Library Guides: CE/ECE/ME Engineering Senior Design Project: Patent Resources and Research

Patent Databases

US Patent & Trademark Office, Patent Full Text and Image Database]
Patents may be searched in the USPTO Patent Full-Text and Image Database (PatFT). The USPTO houses full text for patents issued from 1976 to the present and PDF images for all patents from 1790 to the present.
Espacenet patent search
Espacenet contains data on more than 90 million patent documents from around the world. Supporting information can help you understand whether a patent has been granted and if it is still in force.
Google Patents
A good place to start with a keyword search. However it is not comprehensive and searching USPTO by subject classification is more comprehensive
FreePatentsOnline
Some canned searches are available and some large company searches are available
Patent Lens
Great database to search for Patents by company name. Enter the company name and search by "applicant" in the pull down menu

Google Patents & USPTO: Six Step Strategy

The steps below lay out a strategy to search for patents .

Use Google Patents to begin your search with keywords or a phrase enclosed by quotes. When selecting keywords to use in a search be sure to include technical terms. Is this a product or process ? What is the physical composition of the invention? How is the invention used? Also include synonyms that may be used to describe the product or process.
From the results from your Google Patents search identify a closely matching patents to your search terms. Click on the link to view that patent on USPTO webpage. Find the classification of the patent you are viewing and plug that classification number into the USPTO database . Select classification system "CPC" enter the classification symbol and Select Content: "Scheme" and click submit.
This takes you to the appropriate classification for your patent and shows all the subclasses for the patent.
Use the relevant CPC code to look up patents in the US Patent & Trademark Office, Patent Full Text and Image Database (PatFT) and the USPTO, Patent Application Full Text and Image Database (AppFT).
Review the patents within the classification by focusing on the front page information of abstract and representative drawings. During this quick review select patents that might be most relevant for in depth review.
With this group of relevant patents look at them in depth by reviewing all drawing pages and especially the claims. The references in each patent my also lead you to relevant patents. Your goal here is to do a comprehensive search to discover any related invention. During this review process you will uncover additional terminology to use in a revised search. It is important to remember that revising your initial search after reviewing results will enable you to find patents that will be relevant but over looked in the initial search.
You will also want to broaden your search by using the revised search terms to search non-US patents such as Espacenet or Patent Lens

Patent Organizations and Classification

USPTO
The United States Patent and Trademark Office website. You can search for patents, patent applications, trademarks, and class schedules.
World Intellectual Property Organization
A global forum focused on intellectual property, collaboration, policy, and information.
International Patent Classification (IPC)
Provided through WIPO, the International Patent Classification (IPC), is made up of a hierarchical system of language that utilizes independent symbols for the classification of patents and utility models according to the different areas of technology they pertain too.

CE/ECE/ME Engineering Senior Design Project

Why Use Patents?

Patent Related Tutorials

Patent Databases

Google Patents & USPTO: Six Step Strategy

Patent Organizations and Classification