What do Roman numerals represent in foreign patent publication dates?

In foreign patent publication dates, Roman numerals have a specific purpose. According to MPEP 901.05(a):

“Roman numerals always refer to the month.”

This means that when you encounter a date in a foreign patent publication that uses Roman numerals, those numerals are consistently used to represent the month of the year. For example, VI would represent June, and XII would represent December.

To learn more:

• foreign patents
• date formats
• Roman numerals
• patent citations