc/ipc8/

• 8 sections

• A – Human necessities

• B – Performing Operations, Transporting

• C – Chemistry, Metallurgy

• D – Textiles, Paper

• E – Fixed Constructions

• F – Mechanical Engineering, Lighting, Heating, Weapons

• G – Physics

• H - Electricity

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Classification Searching

• IPC (International Patent Classification)

• First letter is “section symbol”

• A – Human necessities

• Two digit number is “class symbol”

• A43 - Footwear

• Final letter is “subclass”

• A43C – Fastenings or Attachments for Footwear

• One to three digit number / two digit number are “group”

and “subgroup”

• A43C 3/04 – Spring safety-hooks

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Classification Searching

• IPC (international Patent Classification)

• Website offers “IPC Bridge”, links to equivalent in

• IPC national versions (German, Spanish, Polish, Korean,

etc.)

• Patent databases (USPTO, espace@net, Patenscope,

etc.)

• Other classifications (USPC, ECLA)

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Classification Searching

• ECLA (European Classification)

• http://worldwide.espacenet.com/eclasrch?classification=

ecla&locale=en_T1

• A – H like IPC

• Y – General Tagging of New Technological Development

• Technologies for Adaptions Against Climate Change

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Classification Searching

• USPC (United States Patent Classification)

• http://www.uspto.gov/web/patents/classification/selectnumwitht

itle.htm

• Over 400 classes

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Classification Searching

• Classification searching is in general preferable

• Terminology/”jargon” independent

• Patent specifications often written by lawyers:

• non-experts, generalists; don’t know specific

terminology

• prefer generic, unspecific terminology for legal

reasons,

• e.g. to avoid any unnecessary limitation of the

scope of protection as defined by claims

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Classification Searching

• Classification searching in general preferable

• Examples for “Lawyerish”

• Swimming pool = “Water retaining recreational

structure”

• Paper bin = “Arrangement for the disposal of refuse”

• Shoe = “Footwear”

• Battery = “Electrical power source for electronic

circuits”

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Patent databases

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

http://www.intellogist.com/wiki/Main_Page

• Wiki for patent searchers

• Information about patent search systems

• Coverage map

• Comparing search systems

• Best practices in Prior Art searching (general and

for specific disciplines)

• Resource Finder for specific disciplines

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

• http://patft.uspto.gov/

• Over 7.5 mio patents

• Two databases: PatFT (issued patents) and AppFT

(applications since 2001)

• Two millionth application in 2009 (prior to 2001 applications

were confidential)

• Very user unfriendly (display of patents in TIFF – needs plug-

in; old fashioned interface)

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

• http://www.google.com/patents

• US patents only, 1790-recent

• Over 8 million patents from USPTO

• Some scanning errors pre-1976

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

• https://www.reaxys.com

• Organic chemistry and Life science patents from US

(since 1976), Worldwide and Europe (since 1978)

• Structure search

• Links to fulltext in relevant database

• Not free, but subscription by UCD Library

http://librarysearch.ucd.ie/

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

• http://www.patentlens.net/

• About 11 mio full text of PCT applications, US patents

and applications, EPO patents, Australian patents

• Interface in different languages

• Search for over 80 mio protein and DNA sequences

• Patent “landscape” reports on specific subjects

• No classification search

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

• http://www.epo.org/espacenet

• Containing data for 70 mio patent documents

• Almost worldwide coverage

• Search engine for European countries

• http://ie.espacenet.com/ for Ireland

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, May 2010

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library March 2012

Michael Ladisch

UCD Library, March 2012

Thank you!

Michael Ladisch

Email: michael.ladisch@ucd.ie

Phone: 01 716 7530