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901.05(c) Obtaining Copies - 900 Prior Art, Classification, Search
901.05(c) Obtaining Copies
Until October 1, 1995, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (Office) received copies of the published specifications of patents and patent applications from nearly all the countries which issue them in printed form. The Office now receives all foreign patents from these countries in the form of CD-ROM disks and other electronic media. The foreign patents so obtained are available to examiners from the USPTO's automated search tools such as the Examiner's Automated Search Tool (EAST), the Web-based Examiner Search Tool (WEST) and the Foreign Patent Access System (FPAS), and from the foreign patents branch of the Scientific and Technical Information Center (STIC). The U.S. has agreements with these countries to exchange patent documentation.
Until October 1995, it was the practice in the Office to classify and place only a single patent family member for each invention in the examiner search files. In addition, all non-English language patent documents placed in the examiner files were accompanied, to the extent possible, by an English language abstract. For countries where the specification is printed twice, once during the application stage and again after the patent has been granted, only the first printing was in general placed in the search files, since the second printing ordinarily does not vary from the first as to disclosure.
Copies of various specifications not included in the search files, whether non-English-language patent documents or documents not printed or available for exchange, may come to the examiner's attention. For example, they may be cited in a motion to dissolve an interference, be cited by applicants, or turn up in an online search. Upon request, STIC will obtain a copy from its extensive collection, or if necessary, from the patent office of the particular country. In the case of unprinted patent documents, STIC will request that the date of granting and the date the specification was made available to the public be indicated on the copies provided by the country of origin.
Examiners can order copies of any foreign patent documents from the Foreign Patent Branch. If examiners so choose, they can make copies themselves. The most current patent documents are accessible through the USPTO's automated search systems, which allows public and USPTO users to look up, view, and print foreign documents. Older documents can be found on microfilm in the Microfilm Room or in the paper collection in the stacks. Examiners may place a photocopy or translation in the shoes of the class which he or she examines if the patents are particularly relevant. See MPEP § 903.03.
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