USPTO November Monthly Review

Published on: 12/06/2021 11:52 AM

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monthly review
united states patent and trademark office

A look back at the highlights of November 2021

Journeys of Innovation

George Gillespie Jr.

How George Gillespie, a Civil War veteran and Medal of Honor recipient, redesigned and patented America's highest military award.

Uncommon design, uncommon valor

Forty years after his service as an engineer during the Civil War, George Gillespie redesigned the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest military award, which he himself received. By obtaining a design patent, Gillespie ensured the integrity of the medal for future generations of U.S. service members.

Read the full story

News and updates

Drew Hirshfeld signs the Patent Prosecution Highway agreement.

On 11/8, the USPTO’s Drew Hirshfeld and Director General Pascal Faure of France’s IP Office signed a bilateral agreement committing both offices to a three-year Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) pilot program

Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) - Fast Track Examination of Applications

The Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) speeds up the examination process for corresponding applications filed in participating intellectual property offices. Under PPH, participating patent offices have agreed that when an applicant receives a final ruling from a first patent office that at least one claim is allowed, the applicant may request fast track examination of corresponding claim(s) in a corresponding patent application that is pending in a second patent office. 

Read more about the PPH


USPTO implements the Trademark Modernization Act

Regulations implementing the Trademark Modernization Act of 2020 (TMA) will go into effect on December 18, 2021. Individuals, businesses, and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will now have new tools to clear away unused registered trademarks from the federal trademark register as of December 18, 2021, and the USPTO will have the ability to move applications through the registration process more efficiently as of December 1, 2022.

Read the news brief

Past events

Patent Public Advisory Committee Quarterly meeting Thursday November 18 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET

For more information on the PPAC quarterly meetings, meeting transcripts, and annual reports, please visit the committee webpage on the USPTO website.

Patent Public Advisory Committee quarterly meeting

This month, the Patent Public Advisory Committee (PPAC) met with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) virtually for their quarterly meeting. Patent quality and pendency, innovation expansion, and the latest news in patents were some of the topics discussed at this quarter's meeting. Please visit the PPAC webpage on the USPTO website for the full agenda, meeting transcripts, and meeting videos.

Watch the PPAC meeting (video 1)

Watch the PPAC meeting (video 2)


2021 Veterans Innovation and Entrepreneurship Program

A recording of the United States Patent and Trademark Office's (USPTO) 2021 Veterans Innovation and Entrepreneurship Program will be available soon. This program offers veteran innovators a chance to learn how intellectual property (IP) protection can fuel their success. Fellow veterans share their personal experiences and best practices; and expert panels discuss how to use a wide variety of helpful resources.

View the event page


International exchange: Promoting the inclusion of women in intellectual property

Studies of patent data conducted by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), and others have shown that women inventors are significantly underrepresented in the patent system worldwide. Despite an increased number of women entering the science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields in recent years, there is still a large gap between the number of women entering these fields and men. This has led to fewer women participating in the intellectual property (IP) system overall.

View the event page


Find all upcoming and past events at https://www.uspto.gov/about-us/events.

Popular posts

CIO Jamie Holcombe speaks with CIO Online about the USPTO IT teams

On 11/17, USPTO Chief Information Officer Jamie Holcombe spoke at a CIO Online “Leadership Live” session where he discussed how our award winning IT teams drive better products, services, and efficiency for USPTO customers. Watch the interview.

Instagram

 

Did you know buying counterfeit goods can be dangerous? Join us on 11/18 for the next installment of our "Do You Know" series to learn how to make informed decisions about what you buy, courtesy of our joint Go for Real anti-counterfeiting campaign with the National Crime Prevention Council. 

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National Crime Prevention Council graphic
Twitter

 

Earlier today (11/19), the USPTO’s Drew Hirshfeld joined his counterparts from G7 IP offices to sign a joint statement on public health, artificial intelligence, the enforcement of IP rights, and cooperation at WIPO.

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G7 2021 meeting stock image
Facebook

 

After BitTorrent-based piracy impacted software firms in 2001, there was a rapid rise in R&D spending and IP filings in response to these crimes. 

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software piracy and IP correlation graphic
LinkedIn

 

We are so grateful and thankful to our 12,000+ employees whose dedication, hard work, and commitment to excellence here at the USPTO is instrumental in protecting and supporting American innovation. Thank you for all you do!

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Thankful for the 12,000+ USPTO employees this Thanksgiving!