| General Information |
Referenced Items (147, 148, 149, 150, 151, 152, 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 158, 159, 160, 161, 162, 163) |
(160) Notice of Change in Procedures
for Recording Inventors' Names
The Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has received a number of
complaints from the public regarding improper truncation of inventors'
names as printed on the Letters Patent. Changes on the printed patent
currently require the filing and processing of certificates of correction.
In an effort to address these complaints, the PTO has decided to change
the method of recording and printing inventors' names on the Letters
Patent. This change in the manner in which inventors' names will be printed
on the Letters Patent is not to be confused with an actual change in an
inventors' name as it appears on the oath or declaration, which requires
correction by way of a petition under 37 CFR 1.182 (see MPEP 605.04(c)).
Accordingly, the PTO printing contractor will be instructed to print
inventors' names on the Letters Patent exactly as the names are typed on
the oath or declaration. For example, an oath or declaration with a
printed inventor's name of Jonathan Hohenhauser Smithfield Williams,
Jr., and a signature which is legible as Jonathan H. S. Williams, Jr.,
would have the Letters Patent printed with Jonathan Hohenhauser
Smithfield Williams, Jr. as the inventor.
In order to have the PTO's records parallel as much as possible the
above-noted changes, effective immediately, Application Processing
Division will begin to enter into PALM (the PTO's computerized database)
each inventor's name as printed or typed in the oath or declaration.
Since the relevant fields in the PALM system for inventors' given names
and last name are each limited to 25 characters, the example given above
would be entered into the PALM system as Jonathan Hohenhauser Smit
Williams, Jr. This PALM entry would be reflected on the filing receipt
mailed to applicants. While the name `Smithfield' would be truncated in
the PALM system to `Smit' as a result of the 25 character limitation,
the printed patent will contain the full name as indicated above.
There is a time lag between the PTO printing contractor's receipt of
an application to be issued as a patent and the patent's actual issue
date. Therefor, patents issued on or after June 17, 1997, will contain
the inventors' full names exactly as they are printed on the oath or
declaration.
In all applications filed on or after April 18, 1997, applicants are
cautioned to give their full names in the oath or declaration exactly as
they would like them to be printed on the Letters Patent. In
applications filed before April 18, 1997, if applicants do not desire to
have their full names printed on the Letters Patent as they are printed
or typed in the oath or declaration (at least one given name must be
typed or printed in full), they must either: (1) request correction at
the time of payment of the issue fee; or (2) if the issue fee has been
paid prior to April 18, 1997, request correction, as soon as possible,
by writing to Box Issue Fee, Assistant Commissioner for Patents,
Washington, D.C. 20231. The requested correction will be made if
sufficient time remains for the PTO to complete technical preparation of
the text to be printed on the Letters Patent.
February 13, 1997 EDWARD R. KAZENSKE
Deputy Assistant Commissioner
for Patents
[1196 OG 67]
Top of Notices (160) December 31, 2019