What is the purpose of MPEP 901.05(d) – Translation?

MPEP 901.05(d) – Translation provides guidance on handling foreign language prior art documents in patent examination. Its main purposes are:

  • To ensure examiners can access and understand relevant prior art in foreign languages
  • To outline procedures for obtaining translations of foreign documents
  • To clarify when machine translations are acceptable for use in patent examination

As stated in the MPEP, “Examiners should review the submitted translation of a foreign language document to determine whether the translation is sufficient to understand the foreign document for purposes of applying it as prior art.

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Tags: Foreign Language Documents, patent examination, prior art, Translations