How does the Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) system work?
The Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) system is a joint classification system developed by the USPTO and the European Patent Office (EPO). It works as follows:
- Organizes technical content of patent documents into hierarchical categories
- Uses a combination of letters and numbers to represent different technology areas
- Allows for more precise and efficient prior art searches
MPEP 902 states: “The CPC system is a hierarchical classification system, which is subdivided into sections, classes, subclasses, groups, and subgroups.” This structure enables patent examiners to narrow down their searches to specific technological fields, improving the accuracy and efficiency of prior art identification.
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