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FAQ
Questions
Where can I find information on the frequency and updates of patents on national servers?
Where can I find the contents of the raw data products at a glance?
"The Master Classification Database" (MCD) - what's in a name?
How are invalid document identifiers "D" (delete) records treated in the DOCDB XML exchange?
Where can I find information on the publishing language and titles of the documents from the various countries supplying the EPO with bibliographic data?
Where can I find some information on PRS coverage of EPC member states?
Where can I find details of recently used PRS codes?
Is there any information available on the coverage of WIPO (ex Project P25) SCIT/SDWD Task No. 23 Countries in INPADOC PRS - Entry and/or non entry into the national phase?
Where can I find a list of PRS codes for lapses/expiries?
Where can I find the detailed meaning of codes in INPADOC-PRS?
What are the differences in the data content when comparing the European Patent Register on-line, ESPACE-BULLETIN and the DOCDB Database?
Where can I find the information on the comparison of countries that keep/change the publication numbers of EP Patents after entry into the national phase?
How shall I interpret information about fee payment in Italy?
How frequently are the bibliographic (IPG statistics) updated?
Where can I find the detailed coverage of the INPADOC databases?
How can I access the EPO bibliographic and legal status on-line databases?
Where is it possible to perform full-text searches on European patent documents?
Where is it possible to search for the IPC classification?
Where is it possible to search for the ECLA classification?
Where is it possible to search the for EPO jurisprudence (published and non published decisions)?
Where can I find a list of SPC codes for each country?
Which countries provide legal event data for utility models/short term patents/petty patents?
Is there a dedicated helpdesk available?
What is the significance of the term "REG" in a
legal status code?
Answers
Where can I find information on the frequency and updates of patents on national servers?
You can find this information in the table Update frequency of national/regional patent gazettes.
Top of pageWhere can I find the contents of the raw data products at a glance?
You can find them in the table Contents of products at a glance.
"The Master Classification Database" (MCD) - what's in a name?
All the current classifications are usually contained within the weekly DOC DB (14.7) and the subsequent weekly deliveries. However, whenever a huge update programme is run, e.g. triggered by large reclassification contributions by the cooperating patent authorities, they will not be contained in the regular weekly DOCDB productions, but only in the next annual back-file, whereas the MCD database will have them already in the subsequent quarterly delivery. For the time being, however, there is no scheduled large reclassification contributions in place.
So in fact, the product MCD is most suitable for users who want to classify large internal patent collections by subject matter and are not interested in other aspects of patent information. The typical users being examining patent offices, patent libraries and enterprises having very large compilations of internal documentations.
IPC symbols are stored at both family and document level. Exchanges for a document are a combination (with duplicates removed) of the symbols at the family level and the symbols for that particular document.
Either the MCD updates or the annual DOCDB back-file can be used for a complete update of the classifications.
PLEASE NOTE: symbols on new documents are stored at the document level and are not propagated to other family members .
Currently the collection consists of a back-file produced in week 31/2006 and six quarterly incremental files; it is XML coded and is delivered on DVD. Since this is not yet a standard product of the EPO, ordering and invoicing is done individually on request.
How are invalid document identifiers "D" (delete) records treated in the DOCDB XML exchange?
The "D" records in week 14/2008 contained an invalid document identifier. Unfortunately there is no alternative work-around to avoid these types of corrections in the exchange data and will require the amendment of the parsing procedure on the path of the subscribers.
To illustrate this, please see this example of a JP document in the database (week 14/2008 exchange) under the invalid identifier and the consequent trigger of a "delete" as the only available choice to remove the faulty record from the database.
Where can I find information on the publishing language and titles of the documents from the various countries supplying the EPO with bibliographic data?
Please see the page Publishing language and titles of the documents from the various countries supplying the EPO with bibliographic data
Top of page
Where can I find some information on PRS coverage of EPC member states?
Please see PRS coverage of EPC member states
Where can I find details of recently used PRS codes?
This classification table gives an overview of all current PRS codes and enables the users to determine the country coverage as well as the type of data included in the INPADOC legal status database.
Is there any information available on the coverage of WIPO (ex Project P25) SCIT/SDWD Task No. 23 Countries in INPADOC PRS - Entry and/or non entry into the national phase of international patent applications?
Please see the page Coverage of WIPO (ex Project P25) SCIT/SDWD Task No. 23 Countries in INPADOC PRS Entry and/or non entry into the national phase
Where can I find a list of PRS codes for lapses/expiries?
Please see the page PRS codes for lapses/expiries
Where can I find the detailed meaning of codes in INPADOC-PRS?
Please see the page Useful tables and statistics, coverage and codes
What are the differences in the data content when comparing the European Patent Register on-line, ESPACE-BULLETIN and the DOCDB Database?
Where can I find the information on the comparison of countries that keep/change the publication numbers of EP Patents after entry into the national phase?
Please see the page Publication numbers of EP patents after the entry into the national phase
How shall I interpret information about fee payment in Italy?
Only the latest payment is included in the PRS Database.
At present the information available for the validity of Italian patents and Italian designated EP patents is outdated. Updating the system in PRS is being planned for the near future. It will be based on a reporting period. The first reporting period being taken into consideration for Italian National Patents is from October 1993 to September 1999.
The new updated system will have two dates present in each record:
- The date that the situation was reported, this date is recorded in the field "PRS date"
- The last payment date in the free text part of the record.
An indication of the validity of an Italian patent or utility model can be seen from the difference between the two dates, i.e. if the latest payment was made more than a year before the report was made, it is to be assumed that the patent/utility model has lapsed.
This information is scheduled to be updated at least once a year.
Please see the page Useful tables and statistics, coverage and codes
These files can be downloaded from our web-site in Excel format. The files are updated on a weekly basis:
How can I access the EPO bibliographic and legal status on-line databases?
INPADOC databases are now accessible via the Internet on our web-site: ep.esp@cenet.com
INPADOC databases can be accessed on-line on the following hosts:
- Thomson Dialog
- STN International c/o Fachinformationszentrum Karlsruhe
- Questel.Orbit
- Japan Patent Information Organization (JAPIO)
- International Patent Research Office
- Software for Intellectual Property
Where is it possible to perform full-text searches on European patent documents?
- European documents can be searched using the ESPACE collections.
- Following hosts offer on-line search facilities based on bibliographical and administrative data.
In some cases, the abstract and the first claim are available.
Thomson Dialog
European Patents Full-Text
click here [http://library.dialog.com/bluesheets/html/bl0348.html] for details
European Patents Full-text (EPAPAT, EPBPAT)
European Patent Biblio (EPPATENT)
EP + Full-text Key Content (FamPat)
STN International c/o Fachinformationszentrum Karlsruhe
EPFULL
click here for details
Fiz-Technik
PATE
D-60314 Frankfurt a.M.
Tel.: (+49) 694308-226
Fax: (+49) 694380-200
e-mail:fiz.technik.@dm.krinfo.ch
Where is it possible to search for the IPC classification?
The IPC classification can be searched on the following hosts:
STN International c/o Fachinformationszentrum Karlsruhe
PATIPC
click here for details
Questel.Orbit
CIB
Where is it possible to search for the ECLA classification?
The ECLA classification can be searched on the following hosts:
esp@cenet
using the option "Worldwide" - 40 million documents
Fiz-Technik
PATI
D-60314 Frankfurt a.M.
Tel.: (+49) 694308-226
Fax: (+49) 694380-200
e-mail:fiz.technik.@dm.krinfo.ch
Questel.Orbit
ECLATX
Where is it possible to search the for EPO jurisprudence (published and non published decisions)?
- The EPO jurisprudence can be searched using the ESPACE LEGAL CD-ROM
- The entire European jurisprudence can be searched on:
Questel.Orbit
JUREP
Where can I find a list of SPC codes for each country?
Please see "Table of all PRS codes available for SPCs"
Which countries provide legal event data for utility models/short term patents/petty patents?
The following countries provide us with this data:
• Austria
• Australia
• Brazil
• China
• Czech Republic
• Denmark
• Ireland
• Italy
• New Zealand
• Portugal
• Slovenia
• Spain
• Taiwan
Is there a dedicated helpdesk available?
All questions concerning data coverage, complaints about errors or missing elements, technical questions about the availability of data, access possibilities, requests for support for the interpretation of the EPO bibliographic and legal status data can be directed to this Helpdesk.
Patent Data Resources Helpdesk
Tel.: +43 1 52126-115
e-mail: inpadoc@epo.org
What is the significance of the term "REG" in a legal status code?
This kind of data refers to a national legal event and is extracted from the official gazette of a member state (EP REG) or a PCT receiving office (WO REG). These records are located in some of the WO and/or EP documents in the EPO legal status database.
See examples below:
PRS Code: REG GB GF4D
Code Expl.: + EUROPEAN PATENT GRANTED
PRS Code: REG CH PL
Code Expl.: - PATENT CEASED