Patentability Search or Patent Novelty Search by US Patent Attorney Trained Patent Expert| Perform Patentability Novelty Searches for Patenting Inventions by Patent Experts

How to Read & Perform
Patentability Searches for IPC
International Patent Classification
& USPC for coding Technology
based Patent Inventions
By Adv. Prity Khastgir & Shivani
Tech Corp Legal LLP
Where Technology, Business &
Law Intersect
© www.techcorplegal.com “Where Technology, Business and Law

Aim of Patent Related Presentation
 What is a Patent Application?
 Different Sections of a Patent Application
 Importance of a Patent Title for an invention / idea
/innovation/ product /process
 Identifying Important Researchers / Inventors for a
technology domain
 Identifying Important Assignees for a technology domain
In-licensing / out-licensing / cross-licensing
 Identifying Patent Application Number
 Patent Filing Date

Aim of Patent Related Presentation
 Understanding Different Patent Classification Systems
– IPC
– USPC
 Abstract of the present Food Invention
 Background of the Food based Innovation
 Summary of the Food Invention
 Patent Drawings
 Detailed description of the Invention / Idea/ Product /
Process
 Independent Patent Claim and Dependent Patent
Claims
 Detailed Analysis of Patent Classification System

What is Patent Application?
• A Patent Application is a request pending before
the patent office for the grant of a patent for
the invention described and claimed by that patent
application. The patent application consists of a
description of the invention (the patent specification) as
well as patent claims.
• However, patent claims define the scope and ambit of
the technology for which a patent is filed before the
patent office.

What is Patent Application?
• The term ”Patent Application” is also used to refer to the
process of applying for a patent, or to the patent
specification itself (i.e. the content of the invention
document filed with a view to initiate the process of
applying for a patent).
• You get protection for the claimed technology. Anything
outside the ambit is not covered. In other words, YOU
get protection for what you disclose.

Different Sections of a Patent Application
Bibliographic Data
• Title of the Invention
• Patent/Application publication number
• Technology Abstract
• Reference drawing
• Inventor(s)
• Assignee/ Patent Applicant
• Filing data
• Foreign application priority date
• Patent Classification
• Forward Citation & Backward Citation

2. Background of the invention
3. Summary of the invention
4. Patent Drawings
5. Brief description of drawings
6. Detailed description of the invention
7. Patent Claims (Independent patent claims and
dependent patent claims)

US Class
Title of the
Patent
Inventors of
the Patent
Filing Date
Idea
Abstract
PCT Patent
Number
Application
Number
Applicants of
the Patent
Grant Date
Details of related US
Patent Application
IPC Class
First Inventor
Publication
Number
Publication Date

Patent Title Define the Technology
• The title of the invention should be placed at the top of
the first page of the specification.
• The title of the invention should be meaningful.
• The title should clearly, concisely and as specifically as
possible indicate the subject to which the invention
relates.
• If the patent document contains patent claims in different
categories (product, process, apparatus, method,
use), this should be evident from the title.

Patent Title Define the Technology
• The word “patent,” personal names, fancy names, trade
names, trademarks or abbreviations or terms such as
“etc.” which do not serve to identify the invention or
technology should not be used in the title.
• The title should be brief but technically accurate and
descriptive and should contain fewer than 500
characters.
• For e.g. “ System & Method for …..” or “Apparatus
for…..”

Identifying Important Researchers / Inventors
for a technology domain
• In Patent law, an Inventor is the person, or persons who
contribute to the patent claims of a patentable invention.
In other words, people behind conducting the research.
• An inventor is the one with "intellectual domination" over
the inventive process.
• "Joint inventors", or "co-inventors", exist when a
patentable invention is the result of inventive work of
more than one inventor. Joint inventors exist even where
one inventor contributed a majority of the research work.

Identifying Important Assignees for a
technology domain
• The assignee is the business organization that has the
intellectual property right to the patent.
• The legal owner of the patent is designated as the
“Assignee” on United States Patents.
• When a company invest money in research and any
intellectual property which is generated during the
research work is owned by the company and
researchers assign the IP rights via signing an
assignment deed.

technology domain
• In some cases, the inventor and the assignee may be
one and the same but an employee will more than likely
assign a patent to a company.
• Whatever inventions are made, they are immediately
transferred to the company upon conception.
• The company is said to be the 'assignee' and the
employee is the 'assignor'.

technology domain
• The company is said to be the 'assignee' and the
employee is the 'assignor'.
• Many a times there is a clause in the employment
contract which clearly states that whatever intellectual
property originates during the tenure of the employment
would be owned by the company and the employee will
do the same by signing assignment deed.

US Patent Application Number
• A Patent Application Number includes a two digit
series code followed by a six digit serial number which is
assigned by the United States Patent And Trademark
Office (USPTO).
• Application numbers consisting of a series code and a
serial number are assigned by the Office of Patent
Application Processing (OPAP) immediately after mail
has been opened.
• If an application is filed using the Office’s electronic filing
system, EFS-Web provides an Acknowledgement
Receipt that contains a time and date stamp, an
application number and a confirmation number.

Patent Filing Date
• The filing date is the date when a patent application is
first filed at a patent office.
• The-filing date issued by the USPTO on a patent
application is of critical importance to an inventor or
patent owner because it determines who has priority
over the right to file a patent application for an invention.

Patent Filing Date
• The filing date is the date when a patent application is
first filed at a patent office.
• The filing date issued by the USPTO on a patent
application is of critical importance to an inventor or
patent owner because it determines who has priority
over the right to file a patent application for an invention.

Patent Filing Date
• For example, many European countries, and more
recently, the US, have first-to-file patent systems. This
means that the entity who was the first to file a patent
application for an invention is the only one whose patent
application will be allowed to go through the entire
process of examination for a possible issuance of a
patent. Thus, the system is essentially on a “first-come,
first-served” basis.

Understanding Importance of Patent
Classification Systems
• The Patent Classification is used to categorize and index
the technical details of the technology Patent
specifications.
• The classification assists a patent researcher to easily
identify patents in a particular domain of technology.
• The patent application when filed before any respective
patent office classifies the invention under predefined
technical classes and sub-classes by the patent
examiner.

IPC (International Patent Classification)
for Performing Patent Searches
• The International Patent Classification (IPC), established by
the Strasbourg Agreement, provides for a hierarchical system of
language independent symbols for the classification of patents and
utility models according to the different areas of technology to which
they pertain.
• The IPC divides technology into eight sections with
approximately 70,000 subdivisions. Each subdivision has a symbol
consisting of Arabic numerals and letters of the Latin alphabet.
IPC Class
US Class

USPC (United States Patent Classification) for
Coding different Technologies
• The USPC is a system for organizing all U.S. patent
documents and many other technical documents into
relatively small collections based on common subject matter.
• Each subject matter division in the USPC includes a major
component called a class and a minor component called a
subclass.
• A class generally delineates one technology from another
whereas Subclasses delineate processes, structural
features, and functional features of the subject matter
encompassed within the scope of a class.
• Every class has a unique alphanumeric identifier, as do most
subclasses.

Abstract Writing for a Technology
• The patent abstract includes a brief summary of the
disclosure as contained in the description, the claims,
and any drawings. It shall be as concise as the
disclosure permits.
• Abstract of Sample Food Invention -
Anaerobic
Fermentation
Biogas
Production
Biomass
Materials
Cultivation of
Fungal Cells

Background of the Invention
• The background section of the patent application has to
show that there is a need in the art for the invention and
it also states about the earlier technologies being used.
• Any invention should solve an existing problem in the
technology domain.
• Prior patents filed in the same domain should be
mentioned.

Background of the Invention
Background of Sample Food Invention
Traditional energy sources are being depleted at a faster
rate than the new ones are being made. These are mainly
non-renewable resources and take millions of years to
form. Renewable energy sources are an alternative over
non-renewable ones and biomass is one of the way to
produce energy in affordable, clean and efficient way.
Biomass processing is an efficient way for exploitation of
biomass energy. Biogasification of waste materials rely
upon the anaerobic digestion or fermentation process.

Summary of the Patent
• Summary of invention describes a broad overview of the invention
and, thus, provides a structure for understanding the detailed
description and patent claim sections of the specification.
• Summary of Sample Food Invention –
Biomass Material
(Solid & liquid
Nitrogen and
Phosphorus
containing, Spent
Fungal species
substrate)
Separation
Steps
Sanitation Steps
(>70°C, pH>7 or
Pressure>1 bar)
Fibrous Solid
fraction having
reduced content
of volatile
nitrogen-
containing
compounds
Supplements
addition
(optional)
Fibrous Solid
Substrate (for
cultivating
Fungal cells)
Degassed
spent fungal
substrate
Anaerobic
Fermentation
Biogas

Patent Drawings
• Patent drawings are required when they are necessary for the
understanding of the invention.
• Flow sheets and diagrams are considered drawings.
• Drawings must be presented on one or more separate sheets. They
may not be included in the description, the patent claims or the
abstract. They may not contain text matter, except a single word or
words when absolutely indispensable.
• All lines in the drawings must, ordinarily, be drawn with the aid of a
drafting instrument and must be executed in black, uniformly thick
and well-defined lines.

Detailed Description of the Invention
• The detailed description describes in detail what the
invention is and how it is made and used.
• The detailed description of the invention must include a
written description of the invention or discovery and of
the manner and process of making and using the same,
and is required to be in such full, clear, concise, and
exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art or
science to which the invention or discovery appertains,
or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and
use the same.

Independent Patent Claims and
Dependent Patent Claims
• The patent claim or set of patent claims shall define the
matter for which protection is sought. Patent Claims are
the essence of a patent. Patent Claims shall be clear
and concise. They shall be fully supported by the
description.
• Independent Patent Claim(s) are written in such a way
that they can stand on their own.

• When the independent patent claims are drafted, they do
not refer to any other patent claim. An independent
patent claim contains a preamble and all of the elements
/ features necessary to define the invention /idea/
process/ method.
• A dependent patent claim, in contrast, only has meaning
when combined with a preceding patent claim which may
or may not be an independent patent claim.

• Writing patent claims is an art and not easy to learn. The
patent claim or set of patent claims define the matter for
which protection is sought. In other words, the scope of
the patent protection is defined by the claimed features
in the patent claims.
• The set of patent claims should be fully supported by the
description of the invention. BEST mode of performimg
should be disclosed.

• Independent Patent Claims are written in such a way
that they can stand on their own. An independent patent
claim contains a preamble and all of the elements
necessary to define the invention.
• A dependent patent claim, in contrast, only has meaning
when combined with a preceding claim which may or
may not be an independent patent claim.

Detailed Analysis of International Patent
Classification (IPC) System
 IPC classifies any Patent according to the hierarchy
given below:
• Section of the IPC
• Class of the IPC
• Subclass of the IPC
• Group of the IPC
• Subgroup of the IPC

Classification (IPC) System
Sections
• The Patent Classification represents the whole body of
knowledge which may be regarded as proper to the field
of patents for invention, divided into eight sections. IPC
Sections are the highest level of hierarchy of the
Classification.
• IPC Section Symbol – Each IPC section is designated by
one of the capital letters A through H.

IPC Section Title – The section title is to be considered as a
very broad indication of the contents of the section. The
eight sections are entitled as follows:
A. HUMAN NECESSITIES
B. PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
C. CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
D. TEXTILES; PAPER
E. FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
F. MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING;
HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
G. PHYSICS
H. ELECTRICITY

 IPC Class
• Each IPC section is subdivided into classes which are
the second hierarchical level of the Classification.
• IPC Class Symbol – Each class symbol consists of the
section symbol followed by a two-digit number.
• E.g.: C12
• IPC Class Title – The class title gives an indication of
the content of the class. E.g.: C12 -
Biochemistry; Beer; Spirits; Wine; Vinegar;
Microbiology; Enzymology; Mutation Or Genetic
Engineering.

 IPC Subclass
• Each IPC class comprises one or more subclasses which are
the third hierarchical level of the Classification.
• Subclass IPC Symbol – Each subclass symbol consists of the
class symbol followed by a capital letter. E.g.: C12P
• Subclass IPC Title – The subclass title indicates as precisely
as possible the content of the subclass. E.g.: C12P -
Fermentation or enzyme-using processes to synthesise a
desired chemical compound or composition or to separate
optical isomers from a racemic mixture.

 IPC Group
• Each subclass is broken down into subdivisions referred
to as “groups”, which are either main groups (i.e. the
fourth hierarchical level of the Classification) or
subgroups (i.e. lower hierarchical levels dependent upon
the main group level of the IPC Classification).
• IPC Group Symbol –
• Each IPC group symbol consists of the subclass symbol
followed by two numbers separated by an oblique stroke.

• Main Group Symbol – Each main group symbol consists of the subclass
symbol followed by a one- to three-digit number, the oblique stroke and the
number 00. E.g.: C12P 5/00
• Main Group Title – The main group title precisely defines a field of subject
matter within the scope of its subclass considered to be useful for search
purposes. Main group symbols and titles are presented in bold in the
Classification. E.g.: C12P 5/00 - Preparation of hydrocarbons.
 Subgroup
 Subgroup Symbol – Subgroups form subdivisions under the main groups.
Each subgroup symbol consists of the subclass symbol followed by the one-
to three-digit number of its main group, the oblique stroke and a number of
at least two digits other than 00. E.g.: C12P 5/02
• Subgroup Title – The subgroup title precisely defines a field of subject
matter within the scope of its main group considered to be useful for search
purposes. E.g.:C12P 5/02 – Acyclic.

Classification System
 IPC (International Patent Classification) for the given
Patent Invention:
• C - Chemistry; Metallurgy.
• C12 - Biochemistry; Beer; Spirits; Wine; Vinegar;
Microbiology; Enzymology; Mutation Or Genetic
Engineering.
• C12P - Fermentation or enzyme-using processes to
synthesise a desired chemical compound or composition
or to separate optical isomers from a racemic mixture.
• C12P 5/00 - Preparation of hydrocarbons.
• C12P 5/02 – Acyclic.

• C12N – Micro-organisms or Enzymes; composition
thereof (biocides, pest repellents or attractants,
or plant growth regulators containing micro-organisms,
viruses, microbial fungi, enzymes, fermentates, or
substances produced by, or extracted
from, microorganisms or animal material; medicinal
preparations; fertilisers); Propagating, preserving,
or maintaining micro-organisms; mutation or genetic
engineering; culture media.

• C12N 1/00 - Micro-organisms, e.g. protozoa;
Compositions thereof (medicinal preparations containing
material from micro-organisms; preparing medicinal
bacterial antigen or antibody compositions, e.g. bacterial
vaccines); Processes of propagating, maintaining or
preserving micro-organisms or compositions thereof;
Processes of preparing or isolating a composition
containing a micro-organism; Culture media.
• C12N 1/14 - Fungi (culture of mushrooms; as new
plants); culture media.

References
• www.uspto.gov
• www.wipo.int
• www.techcorplegal.com
• www.slideshare.net
• www.google.com
• www.epo.org
• www.ic.gc.ca

Thank you
Any questions?
Email: prity.k@techcorplegal.com
Twitter: @Biopatentlawyer
website: www.techcorplegal.com
© www.techcorplegal.com “Where Technology, Business and Law Intersect”

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