MEDIA ADVISORY Contact: Jennifer Rankin Byrne or Ruth Nyblod (571) 272-8400 or Jennifer.Rankin_Byrne@uspto.gov; ruth.nyblod@uspto.gov

MEDIA ADVISORY Contact: Jennifer Rankin Byrne or Ruth Nyblod (571) 272-8400 or Jennifer.Rankin_Byrne@uspto.gov; ruth.nyblod@uspto.gov

Recently the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC), affirmed disciplinary action taken by the USPTO against a registered patent attorney, who became involved in the activities of one invention promotion company and represented more than one thousand inventors. This important decision lends critical support to the USPTO's efforts to protect unsuspecting inventors from unscrupulous invention promoters. If you have questions please call Harry Moatz, Director of the Office of Enrollment and Discipline, 571-272-6069.

The USPTO urges all independent inventors to read the court's decision

USPTO CELEBRATES A DECADE OF TELEWORK

The Department of Commerce's United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) today celebrated the ten-year anniversary of its Trademark Work at Home program, the agency's first telework initiative. Based on this successful model, the USPTO expanded its telework offerings to include business units across the agency, with more than 3,000 of the USPTO's approximately 8,500 employees currently participating in some form of telework. Over the past decade, USPTO has received accolades as a leader in the federal government for its successful and innovative telework programs.

The Trademark Work at Home program started as a small pilot project, with 18 trademark examining attorneys working from home three days per week and sharing office space with other program participants two days a week. The hope was that current technology could be leveraged to allow employees to enjoy the benefits of working remotely, while still meeting the same qualitative and quantitative goals as their colleagues who worked in the office five days a week.

After the Trademark Work at Home pilot proved to be successful, the USPTO ultimately grew its telework initiative to include patent examiners and employees in other business units throughout the agency. The ability to telework continues to gain popularity among USPTO employees. Among trademark examining attorneys, 85% of those who are eligible choose to telework. In the patents organization, the USPTO has a goal that 3,000 patent examiners will be teleworking by 2011.

Jon Dudas, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO, said, "Today we celebrate the anniversary of our Trademark Work at Home Program, which helped to demonstrate how beneficial the practice of telework could be to our entire agency. Telework programs are critical to our strategic vision, and we look forward to working with the Office of Personnel Management and Congress to expand these programs to eventually allow for a nationwide work force."

Telework offers countless benefits to the USPTO, its employees and the environment, including:

• Employee Quality of Life: Allowing employees to telework gives them more time with their loved ones and less time on the road. USPTO employees report that the ability to telework helps them have a better balance between their professional and personal lives.


• Employee Retention: The USPTO has seen that offering employees the ability to telework helps with employee retention, allowing the agency to retain highly qualified employees, saving hiring and training costs and contributing to a high quality of work.


• Maximizing Office Space: As more USPTO employees choose to telework, more office space is made available. This, in turn, gives the agency more flexibility to hire more staff without having to acquire and pay for additional space.


• Reducing Emissions: Telework can mean a significant reduction in auto emissions. For example, among the nearly 950 trademark examining attorneys and patent examiners working remotely four days a week, auto emissions are reduced up to 5,000 tons per year*, compared to if they drove to the office every day.

Rather than taking a “one size fits all” approach, the USPTO has more than a dozen telework programs to address the specific needs of its business units and employees. All of these programs follow procedure set forth in the USPTO Enterprise-wide Telework Policy and are overseen by an agency-wide telework coordinator.

USPTO has received a number of awards for its Trademark Work at Home program. These awards include the 2007 Work-Life Innovative Excellence Award presented by the Alliance for Work-Life Progress, the Telework Program with Maximum Impact on Government for 2006 by the Telework Exchange Tele-Vision Awards; the Telework in the Federal Government Leadership Award for 2004; and several others.

U.S. Chamber and North Carolina Co-Sponsoring

The USPTO is joining forces with the United States Chamber of Commerce and the state of North Carolina to hold a free conference on counterfeiting and piracy on June 13 from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event will be held at the McKinnon Center on the campus of North Carolina State University in Raleigh. Jon Dudas, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property will speak along with North Carolina Secretary of State, Elaine Marshall and Ron Calia, Senior Manager Global Anti-Counterfeiting and Piracy Initiative, U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Counterfeiting and piracy cost the U.S. economy between $200 and $250 billion per year in lost sales. It is responsible for the loss of 750,000 American jobs and poses a real threat to health and safety. The trade in illicit goods steals North Carolina jobs, North Carolina tax dollars, and threatens the lives of North Carolina citizens. Seminar attendees will learn what state and government resources are available to protect brands, how they can work with law enforcement to safeguard intellectual property, how to protect the supply chain here and abroad, and what the USPTO and Chamber are doing to defend American business as a whole.

Other speakers on the agenda include: Brian Monks, Vice President, Anti-Counterfeiting Operations, Underwriters Laboratorie,Christina Garner, Associate Licensing Counsel, NASCAR and Del Richburg, Supervisory Special Agent, Assistant Special Agent in Charge, Charlotte Office, Immigration and Customs Enforcement

There is no charge for the seminar and lunch will be provided. Registration is required.

>> Register now at http://ncsoskb.com (Use REGISTRATION CODE: June 13)

Michael Sykes, who invented an environmentally friendly, economical and efficient system for building houses, has been selected as the Grand Prize Winner in the annual Modern Marvels Invent Now Challenge. The Challenge, a national competition in search of America’s next great inventor is co-sponsored by the History Channel, the National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Sykes was one of five finalists and will receive $25,000. In addition, his invention, the Enertia Building System, will be featured along with the other four finalists during Modern Marvels Invent Now Week on the History Channel May 15-17. Check local listings for times.

In conjunction with this year’s challenge, the USPTO and the National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation hosted a two day independent inventors conference at the New York Academy of Sciences in Manhattan. The conference featured presentations by top USPTO officials, successful inventors and entrepreneurs.

“Margaret is a tremendous asset to the USPTO. With an impressive track record of success across several disciplines, she has established herself as a proven leader, strategic legal thinker, and knowledgeable legislative tactician,” said Jon Dudas, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO.  “Margaret will apply these skills to USPTO's challenges, which she well understands from her time representing the leadership of the U.S. House of Representatives.  Margaret's leadership will be instrumental in the USPTO's efforts to work with applicants to enhance the quality of their applications, process patents and trademarks in a timely manner, and operate in a way that motivates our employees and inspires our international partners.”

Before joining the USPTO, Ms. Peterlin was Counsel for Legal Policy and National Security Advisor for the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, J. Dennis Hastert.   In this role, she advised the Speaker, House and Senate leadership, and senior staff on legislative policy and strategy, including judiciary issues such as intellectual property protection, and international relations issues. 

She previously was General Counsel to Richard Armey, Majority Leader of the U.S. House.   She clerked on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals for Judge Jerry E. Smith.  Ms. Peterlin also served as an Officer in the U.S. Navy for four years, working in the communications field.

A native of Daleville, Alabama, Ms. Peterlin holds a bachelor of arts from the College of the Holy Cross.  She earned a legal degree cum laude from the University of Chicago, where she was the founding Editor in Chief of The Chicago Journal of International Law.   She is a member of the New York State Bar.

Top officials from the United States Patent and Trademark Office, successful inventors and entrepreneurs will headline the agency's New York Regional Independent Inventors Conference.  The event will be held May 12-13 at the New York Academy of Sciences in New York City. 

Registration is now open for this two-day event. The registration fee of $100 per person includes all sessions and presentations, morning and afternoon refreshments and lunch for both days.

For additional information about this event, call the Inventors Assistance Program at 571-272-8850.

To register by phone call the National Inventors Hall of Fame at 330-849-6903. To register on-line go to: http://www.invent.org/iic/

The USPTO.GOV website and all USPTO E-Business systems will be inaccessible between 10 PM and 12 Midnight ET on Saturday, 14 April 2007.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office, together with the Advertising Council and the National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation (NIHFF), today launched a national, multimedia public service advertising (PSA) campaign to engage a new generation of children in innovation. The campaign seeks to make inventing and developing new ideas part of American children's lives. The PSAs, which can be viewed online, are being distributed to 28,000 media stations nationwide this week. All of the new PSAs will air and run in advertising time and space donated by the media. The spots direct viewers to a website that has been created for the campaign, InventNow.org.

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Carlos M. Gutierrez unveiled the Inspiring Invention campaign at the National Press Club. "In an innovation-driven economy, the key to our future success and competitiveness lies in making sure we are sharing America's culture of innovation with our young people," said Gutierrez. "In doing so, we will prepare them to compete more effectively in the global marketplace and ensure that the United States maintains our global economic leadership."

USPTO's Under Secretary Jon Dudas was also on hand to unveil the campaign. "We see the Inspiring Invention campaign as a wonderful opportunity to show kids how fun and rewarding it can be to create. We hope that children who watch these ads will want to become more inventive; explore math, science, and other creative fields; and then share their new ideas -- to continue America's legacy of innovation."

For generations, the United States has been a recognized global leader in technology and innovation. While the country represents only 5 percent of the world's population, it accounts for nearly one-third of the world's science and engineering researchers and 40 percent of all research and development, according to the Council on Competitiveness However, with increased economic competition globally, it's widely recognized that the United States must take steps now to maintain its leadership. In particular, America must ensure we inspire future generations of innovators.

The new campaign, created in conjunction with ad agency Publicis & Hal Riney in San Francisco, aims to inspire children (specifically the "tweens," ages 8 to 11) to recognize how their imaginations can lead to the technological advances of the future. The campaign communicates that there is a role for every kind of unique curiosity and imaginative idea as it relates to invention. Ultimately, the goal is to motivate children to pursue inventing and innovating as part of their educations and, later, in their careers.

Developed with extensive research with inventors and children, the campaign includes new television, radio, outdoor and Web advertising that feature ordinary children creating inventions to solve everyday problems. The PSAs communicate to children that "anything is possible" and encourage them to "keep thinking." The ads direct audiences to visit a new comprehensive website, www.InventNow.org, to explore and discover their own innate inventiveness and curiosity. Designed by VPI (Visual Perspectives Internet), the site features interactive games and allows children to explore their inventive interests in space, sports, design and entertainment.

"Research conducted for our new campaign found that children are naturally curious and inventive, but they do not realize the impact of their creativity," according to Peggy Conlon, President & CEO of the Ad Council. "We are proud to join with the United States Patent and Trademark Office and The National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation on this wonderful effort to help children see that there are no limits to their creativity and imagination and that they can have a role in the technological advances of our future if they just 'keep thinking."

The "Inspiring Invention" campaign is one of several educational initiatives in which The National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation and the United States Patent and Trademark Office partner to encourage children to think inventively. Among these initiatives are the National Inventors Hall of Fame's Camp Invention and Club Invention programs, which are supported by the USPTO. Camp Invention, now in its 17th year, is a summer day camp that fosters creativity and inventive thinking skills that allow children to learn through hands-on activities, subject immersion, and discovery. In 2007, more than 60,000 students will attend Camp Invention in 47 states. Club Invention is an after-school program directed by the Hall of Fame that extends scientific inquiry-based education to after-school sites

National Inventors Hall of Fame Inductee and inventor of the modern microphone Dr. James West said, "This campaign relates directly to our mission of inspiring invention and creativity. It's a prime opportunity for us to capture the attention of children and share with them the wonders of science and technology, inspiring them enough to become involved in life-long endeavors in these fields. Our future, and theirs, will be much richer because of it."

Also Meets with Heads of Chinese IP Offices(09APR2007)

Meetings further deepen U.S. cooperation with Chinese IP Offices and speech outlines what governments are doing to address exponential worldwide growth in patent applications and intellectual property theft

The U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property (IP) and Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Jon Dudas recently spoke at the Global Forum on Intellectual Property Rights Protection and Innovation in Beijing where he stressed the need for strong intellectual property protection and enforcement to foster innovation and wealth creation. The meeting in late March was hosted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and China’s Council for the Promotion of International Trade.

This was Mr. Dudas’ seventh trip to China to work on IP issues. He used the opportunity to meet with representatives of Chinese IP-related agencies to further bilateral cooperation on finding solutions to IP protection and enforcement challenges. Mr. Dudas met with Commissioner Tian Lipu of the State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO), China's Patent Office for their second heads-of-offices meeting. The USPTO and SIPO have witnessed dramatic growth in patent application filings, and last year, the two agencies signed a work plan of strategic cooperation intended to reduce the workloads of both agencies and to further cooperation. Under the work plan, the USPTO has implemented an examiner exchange program and initiated an automation expert group meeting, as well as providing training to SIPO examiners and managers on biotechnology patent examination, examiner training and certification, and quality assurance.  Cooperative programs planned for the future include training of SIPO examiners at the USPTO Patent Academy, a workshop on traditional knowledge, genetic resources, and folklore, and an IP enforcement program.

The USPTO is pursuing similar agreements for future office-to-office exchanges with China’s Trademark and Copyright Offices.  While in China, Mr. Dudas met with Vice Minister Li Dongsheng of State Administration for Industry and Commerce to discuss trademark protection and enforcement. The two countries tentatively agreed to a number of joint programs on trademarks in 2007, including a May roundtable on the filing of abusive trademark applications, a June workshop on geographical indications, and trademark examination training at the USTPO in September.  

Mr. Dudas and Vice Minister Liu Binjie of China’s General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP) agreed to enhance institutional cooperation on copyrights by signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to be finalized in the next few months. Under the MOU, USPTO and GAPP will work together to exchange information on copyright matters, to exchange technical assistance, and work jointly to combat piracy.  Mr. Dudas also secured agreement from GAPP to help resolve jurisdictional disputes that have hindered textbook piracy enforcement.
 
In addition, Mr. Dudas met with China’s Supreme People’s Court and State Council’s Legislative Affairs Office to discuss China’s judicial IP enforcement and pending amendments to China’s IP laws, as well technical exchanges and cooperation.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez to Unveil New Campaign to Inspire Invention

April 5, 2007

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Carlos M. Gutierrez will join the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation and The Advertising Council to unveil a national public service advertising (PSA) campaign designed to engage a new generation of children to make innovation, invention and technological development an integral part of their lives.

WHO	• Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez, U.S. Department of Commerce • Jon Dudas, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office • Kathy Crosby, Senior Vice President, The Advertising Council • Dr. James West, National Inventors Hall of Fame Inductee and Inventor of the Modern Microphone • Local Elementary School Students
WHEN	Tuesday, April 10, 9:30 a.m.
WHERE	The National Press Club (Zenger Room) 529 14th Street NW Washington, DC 20045

United States Patent and Trademark Office

Since 1790, the basic role of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has remained the same: to promote the progress of science and the useful arts by securing for limited times to inventors the exclusive right to their respective discoveries (Article 1, Section 8 of the United States Constitution). Today, the USPTO is a federal agency in the Department of Commerce, headquartered in Alexandria , Virginia . Through the issuance of patents, the USPTO encourages technological advancement by providing incentives to invent, invest in, and disclose new technology worldwide. Through the registration of trademarks, the agency assists businesses in protecting their investments, promoting goods and services, and safeguarding consumers against confusion and deception in the marketplace. By disseminating both patent and trademark information, the USPTO promotes an understanding of intellectual property protection and facilitates the development and sharing of new technologies worldwide.

  National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation

The not-for-profit National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation is the premier organization in America dedicated to honoring and fostering creativity and invention. Each year a new class of inventors is inducted into the Hall of Fame in recognition of their patented inventions that make human, social, and economic progress possible. Founded in 1973 by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the National Council of Intellectual Property Law Association, the Hall's permanent home is Akron, Ohio, where the inventors in the Hall are honored and from where it administers its national programs, including Camp Invention ® , Club Invention ® , and the Collegiate Inventors Competition ® . For more information, visit www.invent.org .

  Ad Council

The Ad Council is a private, non-profit organization with a rich history of marshalling volunteer talent from the advertising and media industries to deliver critical messages to the American public. Having produced literally thousands of PSA campaigns addressing the most pressing social issues of the day, the Ad Council has effected, and continues to effect, tremendous positive change by raising awareness, inspiring action, and saving lives. For more information, please visit www.adcouncil.org .

The Department of Commerce’s United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) today released the agency’s “2007-2012 Strategic Plan,” which lays out goals and objectives to guide the agency in accomplishing its mission of fostering innovation and competitiveness by providing high quality and timely examination of patent and trademark applications, guiding domestic and international intellectual property policy and delivering intellectual property information worldwide.

The plan builds upon the record-breaking progress the USPTO made during fiscal year 2006 in the areas of quality production, electronic filing and processing, teleworking and hiring.

The Strategic Plan has three complementary strategic goals: (1) optimizing patent quality and timeliness; (2) optimizing trademark quality, and (3) improving intellectual property protection and enforcement domestically and abroad. The plan outlines approaches toward attaining these goals, articulates underlying challenges and opportunities, and identifies steps that can be taken toward implementation. It provides a framework for continuing to make measurable quality improvements, reducing patent application pendency, increasing the percentage of patent applications filed electronically and improving worldwide intellectual property expertise.

The five-year plan also has a management goal of achieving organizational excellence. As part of this goal, the agency will strive to become an employer of choice with a culture of high performance and to enhance organizational communication, prerequisites to achieving the strategic goals focused on the agency’s core mission.

The plan is the outcome of a collaborative process that included input from the public, stakeholders and employees. A draft Strategic Plan was released in September 2006 and comments were solicited. Through public comment, employee focus sessions and the input of the Patent Public Advisory Committee and the Trademark Public Advisory Committee, the plan’s ambitious goals are more clearly stated.  Further, the final plan seeks to outline transformational strategies that balance the short-term needs of today’s applicants with strategic changes needed to deal the increasing complexity and numbers of patent applications.

The “2007-2012 Strategic Plan” is available at Strategic Plan .

Patent Issues in 6 months, 18 Months Sooner Than Under Regular Process

The Department of Commerce’s United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued the first patent under its accelerated examination program that began in August 2006. The patent, for a printer ink gauge, was filed with the USPTO on September 29, 2006, and was awarded to Brother International, Ltd. on March 13, 2007.  Average review time for applications in the ink cartridge technology area is 25.4 months.  This patent issued in 6 months, a time savings of 18 months for the patent holder.

"Accelerated examination allows any innovator in any technology to get a full patent review and decision within twelve months,” noted Jon Dudas, under secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property.  In return for cutting the time to obtain a patent decision by 25-75%, the agency asks the applicant for a better application and process.  Inventors who want speedy results can get them, so long as they help improve the process."

To be eligible for accelerated examination, applicants are required to provide specific information, known as an examiner support document, so that review of the application can be completed rapidly and accurately. In return, the USPTO issues a final decision by the examiner within 12 months on whether their application for a patent will be granted or denied.

Any invention that is new, useful, non-obvious, and which is accompanied by a written description disclosing how to make and use it can be patented.  Applicants’ submissions enjoy a presumption of patentability.  Thus, to reject an application the USPTO is responsible for ensuring that any evidence indicating that the invention is not new or is obvious (known as “prior art”) is identified and explaining why the invention is not patentable in view of the evidence.

Applicants have a duty to disclose to the USPTO relevant prior art of which they are aware.  However, applicants are not required to search for prior art. Under the USPTO’s accelerated examination procedure, applicants are required to conduct a search of the prior art, to submit all prior art that is closest to their invention, and explain what the prior art teaches and how their invention is different.
 
In addition to providing and explaining any prior art references, applicants must explicitly state how their invention is useful and must show how the written description supports the claimed invention. 

Under the accelerated examination program, the number of claims allowed in each application is limited and time periods for responding to most USPTO communications are shortened.

The accelerated examination procedure is designed to give applicants quality patents in less time. In exchange for quick examination, patent examiners will receive more focused and detailed information about the invention and the closest prior art from the applicants.  This increased disclosure upfront by applicants will help examiners more quickly make the correct decision about whether a claimed invention deserves a patent