Ellen Calhoun
Government Publications Librarian
calhoun@rci.rutgers.edu
May 11, 2007

Research Resources: Subject Research Guides:
Patents and Trademarks

Since 1989, the Library of Science and Medicine (LSM) has been a depository library for United States patents and trademarks. LSM has a complete collection of United States utility, design and plant patents (USAPAT), patent applications (USAAPP), and United States trademarks (USAMARK) on DVD-ROM. The collection is accessible on a computer workstation provided by the United States Patent and Trademark Office in the LSM reference area. The Patent and Trademark Depository Library Association maintains a comprehensive list of online resources for patents and trademarks. This list includes links to the intellectual property offices of various foreign countries, resources for inventors including links to inventor groups and associations, and a comprehensive list of patent and trademark databases with full descriptions of their coverage.

Patent Information
Trademark Information
Intellectual Property
- Intellectual Property Resources
Related Rutgers Resources

Conducting a patent search is a complicated process. To learn how to search patents, please consult the Web Patent Searching Tutorial (University of California at San Diego) or Patent Searching Tutorial (University of Texas at Austin). By following these tutorials, you will learn the basics of conducting an invention search.

Patent Information

Patent Information for Inventors: Selected Patent Databases

United States Patent and Trademark Office
The USPTO Web server offers access to the U.S. Patent Bibliographic Database, which includes both granted patents and pending applications. Full text searches are possible for patents issued since 1976. Full-image U.S. patents are available back to 1790, searchable by patent numbers and current US classification. Images are available as tiff files, one page at a time. You can now browse through newly issued patents with the Electronic Official Gazette for Patents (eOG:P).

European Patent Office Home Page
From this site you can get access to the European Patent Office's search engine: esp@cenet. It is a free Internet service from the European Patent Organization. You can use it to search 45 million patent documents from all over the world from 1836 to today.

World Intellectual Property Organization PCT Database
Search or browse World Patent bibliographic data, abstracts & drawings of published PCT applications. Abstracts are in English, with full patent images in the language of the inventor's country.

Patent Information for Inventors: Internet Sites

Ask the Inventors!™
Includes a section on answers to the most popular invention questions, a list of resources to help the inventor get started, and advice on how to bring your invention to market. Also includes news and information about the Invention Industry.

Invent now : National Inventors Hall of Fame website
Includes a section on how to patent and frequently asked questions from inventors.

Independent Inventor Resources
This introduction to intellectual property protection is provided by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office.

InventNET: The Inventors Network
Apart from news and links to resources, this site also offers discussion forums, a patent searching tutorial, and a very small directory of patent attorneys.

National Inventor Fraud Center
Registered patent attorney's advise on invention promotion companies and a list of "Good Guy" marketing resources, including their fees.

InventorEd's Invention Promotion Caution List
Lists invention promotion companies that the FTC has brought action against, were identified in court documents, or match a "Red Flag" profile.

The Invent Blog
For a guide to downloading copies of patents on the Internet, see The Invent Blog.

E-Journals

Inventors Digest

World Patent Information, Online version [Rutgers Restricted]
Access from campus or login via Rutgers account.

Library Resources for Patents: see IRIS for additional titles

Attorneys and agents registered to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office USPTO
LSM DOCUS C 21.9/2:2002
http://purl.access.gpo.gov/GPO/LPS39623
for USPTO OED - registered attorney/agent search

The inventors bible : how to market and license your brilliant ideas. Ronald Docie.
LSM REF HF 5415.I53.D 63 2004

The inventor's resource guide. United Inventors Association of the USA.
LSM REF T 339.U557 ed. 6 2004

Patent it Yourself. David Pressman.
LSM REF KF 3114.6 .P74 2002

Protecting Your Ideas : The Inventor's Guide to Patents. Joy L.Bryant.
CAMDEN REF T 339 .B92 1999; LSM T 339 .B92 1999

Will it sell ? : how to determine if your invention is profitably marketable before wasting money on a patent. James E. White.
LSM REF T 212.W 45 2000

Trademark Information

Selected Trademark Databases

Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS)
TESS contains more than 3 million pending, registered and dead federal trademarks of the United States.

State Trademark Information
This web site lists most of the state trademark registration offices of the United States and lists some of their databases.

Trade Marks from the Patent Office of the United Kingdom
This database is searchable by trade mark number as well as by keyword.

Canadian Trade-Marks Database
This database is searchable by many fields, including application or registration number, current or previous owner, and description.

Internet Resources for Trademarks

Making a Mark: An Introduction to Trademarks for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (PDF file: requires Adobe Acrobat)
From the World Intellectual Property Organization, this guide explains trademarks from a business perspective and provides information on integrating trademarks into an overall business strategy

Library Resources for Trademarks: see IRIS for additional titles

Basic facts about trademarks. U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
LSM DOCUS C 21.2:T 67/4/
http://purl.access.gpo.gov/GPO/LPS6179

Brands and Their Companies and Companies and Their Brands
CAMDEN, DANA REF T 223 .V4 A22

How to Design Logos, Symbols, and Icons : 23 Internationally Renowned Studios Reveal how they Develop Trademarks for Print and New Media / Gregory Thomas.
DANA NC 1003 .T48 2000

Trademark : legal care for your business & product name Kate McGrath and Stephen Elias.
LSM REF KF3180.Z9M28 1997

Trademark manual of examination procedures (TMEP) U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
LSM DOCUS C 21.14/2:T 67/2005
http://purl.access.gpo.gov/GPO/LPS61151

Intellectual Property

Intellectual Property Resources

Country Data
For practically every country, here is a summary of local laws related to intellectual property protection. Also indicates which intellectual property agreements each country is a signatory to, along with links to the international agreements, conventions and treaties themselves.

The Digital Dilemma: Intellectual Property in the Information Age
A full report from the National Academy of Sciences on the challenges facing the competing rights and access to intellectual property in electronic form.

Intellectual Property Mall
This is a large collection of links, topically organized by the Franklin Pierce Law Center. There is a section on "Patents, Trade Secrets and Technology Transfer."

Intellectual Property Roadmap
This annual report from the International Chamber of Commerce "provides an overview of the current and emerging issues in intellectual property."

KuesterLaw - The Technology Law Resource
A comprehensive resource for technology law information, especially intellectual property, patent, copyright, and trademark law.

World-Wide Intellectual Property Links
This unannotated list, maintained by Intellectual Property Law, covers patents, trademarks, and copyright resources.

Canadian Intellectual Property Office IP Toolkit
General information about intellectual property (IP), why it is important and how to use it in your business strategy. It contains reference modules that answer questions asked most often by entrepreneurs. The modules show how to identify, protect and use IP assets more effectively and as part of a business strategy.

Trilateral Web site
The Trilateral Offices, the European Patent Office (EPO), the Japanese Patent Office (JPO), and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) have been cooperating for the administration of their patent functions in order to gain possible mutual benefits since 1983. Their web site provides updated information on the activities of the Office.

Related Rutgers Resources

Thomas Edison's Patents
Rutgers University's Edison Papers web site provides full text of Thomas Edison's 1,093 United States patents.

Rutgers Trademark Licensing Program

Office of Corporate Liaison and Technology Transfer
Includes a list of Rutgers patents. The Rutgers patent policy is available under General Information for faculty.