INTRODUCTION TO PATENT SEARCHING

Contents

Introduction 2

Choosing a patents database 3

Finding and viewing a known patent (esp@cenet) 3

Finding and viewing a known patent (Derwent) 6

Searching for patents by subject/topic/inventor 8

Using the International Patent Classification to refine searches 10

Searching the International Patent Classification (IPC) 12

Patent equivalents 14

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Introduction - Patents searching

This workbook contains a number of exercises and tasks that will introduce you to the process of patent searching. Patents contain a wealth of technical information which is often unavailable in journal articles and conference papers.

Researchers who ignore the patent literature may well miss important information and waste time and money duplicating previous research. You can find information on technical specifications; diagrams; procedures; information about the products of a particular company, etc.

However, it is important to use caution when using information from patents. Technical and scientific information may be imprecise, and the language used may sometimes be difficult to interpret. Nevertheless, about 80% of patents are never published in the journal literature, so they remain a rich source of information.

AIMS

This workbook contains a number of tasks and activities that will introduce you to patent searching. By the end of the workbook you will:

Be aware of the various patent databases available.

Understand the basics of the Espacenet database and the Derwent Innovations Index database.

Be able to search patent databases to find known patents, and view full-text patents.

Be able to use patent databases to find patents on topics or subject areas.

Be confident using advanced search in Espacenet .

Be able to search by the International Patent Classification (IPC)

Be able to find patent equivalents.

ABOUT THIS WORKBOOK

All the databases are accessible either via the Library website (Derwent) or freely available via the Web (Espacenet).

Instructions assume that you are using the Internet Explorer browser.

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1. Choosing a patents database

For chemists, chemical engineers and materials scientists, the databases that contain relevant patents either exclusively or in part are:

Esp@cenet (freely available via the Web)

Freepatentsonline (freely available via the Web)

Derwent Innovations Index (accessible only via campus or with username/password)

SciFinder (accessible only via campus and with personal username/password)

Reaxys (accessible only via campus or with username/password)

For direct patent searching, the two important databases are: Esp@cenet and Derwent Innovations Index.

Exercise 1- using esp@cenet

1. Open a web browser and access the esp@cenet website:

http://www.epo.org/searching/free/espacenet.html

2. You are given a choice for Direct access. Select ‘Access Espacenet at the European Commission’ by clicking the link: ‘Open Espacenet at the EC’.

3. This will take you to the SmartSearch page of esp@cenet.

2. Finding and viewing a known patent in esp@cenet

The easiest way to find a patent is to use the patent number. If you have found a reference to a patent in a journal or conference paper or a database such as SciFinder or Reaxys, the patent number will be listed.

Patent numbers begin with two letters for the country or organisation, then digits, then an A or B to denote an application or a granted patent. US patents have no A or B because prior to November 2000 only granted patents were published.

In the following exercise we will find the following patents using esp@cenet:

WO 2011002630 A2

an application to the World Intellectual Property Network (WIPO). WIPO is a United Nations body that was set up to promote the protection of intellectual property worldwide; this includes international patent applications in all countries covered by the Patent Cooperation Treaty.

EP 1072623 A2

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esp@cenet is a network of databases maintained by the European Patent Office (EPO) and provides free access to more than 60 million patent documents from all over the world. The worldwide database enables you to search for information about published patent applications from over 70 countries and regions

an application to the European Patent Office (EPO). This would be an application for a patent that applies across all member states of the EPO.

GB 2466629 A

A UK patent application.

Exercise 2a – find a WO patent on esp@cenet

1. Access the SmartSearch page in esp@cenet

2. Select Number Search from the menu towards the top left of the screen. Ensure that the database selected is ‘Worldwide’.

3. In the Publication Number box, type: WO2011002630. Make sure you omit any spaces.

4. Click on the Search button and the results will be displayed:

-Select the title link: MODIFIED ZEOLITE CATALYST to show all the bibliographic details of the patent

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About Patent Numbers:

The application number is the number assigned to a patent when the patent application is filed. The application number for the majority of countries is made up of the country code (2 digits), the year of filing (4 digits), and a serial number (variable, up to 7 digits).

The publication number is the number assigned to a patent when the patent application is published. Publication numbers are generally made up of a country code (2 digits) and a serial number (variable, up to 12 digits).

The priority number is the number of the application in respect of which priority is claimed, i.e. it is the same as the application number of the claimed priority document. The priority number is made up of a country code (2 letters), the year of filing (4 digits) and a serial number (variable, up to 7 digits).

-Look at the original document. Note the difference between the Priority number in the database and the Priority Data in the document. Zeros can be added to make the core serial number up to seven digits, but this is not always the case.

Exercise 2b – Searching for an EP patent on esp@cenet

1. Return to Number Search; leave the database search as Worldwide, and try searching for:

EP1072623 (omitting spaces and the A2)

2. Select the title of the patent to view the bibliographic data.

3. Choose to view the INPADOC patent family link (on the left hand menu). This will show you all the documents related to each other by the priority document. When you take out a patent application you have 12 months to file it elsewhere and you can claim priority back to the original filing date.

The full bibliographic data will tell you:

Any other equivalent patent applications in other countries (‘also published as’)

The claimed priority date of the original patent application

The documents (patents; patent applications) cited in this patent application

The patent family – all patents related to this particular patent application.

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Check out each section of the patent document: description, claims, mosaics (images), and the original document (as PDF).

3. Finding and viewing a known patent in Derwent Innovations Index

Exercise 3a – Using Derwent Innovations Index for patent number searches

1. Open a web browser a go to the Library home page at:

http://www.library.manchester.ac.uk/

2. Select Search Resources from the tabs towards the top of the screen.

3. Select Databases A-Z from the Resources list at the left, and then select ‘D’ on the Database list.

4. Scroll down until you find ‘Derwent Innovations Index’, and click on the Web of Knowledge (WoK) link. Select On-campus access. On the WoK page click on Click here to access WoS.

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What do A1, A2, A3 and B mean after a publication number?

A1= Patent application published with a search report.

A2= Application published but the search report is not included.

A3= Published search report

B= Granted patent.

Priority date: date of the application for which priority is claimed (i.e. the date when the original application was filed). In this case: 21st July 1999.

An INPADOC patent family is defined as comprising all the documents sharing directly or indirectly at least one priority.

5. You should now be on the Web of Knowledge search page. Towards the top of the screen you will see a series of tabs; choose the Select a Database tab. This will take you to a page that lists all the WoK family of databases. Click on Derwent Innovations Index.

6. In the first search box type: GB2188630-B

7. In the drop-down box next to the search box, select ‘Patent Number’, then click the Search button

8. Click on the title: “New besylate salt of amlodipine…” This will retrieve the full bibliographic record. It should be this record:

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Derwent Innovations Index, unlike esp@cenet, is a subscription database which you would have to pay for if you were working outside the university. It covers patents dating back to 1968 for chemistry, and 1963 for drugs. The database currently holds about 15 million patents.

Although it is not as large as esp@cenet it has several search advantages. The format is broadly similar to Web of Science. All the titles and abstracts of the patent applications are rewritten by professional indexers to make them more meaningful and easier to search by keyword. It allows the user to sort results by actual publication date, or by various other attributes. You can search for all the subsidiaries or variations of a company name with a single search. If you have found a patent of interest, you can look for later patents which cite it as similar.

esp@cenet response times can be slow at times.

Here you can see all the various patent applications relating to this patent. One very useful feature is a link to all the subsequent patent applications that have cited this patent (circled above – 71 citations (March 2012)).This enables you to search for newer patents related to the topic. The above is only part of the bibliographic record; if you scroll down the page you will find more information. Towards the bottom of the bibliographic record is information providing the priority application information and date:

This tells you that the priority date for this patent is 4th April 1986.

Exercise 3b – another patent number search on Derwent

1. Return to the Derwent Innovations Index search page. [Hint: Click the Search link to the top left of the screen. Try to avoid using the back button on the browser, as this sometimes disrupts searches.]

2. In the first search box type US5114477 and specify Patent number in the drop-down menu

to the right. Click on the title to obtain the full bibliographic record.

3. You will see that this is a very early patent document concerning fullerenes. Where the patent number is listed, click on Original. This takes you to the full text of the US patent document. This gives you some idea of the sort of detailed information contained in patent documentation. Fullerenes (C60) were first discovered in the UK by Harry Kroto – the first published paper was in Nature in 1985.

4. Searching for patents by subject/topic, inventor, etc.

You can perform detailed subject or topic searches for patents using both esp@cenet and Derwent. For example, you can search for patents:

Assigned to a particular company or organisation (e.g. Astra Zeneca)

By a particular inventor (e.g. Clive Sinclair)

With a particular word in their title (e.g. organolithium)

From a particular date (e.g. 2002)

Exercise 4 – searching for patents by keyword and organisation in esp@cenet

In this search we want to find the earliest patent application for the drug cimetidine, first developed by the UK-based company Smith Kline French (now GlaxoSmithKline). Cimetidine was first marketed as ‘Tagamet’, an H2 receptor antagonist that acts as an antacid.

1. Return to the esp@cenet search page: [ http://www.epo.org/searching/free/espacenet.html ]. Ensure the database selected in ‘Worldwide’.

2. Select ‘Advanced Search’.

3. In the ‘Keyword(s) in title or abstract’ box, type: cimetidine

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4. In the ‘Applicant(s)’ box, type: Smith Kline French then click the Search button

[

5. You should retrieve about 12 results. These are presented in order of upload date (the date the application was uploaded into the database) and in descending order (i.e the most recent first). As we have only 12 records scroll down to the bottom of the list to find the earliest patent application, dated 21 September 1976. If you have a much longer list, you can change the sort order to ascending; this will bring the earliest patent to the top. [Note: if you retrieve more than 500 results in esp@cenet, it will only display the first 500].

6. If you click on the title, you will retrieve the bibliographic data of the patent document.

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Choosing a title search will limit your search to the title of the patent. Remember that patent titles are often not very informative. If you are unsure, it would be sensible to broaden your search by choosing ‘title or abstract’ search.

Smith Kline French is the ‘Applicant’, the company or body making the patent application.

This is the number of the original application (application number) for which priority is claimed.

7. Go back to advanced search in esp@cenet and type in: GB19760039065 in the Application

number box and click the Search button.

8. Click on the title ‘Polymorph of cimetidine’ to retrieve the bibliographic data. Here you will see that the Publication Number for this patent application is GB1543238 (A). [Note: the Publication Number is the number assigned to a patent application on publication.]

9. On the left hand side of the screen, click on the ‘Original document’ tab. You will retrieve a pdf of the original publication document.

10.Page through the document to gain an understanding of the extent of information provided.

5. Using the IPC to refine keyword searches

Exercise 5 – using the IPC (International Patent Classification) number to refine a keyword search in Derwent and in esp@cenet

As we have seen in previous exercises, many patents have brief and/or uninformative titles, making searching with keywords in esp@cenet something of a hit and miss experience. Searching by formal subject classification number is much more precise.

IPC is the International Patent Classification scheme. It is used to describe the subject matter of patents. Because patents are detailed technical documents, the IPC is very detailed and not simple to use. One simple way of using the IPC is to run a keyword search for a particular topic and then locate other patents on the same topic using the classification scheme.

Exercise 5a – Using the IPC in esp@cenet

Here we will be locating patents concerned with the preparation of the drug fluoxetine; this is a well-known anti-depressant generically known as ‘Prozac’.

1. Access the esp@cenet portal.

2. Go to Advanced search, and in the Title search box type: fluoxetine. In the ‘Keyword(s)

in title or abstract’ search box type: preparation, then click the Search button.

3. You will retrieve approximately 21 publications. Even though you specified ‘preparation’, on the results list you will see a variety of classifications under the IPC column. The most

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Original Application Numbers for different aspects of the process. 39065 is the first (GB19760039065).

Publication date for GB1543238 (A).

frequent appear to start C07C213 or C07C217. In order to find out more about what these character strings mean you will need to consult the IPC hierarchy. This can be accessed from esp@cenet via the Help key, and then typing in IPC. Alternatively you can access the IPC at

the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organisation) at:

http://www.wipo.int/classifications/ipc/en/

4. If you browse the hierarchy (you don’t need to follow this through in this exercise) you will discover that the classification C07C213/10 is the core classification for the preparation of fluxoetine and compounds with similar molecular structures.

5. In esp@cenet Advanced search, type fluoxetine in the keyword title search box, and

C07C213/10 in the IPC search box. Then click Search.

6. You will retrieve about 6 patents that are very specific to the actual preparation of fluoxetine. If you search just for C07C213/10 in the IPC search box (deleting fluoxetine from the title box) you will retrieve over 2,600 items, as the documents retrieved will cover the preparation of all compounds similar to fluoxetine.

Exercise 5b – using the IPC in Derwent

1. Minimise the esp@cenet screen and open a new browser window. Access Derwent Innovations Index.

2. In the search box type fluoxetine (specifying Topic) and in the next search box type the

IPC classification number: C07C-213/10(in the drop-down menu box select Int Patent

Classification). Note the different format used in Derwent.

3. Hit the search button. This retrieves 4 patent publications (compared to 6 with esp@cenet). The difference is because Derwent have assigned a slightly broader classification to three of the publications. Hence it is a good idea to use both patent databases when running a search to ensure nothing is missed.

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As with esp@cenet, when merging two search terms in Derwent, the default is ‘AND’.

Unlike esp@cenet, in Derwent you can also choose ‘OR’ or ‘NOT’ from the drop-down box when combining search terms. This can be quite powerful.

Note the different format for the IPC classification required by Derwent.

In Derwent you must specify in the drop-down boxes whether you want to search ‘Title’, ‘Topic’, ‘Inventor’, ‘Patent Number’, etc for each separate search box

4. If you compare the bibliographic records of the same patent document in esp@cenet and in Derwent, you will see that the Derwent record is much more informative as it has been re-catalogued to provide a much more informative record.

5. Of the 4 documents retrieved in your Derwent search, click on the title of record number 3: “Process of preparing racemic fluoxetine…”. This brings up the full bibliographic record.

6. Now maximise the esp@cenet window, go to Advanced Search and search for the same patent publication using the search strategy you used earlier (fluoxetine in the title search

box and C07C213/10 in the IPC search box). Compare the two bibliographic records.

The title in Derwent is very descriptive. The same keyword searches in Derwent and in esp@cenet may generate different results; even IPC classifications may vary slightly. One advantage of Derwent is that it can be searched like Web of Science, so it retains your search history, you can quickly view citing patents, etc.

6. Searching the International Patent Classification (IPC)

Exercise 6 – searching the International Patent Classification (IPC)

The International Patent Classification (IPC) is used by all patent offices, sometimes in addition to a national classification. It currently divides technology into around 70,000 subareas and is one of the most precise classification systems.

Exercise 6a – identifying separate parts of the IPC classification

1. Access the IPC at: http://www.wipo.int/classifications/ipc/en/

2. Click on ‘Browse and Search the current IPC or Earlier Versions’

3. Click on ‘C’ for Chemistry and Metallurgy, and scroll down the hierarchy. You will see that C01 – C14 are the classes that cover chemistry; C21 – C30 cover metallurgy, C40 for

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combinatorial technology, and C99 for other material that does not fit into the above categories.

4. One of the classifications we looked at earlier was C07C213/10. Unpack the hierarchy within the IPC list to identify each meaning of the classification above, and complete the tabulation overleaf:

IPC Section, Class, Subclass, etc Definition

C Section

C07 Class

C07C Subclass

C07C213 Group

C07C213/10 Subgroup

The format of the IPC listing is fairly straightforward, e.g.:

Exercise 6b – term searching using the IPC

1. Use the Back button to return to the top level of the IPC classification scheme (response is sometimes slow). On the left hand side of the screen you will see a range of functions. Half way down under ‘Search’, click on the ‘Terms’ button.

2. You will be presented with the Terms search template:

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Search other classification schemes

Diagram Classification Description Version indicator. Edition/version of the IPC where the corresponding entry was new

You will see that Scheme and Path have been automatically checked. Click on Definition and ‘Catchwords’ to include all features.

3. Type zeolites in the ‘Words(s)’ box and click ‘Display results’. You will be provided with a

list of all the relevant classification codes for zeolites in all contexts, in this case 12. If you are researching zeolites in a particular context, explore the classifications to identify the one most relevant to your needs, for example: assume you are interested in all aspects of isomorphous zeolites where Al and Si atoms have been replaced, browse down the list until you find a classification that most closely describes your topic.

4. Access the esp@cenet website and go to Advanced search. Type the IPC classification into the appropriate search box and click the search button. You should retrieve over 3,000 patents worldwide relevant to isomorphous zeolites.

5. Access Derwent Innovations Index and run the same search (be careful about format). You should retrieve about 215 patent documents. In Derwent you can refine your search further.

Exercise 7 – Patent equivalents

If a number of patent applications are filed to protect the same invention in different parts of the world, the corresponding published patent applications and granted patents will clearly contain a technically equivalent text, albeit in the national language of the publishing authority. For example, if an invention originates in the UK (priority number), but protection is applied for in Japan, the US, France and Germany, there are five different documents in four different languages, effectively with the same technical details.

Rather than create new records and abstracts for each document, both Derwent and esp@cenet have devised a mechanism for identifying the duplicates and grouping them together. Later documents with corresponding subject matter can be added to this ‘patent family’; however, the definition of a patent ‘family’ is not defined in law, therefore patent families may vary in different databases. The reason for this is that some publications may claim multiple priorities, and this will affect where they are placed by the particular database rules.

Exercise 7a – patent equivalents in esp@cenet

Assume we wish to locate all the patent equivalents for the preparation of imidazo-benzodiazepines as set down by Karl-Heinz Bender, working for Hoffmann-La Roche. (Benzodiazepines comprise some well known tranquillisers such as Mogadon and Valium).

1. Access the esp@cenet website and go to Advanced search. In the Title search box type: benzodiazepine. In the Inventor search box type: Bender.

2. You should obtain one reference: ‘Process for the production of imidazo-benzodiazepine’, published 31st May 2000. Click on the title to obtain the full bibliographic record.

3. Scroll down to ‘Also published as’, and click on ‘more’. This will produce the full list of patent equivalents.

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4. Access Derwent Innovations Index and run the same search. In the first search box type benzodiazepine and specify ‘Title’ in the drop-down box to the right. In the next search box

type bender and specify ‘Inventor’ in the drop-down box to the right.

5. You should have two results; the first result being the patent document we retrieved in the esp@cenet search. Click on the title to retrieve all the bibliographic data:

You will note the more descriptive title in Derwent.

6. Comparing the two lists of equivalents you will see that they vary a little. Esp@cenet lists three patent documents that are not listed by Derwent: AT187727; DK768310; GR3032600 and TR970323. Derwent lists two not covered by esp@cenet: MX193459 and DE59603916. Hence if you wish to locate all patent equivalents it would be sensible to run a search on both databases.

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indicates original document not available

CA = Canada

CN = China

EP = European patent

US = United States

JP = Japan

ES = Spain

A full listing of country codes can be found under Help on the esp@cenet website.

Patent equivalents are listed as the ‘Patent Numbers’ in Derwent.