IMAGE ANALYSIS

Classification 382/all - subclasses >> view this class definition

U. S. PATENT RESOURCES

As general guidance, a complete search of U. S. patents in this art area will include the following:

1. A classified search of the original classification class and subclass for the subject matter and the other highly relevant art areas in the US patent documents
2. A text search of the US patent documents; patents, PG PUB, and OCR databases:
• Broad text search for the general inventive concept(s), not limited by classification
• Narrow text search for the specific claimed invention
• Boolean text search employing the relevant inventive terms

The resources listed below are internal USPTO search tools. However, the information that they cover is available either commercially, on the USPTO web site, or in the Public Search Facility on the USPTO Headquarters campus and the Patent and Trademark Depository Libraries.

EAST/WEST

EAST Coverage: 1971 - present, Full Text: 1971 - present

WEST Coverage: 1971 - present, Full Text: 1971 - present

Full text patent and inventor searching.

All patent documents in a classification are viewed by USPC for relevance to the patent application being searched. Classification search is very useful for image analysis applications such as biometrics, histogram, and image enhancement and recognition. The abstract and drawings generally disclose the invention. Elements in figures are useful for meeting structural embodiments as well as method steps in the flow charts. Text searching can be used for inventor searches as well as for certain broad inventions where there are many references in a particular subclass or subclass range, or when the art is found outside a specific class, such as color image processing, biomedical applications, image coding. Text searching can enhance classification searches in almost all cases. For technologies that reside in multiple classes, text searching is essential to reveal art such as watermarking, biomedical applications, manufacturing inspection, and color processing and image compression.

BRS Search/USOCR Database

EAST Coverage: 1920 - 1970, Full Text: 1920 - 1970

WEST Coverage: 1920 - 1970, Full Text: 1920 - 1970

Full text of U.S. patent grants.

All patent documents in a classification are viewed by USPC for relevance to the patent application being searched.

PGPUBS

EAST Coverage: 2001 - present, Full Text: 2001 - present

WEST Coverage: 2001 - present, Full Text: 2001 - present

U.S. published applications.

All patent documents in a classification are viewed by USPC for relevance to the patent application being searched. Classification search is very useful for image analysis applications such as biometrics, histogram, and image enhancement and recognition. The abstract and drawings generally disclose the invention. Elements in figures are useful for meeting structural embodiments as well as method steps in the flow charts. Text searching can be used for inventor searches as well as for certain broad inventions where there are many references in a particular subclass or subclass range, or when the art is found outside a specific class, such as color image processing, biomedical applications, image coding. Text searching can enhance classification searches in almost all cases. For technologies that reside in multiple classes, text searching is essential to reveal art such as watermarking, biomedical applications, manufacturing inspection, and color processing and image compression.

FOREIGN PATENT RESOURCES

Searched separately from the U.S. Patent Search. These databases consist of abstract documents. Text searching abstracts requires the use of different search logic e.g. the use of broad Boolean and/or operators instead of narrow proximity operators.

Derwent World Patents Index and the contents of the EPO Abstracts and JPO Abstracts are available commercially.

Derwent World Patents Index, Classification and Text Search

EAST Coverage: 1963 - present, Full Text: - N/A

WEST Coverage: 1963 - present, Full Text: - N/A

English abstracts database of patent documents from more than 40 patent-issuing authorities.

Used for text and assignee/inventor searching. Queries may include classification parameters when combined with other terms to be searched in the technical content of the application.

EPO Abstracts, Text and Classification Search

EAST Coverage: 1978 - present, Full Text: - N/A

WEST Coverage: 1978 - present, Full Text: - N/A

English abstracts database of patents and published applications from EPO, WO/PCT, United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Switzerland. USPC searching is limited to documents added to the database from 1978 to September 30, 1995.

EPO patent documents in a USPC or an IPC classification are viewed for relevance to the patent application being searched. Used for text and assignee/inventor searching.

EPO esp@cenet

esp@cenet Coverage: 1920 - present, Full Text: 1920 - present

National patent information from all member states of the EPO as well as bibliographic data from patents worldwide.

Source for translations.

FPAS3

Coverage: 1980 - present, Full Text: -

USPTO foreign patent document retrieval system.

JPO Abstracts, Text and Classification Search

EAST Coverage: 1976 - present, Full Text: - N/A

WEST Coverage: 1976 - present, Full Text: - N/A

English abstracts database of Japanese published unexamined applications. USPC searching is limited to documents added to the database from 1978 to September 30, 1995.

JPO patent documents in a USPC or an IPC classification are viewed for relevance to the patent application being searched. Used for text and assignee/inventor searching.

JPO Industrial Property Digital Library

NCIPI Coverage: 1976 - present, Full Text: 1976 - present

Japanese patent information.

This resource is used as a source for machine translations of Japanese patent documents from 1993 to present.

NON-PATENT LITERATURE RESOURCES

The resources listed are those that USPTO staff have found consistently yield the most relevant search results. Commercial databases available through a single vendor can generally be searched simultaneously, although it is preferable to search full text and bibliographic databases in separate groupings. In addition to the use of subscription databases and public Internet sites, it is recommended that books, manuals, standards and specifications be considered in the search for prior art.

ACM Digital Library

ACM Coverage: Dates - vary, Full Text: Dates - vary

Citations and full text articles from ACM journals, newsletters, and conference proceedings.

This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, watermarking, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, image sensing, vehicle tracking or detection.

IEEE Xplore

IEEE Coverage: 1952 - present, Full Text: 1988 - present

Full text access to technical literature in electrical engineering, computer science, and electronics.

This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, watermarking, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, image sensing, vehicle tracking or detection.

BIOSIS Previews

Dialog Coverage: 1969 - present, Full Text: - N/A

STN Coverage: 1969 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Comprehensive worldwide coverage of research in the biological and biomedical sciences.

Citations from Biological Abstracts from 6,000 primary journals covering anatomy, bioengineering, radiation, biology, and medical devices. This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, and image segmentation.

CMP Computer Fulltext

Dialog Coverage: 1988 - present, Full Text: 1988 - present

Full text information about the computer, communications, and electronic industries.

This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, watermarking, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, image sensing, vehicle tracking or detection.

DTIC STINET

DTIC Coverage: 1974 - present, Full Text: Dates - vary

DTIC scientific and technical papers, which cover telecommunications, satellites, imaging, and speech recognition.

This resource provides relevant data for target detection and tracking, image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, watermarking, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, image sensing, vehicle tracking or detection.

Ei Compendex

Dialog Coverage: 1970 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Questel Orbit Coverage: 1970 - present, Full Text: - N/A

STN Coverage: 1970 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Comprehensive database of engineering literature.

This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, watermarking, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, image sensing, vehicle tracking or detection.

EMBASE

Dialog Coverage: 1993 - present, Full Text: - N/A

STN Coverage: 1974 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Index of the world's literature on human medicine and related disciplines.

Bibliographic information from journals covering cancer, forensics, gene technology, hospital management, medical devices, ophthalmology, and radiology. This resource provides relevant data for medical imaging and image segmentation.

Gale Group Computer DatabaseTM

Dialog Coverage: 1983 - present, Full Text: 1988 - present

Information about the computer, electronics, and telecommunications industries.

This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, watermarking, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, image sensing, vehicle tracking or detection.

Gale Group GlobalbaseTM

Dialog Coverage: 1986 - 2002, Full Text: - N/A

Worldwide coverage of companies, products, and industries with a primary focus on Europe.

Full text journal and newspaper articles on new products and services, new/emerging technologies, biotechnology, chemistry, civil engineering, computers, telecommunications, electronics, marketing, and printing/publishing. This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, image sensing, product data.

Gale Group New Product Announcements/Plus (NPA/Plus)

Dialog Coverage: 1985 - present, Full Text: 1985 - present

Full text press releases from all industries covering announcements related to products, with a focus on new products and services.

This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, and product data.

Gale Group Newsletter DatabaseTM

Dialog Coverage: 1988 - present, Full Text: 1988 - present

Full text of specialized industry newsletters that provide information on companies, products, markets, and technologies.

Full text file includes journals such as Telecommunications Reports, Telecommunications, Telecom Today, Telecom Manager, and Telecom Data Networks. This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, watermarking, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, image sensing, product data.

Gale Group PROMT

Dialog Coverage: 1990 - present, Full Text: 1990 - present

STN Coverage: 1978 - present, Full Text: 1978 - present

International coverage of companies, products, markets, and applied technologies for all industries.

This resource provides relevant data for image processing, medical imaging, and product data.

Gale Group Trade & Industry DatabaseTM

Dialog Coverage: 1976 - present, Full Text: 1976 - present

Multi-industry database covering international company, industry, product, and market information.

This resource provides relevant data for image processing, medical imaging, biometrics, image compression, image restoration, graphics, and product data.

GeoArchive

Dialog Coverage: 1974 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Provides international coverage of over 5,000 serials, books from over 2,000 publishers, geological maps, and doctoral dissertations.

This resource provides relevant data for image analysis in the geology field.

GEOBASETM

Dialog Coverage: 1980 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Worldwide research literature in physical and human geography, earth sciences, and related disciplines.

This resource provides relevant data for image analysis in the geology field.

GeoRef

Dialog Coverage: 1785 - present, Full Text: - N/A

STN Coverage: 1785 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Covers worldwide technical literature on geology and geophysics.

This resource provides relevant data for image analysis in the geology field.

Health Devices Alerts® (HDA)

Dialog Coverage: 1977 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Database of reported medical device problems, hazards, recalls, evaluations, and updates.

This resource provides relevant data for medical devices, magnetic resonance imaging units, radiological devices, implanted devices, and hospital systems.

IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin

EAST/WEST Coverage: 1958 - 1998, Full Text: -

Defensive disclosure database.

This resource provides relevant data for image recognition and image processing.

Inside Conferences

Dialog Coverage: 1993 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Contains details of all papers given at every congress, symposium, conference, exposition, workshop, and meeting received at the British Library Document Supply Centre.

Subject areas include computer science, electronics, mathematics, telecommunications, and transportation. This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, watermarking, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, image sensing.

Inspec (The Database for Physics, Electronics and Computing)

Dialog Coverage: 1898 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Dialog DataStar Coverage: 1898 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Questel Orbit Coverage: 1969 - present, Full Text: - N/A

STN Coverage: 1969 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Inspec (The Database for Physics, Electronics and Computing) corresponds to the three Science Abstracts print publications: Physics Abstracts, Electrical and Electronics Abstracts, and Computer and Control Abstracts.

This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, watermarking, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, image sensing, vehicle tracking or detection.

JAMA

American Medical Association Coverage: 1966 - present, Full Text: 1998 - present

STIC online catalog Coverage: - , Full Text: -

This resource provides relevant data for medical imaging.

JICST-EPlus - Japanese Science & Technology

Dialog Coverage: 1985 - present, Full Text: - N/A

STN Coverage: 1985 - present, Full Text: - N/A

English citations and abstracts covering the literature published in Japan on all fields of science, technology, and medicine.

This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, watermarking, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, image sensing, vehicle tracking or detection.

MathSci

Dialog Coverage: 1910 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Coverage of mathematics, statistics, computer science, algorithms, and operations research.

This resource provides relevant data if algorithms or math is used in the image processing.

McGraw-Hill Companies Publications Online

Dialog Coverage: 1985 - present, Full Text: 1985 - present

Provides the complete text for many major McGraw-Hill publications.

This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, image sensing, product data.

MEDLINE (Medical Literature, Analysis, and Retrieval System Online)

Dialog Coverage: 1951 - present, Full Text: - N/A

STN Coverage: 1950 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Bibliographic database containing references to journal articles in life sciences with a concentration on biomedicine.

This resource provides relevant data for medical imaging and image segmentation.

New Scientist

Dialog Coverage: 1994 - present, Full Text: 1994 - present

EBSCO Coverage: 1990 - present, Full Text: 2002 - present

ProQuest Coverage: 1989 - present, Full Text: 2002 - present

Science and technology news.

This resource provides relevant data for medical imaging and image segmentation.

Periodical Abstracts PlusText

Dialog Coverage: 1986 - present, Full Text: 1992 - present

Provides indexing and abstracting of articles in more than 1,800 general-reference publications.

This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, product data.

PIRA (Packaging, Paper, Printing and Publishing, Imaging and Nonwovens Abstracts)

Dialog Coverage: 1975 - present, Full Text: - N/A

STN Coverage: 1975 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Bibliographic database containing information on business and technological developments in packaging, printing, publishing, pulp, paper, imaging, and nonwovens.

This resource provides relevant data for image processing, color image processing, graphics, printers, scanners, and facsimile machines.

PR Newswire

Dialog Coverage: 1999 - present, Full Text: 1999 - present

Complete text of news releases prepared by U.S. companies, public relations agencies, trade associations, city, state, federal and municipal government agencies, and other sources covering the entire spectrum of news.

This resource provides relevant data for image processing, medical imaging, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, graphics, vehicle tracking or detection, product data.

ProQuest Direct

ProQuest Coverage: Dates - vary, Full Text: 1986 - present

Current periodicals and newspapers, as well as archives of major newspapers.

This resource provides relevant data for image processing, medical imaging, image compression, and product data.

Science

AAAS Coverage: 1995 - present, Full Text: 1995 - present

Dialog Coverage: 1996 - present, Full Text: 1996 - present

EBSCO Coverage: 1984 - present, Full Text: 1997 - present

JSTOR Coverage: 1880 - 1999, Full Text: 1880 - 1999

ProQuest Coverage: 1986 - present, Full Text: 1988 - present

Weekly journal published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

This resource provides relevant data for medical imaging.

SciSearch: A Cited Reference Science Database

Dialog Coverage: 1974 - 1989, Full Text: - N/A

STN Coverage: 1974 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Cited reference index.

The resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, watermarking, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, image sensing, vehicle tracking or detection.

SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering

SPIE Coverage: - N/A, Full Text: - N/A

Society for the exchange, collection and dissemination of knowledge in optics, photonics and imaging.

This resource provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, medical imaging, image segmentation, biometrics, histograms, color image processing, pattern recognition, image compression, watermarking, image restoration, 2-dimensional images, 3-dimensional images, graphics, and image sensing.

SPIN® (Searchable Physics Information Notices)

Dialog Coverage: 1975 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Covers all major areas of physics research and provides indexing and abstracting of the major American, Russian, and Ukrainian physics and astronomy journals.

This resource may provide relevant information if the imaging analysis is for or denoting the physical properties of an object.

Transportation Research Information Services (TRIS)

Dialog Coverage: 1968 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Provides international coverage of ongoing research projects, published journal articles, state and federal government reports, conference proceedings, research and technical papers, and monographs.

This resource covers automotive and transportation research, GPS systems, computers in automobiles, and vehicle detection, and provides relevant data for image recognition, image processing, image sensing, vehicle tracking or detection, and traffic control.

TULSATM (PETROLEUM ABSTRACTS)

Dialog Coverage: 1965 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Questel Orbit Coverage: 1965 - present, Full Text: - N/A

STN Coverage: 1965 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Bibliographic references to scientific articles, patents, meeting papers and government reports of interest to those in the oil and gas exploration and production industry.

This resource provides relevant data for image analysis of petroleum deposits.

Wilson Applied Science & Technology Abstracts

Dialog Coverage: 1983 - present, Full Text: - N/A

Science and technology journal abstracts.

This resource provides relevant data for image processing, medical imaging, graphics, and product data.

INTERNET SEARCH TOOLS

An Internet search should be considered when a search of the resources listed above fails to locate relevant prior art. A preliminary Internet search may be performed to obtain an overview of the technology, and to identify additional search terms and related product information.

Google TM

Google Coverage: - N/A, Full Text: - N/A

Internet search engine.

This resource provides relevant information for the following: tutorials, inventor papers and/or web sites, assignee or company product data or specifications, manuals, standards such as MPEGs, RFC's (Request for Comments), and ISO/IEC, etc. In addition, provides access to resources that can define the meaning of acronyms, or terms of art.

Public Comments on the Search Templates

Public comments on the search templates are invited. Comments should address the points enumerated in the Criteria for Evaluating Recommended Search Resources. Comments can be submitted via the Search Template Project e-mail link on each template page or by mail addressed to:

Mail Stop Patents Search Template Comments
Commissioner for Patents
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, VA 22313-1450
Electronic submission is preferred. The Office will respond to comments in writing.