| Patent Prosecution Highway |
Referenced Items (181, 182, 183, 184, 185, 186, 187, 188, 189, 190, 191, 192, 193, 194, 195, 196, 197, 198) |
(181) Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) Pilot Program
between the United States Patent and Trademark Office
and the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property
I. Background
Since March 1, 2011, the United States Patent and Trademark Office
(USPTO) has partnered with the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property
(IMPI) in a Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) program. The PPH enables an
applicant who receives a positive ruling on patent claims from one
participating office to request accelerated prosecution of corresponding
claims in another participating office, which allows the applicant to
obtain a patentability decision in the second office more quickly.
Furthermore, the PPH promotes patent application processing efficiency by
allowing the examiner in the second office to reuse the search and
examination results from the first office, thereby reducing workload and
duplication of effort.
On January 6, 2014, the USPTO began participating in the Global PPH and
IP5 PPH ("Global/IP5 PPH") pilot programs, which consolidated and replaced
numerous earlier PPH programs, thereby streamlining and simplifying the PPH
process for both applicants and Global/IP5 PPH participating offices. See
Implementation of the Global and IP5 Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) Pilot
Programs with Participating Offices, 1400 OFF. GAZ. PAT. OFFICE 172
(Mar. 18, 2014).
Following discussions between the USPTO and the IMPI, the USPTO will be
implementing an updated PPH pilot program with the IMPI. The IMPI is not
currently a Global/IP5 PPH participating office and is partnering with the
USPTO in the PPH on a bilateral basis only. However, a PPH request
submitted in the USPTO based on IMPI work product will be treated under the
published Global/IP5 PPH standards as discussed in Section III below.
II. Trial Period for the PPH Pilot Program with the IMPI
The updated PPH pilot program will commence on July 1, 2015, and will
run for a period of one year ending on June 30, 2016. The trial period may
be extended if necessary to adequately assess the feasibility of the
updated PPH program. Both offices will continually evaluate the results of
the updated PPH pilot program to determine whether and how the program
should be modified. The offices also may terminate the updated PPH pilot
program early if the volume of participation exceeds a manageable level, or
for any other reason. Notice will be published if the updated PPH pilot
program will be terminated. Unless the IMPI becomes a Global PPH
participating office, any extension or termination of the Global/IP5 PPH
program will have no effect on this updated PPH pilot program.
III. Participation in the PPH Pilot Program with the IMPI in the USPTO
Any request to participate in a PPH program in the USPTO based on IMPI
work product is subject to the same requirements and procedures as, and
will receive equivalent treatment to, a request made under the Global/IP5
PPH pilot program as set forth in the following notice: Implementation of
the Global and IP5 Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) Pilot Programs with
Participating Offices, 1400 OFF. GAZ. PAT. OFFICE 172 (Mar. 18, 2014). This
PPH pilot program will also be subject to any modifications to the
requirements and procedures of the Global/IP5 PPH pilot program. A request
form (Form PTO/SB/20MX) will be available from the USPTO Web site at
http://www.uspto.gov/patents/init_events/pph.
Any inquiries concerning this notice may be directed to Bryan Lin,
International Patent Legal Administration, at 571-272-3303, or via e-mail
addressed to bryan.lin@uspto.gov.
Specific questions about the Patent Prosecution Highway should be
directed to the Office of Petitions at 571-272-3282, or via e-mail
addressed to PPHfeedback@uspto.gov.
June 21, 2015 MICHELLE K. LEE
Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and
Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office
[1416 OG 200]
Top of Notices (181) December 29, 2015