Office of Public Records
Public User’s Meeting
August 18, 2004
2:00 p.m.

The Public Users Meeting was held at 2:00pm in the Patent Theater, Crystal Park 2, 2121 Crystal Drive, Room 200, Arlington, VA. Ted Parr, OPR Director, chaired the meeting. There were approximately 45 members of the public in attendance and 11 USPTO staff.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

• TRAM Datamaxx terminals will remain up in the Public Search Facility until Trademarks discontinues their use, expected by the end of the year.
• Customer Service Boxes will be discussed at the next meeting.

ELECTRONIC CERTIFICATION

Charles Eloshway, Office of International Relations, took questions. Many customers expressed concern about foreign country acceptance of electronically certified priority documents. Customers indicated Japan, Chile, Peru, New Zealand, and Mexico, among others, would not accept electronic documents. Mr. Eloshway indicated that EPO and JPO have both confirmed this week that they will now accept priority documents in electronic form. The OG Notice, “All Electronic Copies of Patent Application Records Will Now Be Provided as Certified Copies in Electronic Form” sets forth a procedure whereby the USPTO will provide a paper copy upon presentation of a notice of non-acceptance by another intellectual property office.

What if we need State Department authentication? Mr. Eloshway pointed out that Paris Convention member countries should not require authentication and that the USPTO is coordinating with the State Department and other countries to avoid unnecessary legalization steps. For those countries that do require authentication the USPTO is working with the State Department on acceptance of our new certified format. In the meantime, if State Department authentication is required customers are urged to indicate so on their order and USPTO will provide a copy in a format the State Department will authenticate.

How can I avoid losing filing dates. Many public users expressed concern that their clients may lose filing dates due to the time lag caused by having to seek extra documentation. Mr. Parr suggested that customers concerned about filing deadlines fax non-acceptance notices to OPR so that appropriate action can be taken more quickly.

Do we need to take the time to obtain and provide non-acceptance notices for countries that USPTO knows will not accept electronic priority documents? For the time being, if customers believe a particular country will not accept an electronic copy customers should indicate so on their order and identify the country. USPTO will build a list of countries that do not accept electronic priority documents and will provide a paper copy in those instances.

Will there be any additional charge for substitute copies of priority documents? No, substitute priority document copies will be provided at no additional charge.

PUBLIC USER ACCESS IN ALEXANDRIA AND SOUTH TOWER.

J.R. Garland, security officer for USPTO, addressed the meeting. A smart card is required for access to the new facilities. Pictures will be taken at the Security Office in Park 1 for the time being. There is no fee required. The current ID cards issued in the search rooms will be replaced and no picture will be required for the new version. This new card from the search room will be for access to the search systems and FIU. There is a checkpoint upon entering the new facility, including metal detectors and x-ray machines for bags and packages. The cards will be available within a week to ten days.

If I have one card do I need to get the other? Yes. One card is for building access and the other card is for search database usage.

POWER TO INSPECT FOR IFW APPLICATIONS

Mr. Parr indicated that Power to Inspect will be handled similarly to how it is handled today in the FIU. Customers will present their power to a person in either the FIU or the Public Search Facility (PSF). If the application is in IFW a CD will be produced and delivered. Customers will be notified when the CD is available. The CDs may be viewed at specific workstations in the FIU and PSF. There will be no charge to view the CD. Customers may choose to print specific pages and will pay the standard $0.25 per page cost for printing. Customers may also choose to purchase the CD at the $55 file wrapper copy fee.

Will the copy include NPL? Yes, copies provided on CDs will be certified and will include the complete file history, including NPL.

PSF AND FIU MOVE DATES

When are the PSF and FIU moving? Martha Sneed indicated PSF will close on Friday, 9/24/04, and re-open on Monday, 9/27/04, at 8:00a.m. John Hasset confirmed the move date for FIU. FIU will close Friday, 9/10/04, at 5:00p.m. and re-open Monday, 9/13/04, at 8:00a.m.

PUBLIC SEARCH FACILITY FLOOR PLAN

Ms. Sneed offered to stay after the meeting to go over the floor plan of the new search facility with any members of the public who were interested. She indicated she will also have copies available in the search room for the public to pick-up.

The meeting concluded at 3:15pm. The next scheduled meeting date is September 15, 2004.

KEY: =online business system =fees =forms=help =laws/regulations =definition (glossary)

Is there a question about what the USPTO can or cannot do that you cannot find an answer for? Send questions about USPTO programs and services to the USPTO Contact Center (UCC). You can suggest USPTO webpages or material you would like featured on this section by E-mail to the webmaster@uspto.gov. While we cannot promise to accommodate all requests, your suggestions will be considered and may lead to other improvements on the website.