Office of the Commissioner for Patents

Patent application examination

Patent application examination is performed by more than 8,000 highly skilled scientists, engineers, and support staff to ensure a thorough study of each application.

Patent application examination is divided into nine Patent Technology Centers and the Central Reexamination Unit (CRU):

• Technology Center 1600 provides examination for patent applications in Biotechnology and Organic Chemistry fields.
• Technology Center 1700 provides examination for patent applications in Chemical and Materials Engineering fields.
• Technology Center 2100 provides examination for patent applications in Computer Architecture and Software fields.
• Technology Center 2400 provides examination for patent application in Computer Networking, Multiplexing, Cable, and Security fields.
• Technology Center 2600 provides examination for patent applications in Communications Technology fields.
• Technology Center 2800 provides examination for patent applications in Semiconductors/Memory, Optical Systems and Components, Photocopying, Electrical Circuits and Systems, Printing, and Measuring and Testing fields.
• Technology Center 2900 provides examination for Design patent applications.
• Technology Center 3600 provides examination for patent applications in Transportation, Construction, Agriculture, Electronic Commerce, and National Security fields, as well as Licensing and Review.
• Technology Center 3700 provides examination for patent applications in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing, and Medical Devices/Processes fields
• Central Reexamination Unit (CRU) provides examination of ex parte reexaminations, supplemental examinations, and reissue applications in all technologies (except designs).

Patent quality assessment    
 

The Office of Patents Stakeholder Experience (OPSE) focuses on providing simple and seamless customer experiences to patent stakeholders throughout the entire patent application process and provides customer support related to the delivery of quality patent services and products. The office is also responsible for training, promoting patent educational initiatives to internal and external stakeholders, and continuously improving patent processes, services, products, and customer experience. 

OPSE includes the Stakeholder Support Division (SSD), the Stakeholder Education and Training Division (SETD), and Customer Experience (CX).    

SSD services:

• The Application Assistance Unit (AAU) assists with a broad range of questions and issues pertaining to pre-examination processing of patent applications by the Office of Patent Application Processing and post-examination processing of patent applications by the Office of Data Management.
• The Inventors Assistance Center (IAC) provides patent assistance and information to the public. IAC is staffed by former supervisory patent examiners and primary examiners who are available to answer questions concerning patent examining policy and procedure.
• Patents Electronic Business Center (EBC) assists customers with filing their electronic patent application submissions via Patent Center and with the review of patent applications in Patent Center, as well as supporting customers while Searching the Patent and Application Full-Text Image Databases.
• The Patents Ombuds Office provides assistance to applicants and attorneys throughout the application process including initial filing, patent examination, and post examination. We assist applicants when the normal processing has stalled, helping to get applications back on track. The Patents Ombudsman Program is not intended to circumvent normal communication between applicants or their representatives and examiners or supervisory patent examiners (SPEs) or TC Directors.
• Pro Se Assistance provides support and education to applicants who file patent applications without the assistance of a registered patent attorney or agent (also known as "pro se" applicants). Although USPTO employees cannot give legal advice, this program aims to increase the quality of pro se applications and assist pro se applicants with making informed decisions regarding their patent applications.

SETD services:

• Stakeholder Application Readiness Training (StART)    
  is a program that provides training and assistance to independent inventors’ in developing their application packet materials and assist the applicants in filing their applications.
• Stakeholder Training on Practice and Procedure (STEPP)    
  provides courses for stakeholders that are led by patent trainers and based on material developed for training new patent examiners.
• Stakeholder Offerings and Resources (SOaR)    
  gives the public a better understanding of various topics related to examination practice and procedure based on training delivered to patent examiners.

CX services include improvements to the end-to-end experience of patents customers by aligning operations to customer needs. CX embeds customer-centered thinking into daily operations to optimize patent quality and timeliness, and enhance customer experiences.

The Office of Patent Training (OPT) is committed to developing and delivering training that increases the knowledge, ability, and skills of our patent employees in line with USPTO’s mission. OPT’s goal is to provide patent employees with transformative educational experiences that support the employees’ career development. OPT sponsors programs for technology experts from industry and academia to provide technical training to patent examiners. 

Some programs offered:

• Patent Examiner Technical Training Program (PETTP) provides the opportunity for voluntary assistance from technologists, scientists, engineers, and other experts from industry and academia to participate as guest lectures in order to provide technical training and expertise to patent examiners regarding the state of the art.
• Site Experience Education Program (SEE) is designed to provide patent examiners with an opportunity to visit organizations and learn about state of the art technology developments.

The Office of Process Improvement (OPI) is an internal consultancy providing resources, methods, and training to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of business processes. Enhanced product and service delivery is achieved through business frameworks that are Strategically Driven, Quality Focused, and Process Managed.

Statistician Group for Quality (SGQ) performs data collection, exploration, analysis, and reporting tasks to monitor and evaluate the impacts and trends of various Patents initiatives, programs, and policies, with a primary focus on quality-related metrics.

The Office of Patent Quality Assurance (OPQA) provides assessment and analysis of the quality of patent examination at the USPTO through work product reviews that (a) identify statutory compliance and best practices in Office actions, (b) determine quality metrics to report to our stakeholders and (c) provide feedback to Technology Centers (TCs). We offer accolades to highlight noteworthy work, training resources to Office of Patent Training (OPT), and assistance to TCs in their quality enhancement efforts.

Patent examination policy

The Office of Patent Legal Administration (OPLA)  drafts regulations and develops policies and practices for the examination of patent applications, as well as assists in the implementation of these new regulations, policies, and practices. OPLA is the principal developer of new and revised guidelines, examining practices and procedures.  In addition, OPLA staff author rule packages published in the Federal Register; author notices published in the Official Gazette; draft memos to the Patents corps; advise and support the technology centers and other business units; and engage stakeholders on matters relating to patent law, policy, and procedure. OPLA also develops and delivers training for the Examining Corps and public to aid in understanding how to apply new and existing laws, policies, and examination practices and procedures.

The Office of Petitions (OPET) reviews and decides petitions, requests, and related inquiries, regarding the filing of patent application papers, revival of abandoned applications, reinstatement of expired patents, withdrawal of patent applications from issue, changes in entity status, delayed domestic benefit and foreign priority claims, reconsideration of the patent term adjustment, review of previous decisions of the TCs, suspension of rules, questions not specifically provided for by regulations, and other petitionable matters.

Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP) Staff  updates the MPEP and the form paragraphs used by the Examining Corps and provides assistance in developing and formulating new guidelines, examining practices, and procedures, as well as revising existing guidelines, practices, and procedures. The MPEP also ensures that revised policies and procedures are appropriately disseminated through revisions to the MPEP, Federal Register or Official Gazette notices, or other official announcements.

Patent international cooperation

Establishing strong international patent cooperation reflects the USPTO's commitment to the IP community by improving systems in two basic respects: increasing certainty of IP rights while reducing costs for our stakeholders. Achievements in both areas benefit all economies by fostering increased innovation and subsequent job creation.

The Office of International Patent Cooperation (OIPC) is comprised of six offices: the International Outreach and Administration (IOA), the International Patent Legal Administration (IPLA), the International Worksharing division (IW), the Office of International Patent Business Solutions (IPBS), the Classification Division, and International Patent Quality (IPQ).

International Outreach and Administration (IOA)    
The International Outreach and Administration (IOA) division provides extensive business analysis and project management support to all the divisions in OIPC. It is responsible for the administrative functions of OIPC, including financial and budgetary management, project and program management and business support services.  IOA interacts with domestic and foreign stakeholders, including expanding and establishing alliances and building coalitions. The IOA division assists senior officials in formulating public and internal positions and key messages related to all international patent cooperation initiatives. The division advises on all OIPC outreach and manages OIPC’s outreach program. IOA participates in the development of recommendations for USPTO strategic direction setting for international cooperation and provides expert advice, senior counsel, and recommendations related to OIPC programs. In addition, the IOA division participates with counterpart IP offices to achieve patent-related cooperative goals of the USPTO, including meeting frameworks and joint outreach programs. The division assists the other OIPC divisions with formulating and developing policy, implementation and negotiation strategies on global IT, worksharing, and other initiatives in direct coordination with senior USPTO leadership, including participating with counterpart IP offices to achieve patent-related cooperative goals of the USPTO, including meeting frameworks and joint outreach programs. 

International Patent Legal Administration (IPLA) is responsible for overseeing and administering the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs and other international patent projects or agreements for the USPTO by regularly engaging with intellectual property offices around the world on key matters, resolving legal issues, and guiding policies and procedures for the filing, examination, and processing of applicants related to these international agreements.  IPLA is also tasked with addressing legal issues and developing policy related to the USPTO’s participation in the Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) and deciding petitions to the Commissioner in international applications filed under the PCT and in U.S. national stage applications submitted under 35 U.S.C. 371.  To support users with these efforts, IPLA is highly committed to educating the patent community on the details and procedures of these international agreements as well as providing timely assistance to users who request support.

International Worksharing (IW)    
The International Worksharing division is responsible for overseeing and administering the coordination, development, and promotion of worksharing systems and patent practices among the world’s patent offices for the USPTO to improve patent examination efficiency and facilitate cooperation within the global patent system.  This includes developing and advocating programs, initiatives and policies that represent the interest of the USPTO and its stakeholders, such as the Patent Prosecution Highway, the Collaborative Search Pilot Program, the PCT Collaborative Search and Examination Pilot, and validation-type agreements. 

International Patent Business Solutions (IPBS)    
The Office of International Patent Business Solutions in involved in identifying, evaluating, defining, and documenting business processes and information technology (IT) solutions supporting international users of the patent system. This includes managing and assuring routine internal operations are sustained while innovative and relevant solutions towards global patent quality are developed and implemented. IPBS collaborates with internal USPTO partners and external global patent stakeholders. Also, IPBS advises USPTO leadership and provides guidance on technical issues and strategies that most effectively advance the goals of the USPTO.

Classification Division    
The Classification Division is responsible supporting and developing Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) policies and practices, along with ensuring proper and timely maintenance of the CPC scheme.  The Classification Division consists of three support organizations that support patent classification.  First, Classification Standards and Development (CSD) is responsible for administrating the classification standards and development of the Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC).  Second, Classification Editorial Division (CED) is responsible for publishing revisions to the Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) scheme, as well as updating numerous classification-related reference tools and documents accessible from USPTO’s internet and intranet sites. Third, Classification Quality and International Coordination (CQIC) is responsible for ensuring classification training, scheme quality, and international coordination and collaboration on classification-related harmonization efforts.

International Patent Quality    
The International Patent Quality Advisor (IPQA) represents the USPTO in international forums on patent examination quality and harmonization of patent quality processes and procedures.  The IPQA ensures and enhances quality of OIPC programs, projects, and initiatives through the implementation and management of Quality Managements Systems (QMSs).  The IPQA reviews OIPC’s, Patents’ and USPTO’s strategic goals and ensures QMS alignment with such.  Additionally, the IPQA assesses and provides recommendations to improve the international patent filing and prosecution systems while working with international stakeholders to identify needs.  Lastly, the IPQA serves as the OIPC POC on quality matters with other divisions in Patents and other business units, such as OPIA. 

Patent application processing    
 

• The Office of Data Management (ODM) manages the processing and data capture of allowed patent applications, assembles and mails patent grants and prepares Certificates of Correction. ODM is also responsible for the production of weekly text searchable and image databases of issued Patents and Pre-Grant Application Publications used by the USPTO and the Intellectual Property community.
• The Office of Patent Application Processing (OPAP) performs initial processing for all new US and PCT applications to ensure that applications are in condition for examination, Pre-Grant Publication, or ready for transmission to the International Bureau.
• Office of Patent Examination Support Services (OPESS) supports the patent examination process through analysis, technical, administrative and clerical work and services.

Patent information technology    
 

• Office of Patent Automation (OPA) provides program and project management over all Patent automation programs and initiatives.
• Office of Patent Information Resources (OPIR) improves examiner effectiveness through automation training, coordination of Patents Telework programs, development of informative Patents web and SharePoint sites, implementation of outreach communications initiatives, production of multimedia audio/video products, and webcast distribution and presentation.
• Scientific and Technical Information Center (STIC) Library Public Access Information

Patent planning and data analytics

Patent Planning and Data Analytics comprehensively analyze, evaluate, and deliver reliable data across the USPTO and the public to promote optimization of the patent system, contributing directly to achieving Patents strategic goals and agency priorities.  The Patent Planning and Data Analytics team, led by the Chief Operational Data Analytics officer and the Chief Strategic Data Analytics officer, ensures the integrity, validity, and accuracy of reported data, and collaboratively partner across the USPTO and the public to leverage data-driven analytics and communicate options and recommendations such that executives can effectively make informed, evidence-based, critical business decisions.

Patent Planning and Data Analytics provides:

• advanced patent data modeling, predictive resource forecasting, budgetary impacts, and agency metrics delivered to DOC, OMB, and Congress, and advanced data analysis to discover operational behaviors, patent application processing insights, Technology Center opportunities, and examiner-level modeling.