More on on-line viewing of pending patent applications (PAIR/IFW)

August 4, 2004 on 11:38 am | In USPTO |

I just received the following information in an email from the USPTO:

Internet Access to Patent Application Files Now Available

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has reached a major milestone in maximizing electronic tools to make the patent examination process fully transparent to the public. For the first time, anyone with Internet access anywhere in the world can use USPTO’s Web site to track the status of a public patent application as it moves from publication to final disposition, and review documents in the official application file, including all decisions made by patent examiners and their reasons for making them.

The system, known as Public PAIR (patent application and information retrieval), offers the public an advanced electronic portal to PDF viewing, downloading and printing an array of information and documents for approximately 500,000 patent applications not covered by confidentiality laws. As new applications become eligible for publication 18 months after they are filed, they will be added to the database. It is expected that about 300,000 application files will be added annually.

“Public PAIR throws open the window to the patent examination decision-making process of every published patent application,” noted Jon Dudas, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO. “With the click of a mouse, information that is critical to understanding how a technology is evolving is now available to innovators. This will help American industry better target its research and development investments, and be more responsive to the demands of the national and global marketplaces.”

Public PAIR builds on the USPTO’s year-old electronic IFW patent application file system, which is replacing paper files and is now used by over 95% of patent examiners to review applications. Public PAIR also offers a quick-click feature for ordering certified copies of patent applications and application files.

Additional Information

The USPTO website contains the following materials to assist customers with using Public PAIR with Access to IFW:
1. Computer Based Training (CBT) - The computer based training is provided in the form of video coupled with audio narrative and includes a menu of outlined sections, which users can select and follow through at their own pace. To access the CBT, please click on the following link: http://www.uspto.gov/ebc/pair/cbt.htm.

2. Quick Reference Guide (QRG) – The QRG includes step-by-step instructions on accessing Public PAIR, searching for applications, patents and publications and viewing application documents. To access the QRG, please visit the PAIR Website’s documentation page: http://www.uspto.gov/ebc/efs/downloads/documents/pairqrg.pdf.

Contact Information
For additional information on Public PAIR, please visit the PAIR Web site: http://portal.uspto.gov/external/portal/pair.

The Patent Electronic Business Center (EBC) is a complete customer service center that supports all Patent e-business products and service applications. EBC representatives can be reached at 703-305-3028 or toll free at 866-217-9197 between the hours of 6 a.m. and midnight Monday through Friday EST, or by e-mail at ebc@uspto.gov. Additional information is available on the Patent EBC Web site at: http://www.uspto.gov/ebc/index.html.

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