How are foreign patent documents classified in the USPTO?
Foreign patent documents are classified in the USPTO according to the following system:
- Documents published by the European Patent Office (EPO) or the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) are classified only in the International Patent Classification (IPC) system.
- Other foreign patent documents may be classified in the IPC, the United States Patent Classification (USPC) system, or both systems.
The MPEP states: “All foreign patents and published applications that are included in the examiner’s search files are available to the examiner.” (Source: MPEP 901.05)
Examiners can access these documents through various databases and search tools provided by the USPTO.
To learn more: