U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Notice of Consolidation and Move of the
Patent Examining Corps
The Patent Examining Corps is being consolidated from the current 16
Examining Groups into 6 Technology Centers to meet the needs of the
public, changing technology and workload requirements.
The current 16 Examining Groups will generally be aligned into
Technology Centers as follows. Each Technology Center will have the
designated new Technology Center Series number and formation date as set
forth below:
New Technology
Old Group Numbers Center Series Numbers Formation Date
(Approximate Date)
2300, 2400 and 2600 2700 November 16, 1997
2200, 3100 and 3500 3600 (January) 1998
1200,1800 and 2900 1600, 2900 (February) 1998
1100, 1300 and 1500 1700 (March) 1998
3200, 3300 and 3400 3700 (April) 1998
2100 and 2500 2800 (April) 1998
Art Unit designations will reflect the new Technology Center Series. As
an example, an Art Unit with a designation of 2731 (27-3-1): the first
two digits (27) indicate that the Art Unit is in Technology Center
Series 2700; the third digit (3) indicates the particular Group; and the
fourth digit (1) indicates the particular Art Unit number.
Design Group 2900 will be administratively attached to Technology Center
Series 1600, while changing its designation to Technology Center Series
Number 2900.The new Technology Centers series and their corresponding
industrial and/or technological areas are:
Technology Center Industry and/or
Series Numbers Technological Areas
1600, 2900 Biotechnology, Organic Chemistry, and
Designs
1700 Chemical and Material
Engineering
2700 Communications and Information
Processing
2800 Physics, Optics, Electrical
Components, and Engineering
3600 Transportation,
Construction, Agriculture, and Security
3700 Mechanical
Engineering and Products
The formation of Technology Centers involves the physical relocation of
employees and search files. The Technology Centers will be relocated and
central telephone and facsimile numbers will be provided as follows:
Technology Center
Series Numbers Location Telephone Facsimile
600, 2900 Crystal Mall-1 308-0196 305-7230
1700 Crystal Plaza-3 308-0661 305-3599
2700 Crystal Park-2 305-3900 308-5401
2800 Crystal Plaza-4 308-0956 308-4084
3600 Crystal Park-1 & 2 306-4177 (Old Gp. 2200) 306-4195
308-8296 (Old Gp. 3100) 308-8332
306-4208 (Old Gp. 3500) 306-4216
3700 Crystal Plaza-2,3 & 4 308-1148 (Old Gp. 3200) 305-3579
308-0858 (Old Gp. 3300) 305-3590
308-0861 (Old Gp. 3400) 305-3463
*-- All telephone and facsimile numbers are area code 703.
It is expected that the relocation and other changes will begin about
October 31, 1997, and will be completed in the spring.
The efforts described above will result in many examiners being moved to
new offices. All examiners, except examiners assigned to Technology
Center 2900, will be reassigned new Art Unit designations. With the
exception of the applications in Technology Center 2900, all pending
applications will be assigned to the new Art Units. To assist the public
in adjusting to the changes, the following guidance is offered:
1. Examining Corps personnel can be reached on the telephone by calling
their last known number (e.g., the number shown on the last Office
action). The answering receptionist will be provided with a directory of
locations and phone numbers which will be updated daily. The caller will
be informed of or, if possible, transferred to the new number. The PALM
Employee Location Finding System (ELFS) can also be accessed at the PALM
terminal(s) located in the Public Search Room to obtain the daily
updated locations and phone numbers.
2. The employee information available on the PTO home page
(www.uspto.gov) will be updated to provide the customer with current
phone numbers of all employees.
3. Persons who are not successful in reaching an Office employee by
telephone should call the information number, (703) 308-4357, for the
latest telephone number and location of the employee.
4. The receptionist in the Group to which an application was assigned
can be contacted to determine the current Art Unit assignment or other
pertinent information regarding the application. The receptionist, once
assured that the caller is entitled to such information, will provide
the desired information.
5. Once the new Art Unit assignment of an application is known, all
correspondence involving that application should identify the new Art
Unit. All correspondence addressed to the Art Unit shown on the most
recent communication from the Office will be routed to the correct
destination.
6. After the formation of each Technology Center, a letter identifying
the new Art Unit assignment of the application and new telephone and
facsimile number of the examiner will be mailed to the correspondence
address of record of the attorney or applicant for all applications in
rejected status.
7. The new case date, prior to which a communication should have been
received from the examiner in most applications, is currently published
in the Official Gazette for each Group. After the formation of each
Technology Center, the new case date indicated will be the new case date
for the entire Technology Center. The new case date for Technology
Center 2900 will be listed separately.
8. Persons delivering papers, arriving for interviews, or visiting the
Examining Corps after October 31, 1997, should consult the Public Search
Room directory for the current location of the organization and person
they are visiting.
NICHOLAS P. GODICI
Acting Deputy Assistant Commissioner for Patents