From the category archives:

patent prosecution

USPTO Announces Interim Procedure for Patentees to Request Patent Term Adjustment Recalculation

January 29, 2010

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced on January 28, 2010 that it will provide patentees with the ability to request a recalculation of their patent term adjustment without a fee or petition as is normally required pending completion of necessary modifications to the USPTO’s computer program for calculating patent term adjustments.  The agency [...]

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USPTO Provides Guidance For Claims Directed To Computer Readable Media

January 29, 2010

In a notice dated January 26, 2010, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) provided guidance for patent applicants who use claims directed to computer readable media  (also called machine readable media and similar variations).  A problem has developed in the way the USPTO and the courts have interpreted such claims, i.e., they may [...]

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USPTO To Accelerate Examination of Green Tech Patents

December 7, 2009

Inventors Digest is reporting here that the USPTO is launching a pilot program (“Green Tech”) which will permit patent applications pertaining to environmental quality, energy conservation, development of renewable energy resources, and greenhouse gas emission reduction to be accorded special status and be examined on an accelerated basis. The program is designed to accelerate the development [...]

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USPTO, EPO & JPO To Start PCT-Patent Prosecution Highway

November 13, 2009

The Trilateral Offices (European Patent Office (EPO), Japan Patent Office (JPO) and U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)) agreed on November 13, 2009 to begin a pilot program in the Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) framework utilizing PCT work products (international search reports, written opinions, and international preliminary examination reports).
Under the PPH, an applicant receiving a determination [...]

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USPTO Director Announces New Initiative To Accelerate The Patent Process For Independent Inventors

November 9, 2009

On November 5, 2009, USPTO Director David Kappos delivered the keynote address at the 14th Annual Independent Inventors Conference held at USPTO’s headquarters in Alexandria, Va.
During the address, Director Kappos announced a new initiative that is specifically designed to accelerate the patent process for independent inventors.  He called it a “backlog reduction pilot project” that [...]

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New USPTO Director Encourages The Use of Interviews To Expedite Patent and Trademark Prosecution

September 15, 2009

In a recent “Director’s Blog” post to USPTO employees, David Kappos outlined the benefits of personal interviews to expedite the prosecution of patent and trademark applications.  Reproduced below is the post:
The practice of conducting interviews with patent and trademark applicants has been around a long time.  At times interviews are clearly productive.  At other times, [...]

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