Patent Research Guide

This guide provides an introduction to some of the resources in finding patents.  Below you will find a list of print, online, and Internet resources with descriptions as to the type of information each contains.  Please contact the Reference Desk on the 2^nd floor of Mitchell Memorial Library, (662) 325-7667, or Email a Librarian for further assistance with any of these resources or with any questions.

 

Guides

U.S. Patent Office.  Index of Patents 1927-1997. 

Ref T223 .D3

A two volume set, can search by list of patentees, or by subjects of inventions. 

U.S. Patent Office.  Index to the U.S. Patent Classification System.

Ref T223 .A25 (1994-1998)  

Government Documents C21.12/2:2002 (1999 to the present)

Also available electronically http://www.uspto.gov/go/classification/uspcindex/indextouspc.htm 

Online Databases

DOE Information Bridge

http://www.osti.gov/bridge/

The Information Bridge provides an open source to full-text and bibliographic records (1948 to the present) of Department of Energy (DOE) research and development reports in physics, chemistry, materials, biology, environmental sciences, energy technologies, engineering, computer and information science, renewable energy, and other topics.  Includes access to the Energy Citations Database.

Lexis/Nexis

Available electronically.
** For remote access, you must be affiliated with Mississippi State University. **

To search for patents in Lexis/Nexis, choose Legal Research, scroll down to Patent Research, and click on Patents.  Searches can be conducted by keyword, patent number, inventor, U.S. classification number, etc.

SciFinder Scholar

ATTENTION: Currently, MSU only has TWO (2) access ports to SciFinder Scholar.

Explore chemical substances by chemical name, chemical structure, formulas, or CAS Registry Numbers®. Find literature relevant to a topic of interest, written by a specific author, or by CA abstract number or patent number.

Fee Based Services

A reference librarian can perform an STN or a Dialog patent search for a fee.  An STN search may the most effective, and comprehensive way of finding patents.  The user pays for the search, and any results found from the search.

Internet Resources

Mississippi

Mississippi Library Commission

The Mississippi Library Commission was designated as an official Patent & Trademark Depository Library (PTDL) in 1990 by the US Department of Commerce, Patent and Trademark Office.  A wide variety of services are provided from extensive holdings of patent & trademark resources.  While the primary users are inventors, attorneys, and researchers, the services are open to the general public.  Contact them by:

E-mail: mlcref@mlc.lib.ms.us

Phone: 601.961.4111 or 1.877.594.5733

Fax: 601.354.7007

 

United States

Patent and Trademark Depository Library

http://www.uspto.gov/go/ptdl

This is the only official website of the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Users can search for issued patents, full text since 1976 and full page images since 1790, or by published applications, published since 2001.

 

Canada

Canadian Patents Database http://patents1.ic.gc.ca/intro-e.html

http://www.uspto.gov/go/ptdl

This database lets you access over 75 years of patent descriptions and images. You can search, retrieve and study more than 1,500,000 patent documents.

Europe

European Patent Office http://www.european-patent-office.org/espacenet/info/access.htm

Users can search full text image patents from many European countries, including: Austria, Finland, Italy, Germany, The Netherlands, France, and the United Kingdom.

 

Japan

Japan Patent Office http://www.jpo.go.jp/

The Industrial Property Digital Library of the Japanese Patent Office is a searchable database of patent information held by the JPO, accessible free of charge to users via the Internet.

 

Microfilm

U.S. Department of Commerce, Patent Office.  Official Gazette of the United States Patent Office.  Patents. Microfilm

NFX T223.A23

Microfilm collection from volume 1 (1872) to 1262 (2002). 

Government Documents C 21.5/6: v.1261#3 (2002) to present

 

CD-ROM/DVDs

U.S. Patent Office.  Patents and Trademarks ASSIGN

Government Documents C 21.31/13:

Patents and Trademarks ASSIGN includes assignment data for both patents and trademarks.  Patent data is derived from assignment deeds recorded from August 1980 through the present, including assignments of patent grants and patent applications.

U.S. Patent Office. Patents CLASS: Current Classifications of U.S. Patents Issued 1790 to Present

Government Documents C 21.31/5:

This database contains current classification information for all utility, design, plant, reissue, X-numbered patents, and patent application publications, and defensive publications and statutory invention registrations issued from 1790 to the present.

 

U.S. Patent Office.  Patents ASSIST:  Full Text of Patent Search Tools Government Documents C 21.31/5:

This database provides searchable text of many patent search tools including:  Index to the U.S. Patent Classification; IPC-USPC Concordance; Manual of Classification; and Manual of Patent Examining Procedure.  In addition, Classification Definitions, a Patent/Applicant-Assignee Index, and a Classification Orders Index are included.

 

Mississippi State University Resources

The Office of Intellectual Property and Technology Licensingis available to all MSU researchers to aid them in the patent process.  Charles Rivenburgh, the director, and his staff may be available at their website:  http://iptl.msstate.edu/, or by phone at:(662) 325-3521.

Created by Marybeth Grimes, Reference Services Librarian.
Created 12/05/03.