The Patent and Trademark Resource Center Program offers assistance in using search tools, education and training, and trained experts to help.
Find a list of tools and materials available to support your patent and trademark needs.
If you want to connect with a trained expert on patent and trademark information, find a PTRC near you.
Resources
Patents
- Patent Public Search – Search tool for searching all U.S. patents and published patent applications.
- Patent Basics – Gain essential knowledge on patents and the patent application process.
- Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP) – A reference work on the practices and procedures that patent examiners follow when examining patent applications.
- How to Conduct a Preliminary U.S. Patent Search: A Step-by-Step Strategy – Video tutorial (36 minutes)
- The Multi-Step Strategy – Outlines a suggested procedure for patent searching.
- Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) System – Search for U.S. and European patents under one classification system.
- International Patent Classification (IPC) System – Access a hierarchal classification system used primarily to classify and search patent documents by their technical field.
- United States Patent Classification (USPC) System – Use the USPC classification scheme for plant and design classification material.
- Patent Document Kind Codes – Distinguish patent documents by code.