Introduction    Manual of PATENT EXAMINING PROCEDURE
---SECTION---Title Page / Back Page Information
Original Seventh Edition, July 1998  [GRAPHIC]

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Patent and Trademark Office


The Patent and Trademark Office does not handle the sale of the Manual,
distribution of notices and revisions, or change of address of those on
the subscription list.  Correspondence relating to existing
subscriptions should be sent to the Superintendent of Documents at the
following address:

Superintendent of Documents 	Telephone:     202-512-2267

Mail List Section

Washington, DC 20402

Inquiries relating to purchasing the Manual should be directed to:

Superintendent of Documents 	Telephone:     202-512-1800

United States Government Printing Office

Washington, DC 20402

Orders for reproduced copies of individual replacement pages or of
previous revisions of the Manual should be sent to the following
address:

Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks 	Telephone:     1-800-972-6382 or
703-308-9726

Attention: Certification Branch

Washington, DC 20231

Previous editions and revisions of the Manual are available on microfilm
in the Public Search Room.

The Manual is available on CD-ROM and on diskette from:

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office 	Telephone:     703-306-2600

Office of Electronic Information Products and Services

Washington, DC 20231

Employees of the Patent and Trademark Office should direct their
requests for the Manual, replacement pages, notices, and revisions to
the Patent Academy.

	Telephone:     703-308-9660



Additions to the text of the Manual are indicated by arrows
(&gt;&lt;&lt;) inserted in the text.   Deletions are indicated by a
single asterisk (*) where a single word was deleted and by two asterisks
(**) where more than one word was deleted.  The use of three or five
asterisks in the body of the laws and rules indicates a portion of the
law or rule which was not reproduced.

First Edition, November 1949

Second Edition, November 1953

Third Edition, November 1961

Fourth Edition, June 1979

Fifth Edition, August 1983

Sixth Edition, January 1995

Seventh Edition, July 1998

---SECTION---Foreword

This Manual is published to provide Patent and Trademark Office patent
examiners, applicants, attorneys, agents, and representatives of
applicants with a reference work on the practices and procedures
relative to the prosecution of patent applications before the Patent and
Trademark Office.  It contains instructions to examiners, as well as
other material in the nature of information and interpretation, and
outlines the current procedures which the examiners are required or
authorized to follow in appropriate cases in the normal examination of a
patent application. The Manual does not have the force of law or the
force of the rules in Title 37 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

A separate manual entitled "Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure" is
published by the Patent and Trademark Office as a reference work for
trademark cases.

Examiners will be governed by the applicable statutes, rules, decisions,
and orders and instructions issued by the Commissioner and the Assistant
Commissioners.  Orders and Notices still in force which relate to the
subject matter included in this Manual are incorporated in the text.
Orders and Notices, or portions thereof, relating to the examiners'
duties and functions which have been omitted or not incorporated in the
text may be considered obsolete.  Interference procedure not directly
involving the Primary Examiner are not included in this Manual and,
therefore, Orders and Notices relating thereto remain in force.

Subsequent changes in practice and other revisions will be incorporated
in the form of substitute or additional pages for the Manual.

Suggestions for improving the form and content of the Manual are always
welcome.  They should be addressed to:

Box MPEP

Assistant Commissioner for Patents

Washington, D.C. 20231

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing
Office, Washington, D.C. 20402

---SECTION---Introduction

Constitutional Basis

The Constitution of the United States provides:

"Art. 1, Sec. 8. The Congress shall have power . . . To promote the
progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to
authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings
and discoveries."

Statutes

Pursuant to the provision of the Constitution, Congress has over the
years passed a number of statutes under which the Patent and Trademark
Office is organized and our patent system is established. The provisions
of the statutes can in no way be changed or waived by the Patent and
Trademark Office.

Prior to January 1, 1953, the law relating to patents consisted of
various sections of the Revised Statutes of 1874, derived from the
Patent Act of 1870 and numerous amendatory and additional acts.

By an Act of Congress approved July 19, 1952, which came into effect on
January 1, 1953, the patent laws were revised and codified into
substantially its present form. The patent law is Title 35 of the United
States Code which governs all cases in the Patent and Trademark Office.
In referring to a particular section of the patent code the citation is
given, for example, as, 35 U.S.C. 31.  Title 35 of the United States
Code is reproduced in Appendix L of the Manual of Patent Examining
Procedure (MPEP).

35 U.S.C. 1 Establishment.

The Patent and Trademark Office shall continue as an office in the
Department of Commerce, where records, books, drawings, specifications,
and other papers and things pertaining to patents and to trademark
registrations shall be kept and preserved, except as otherwise provided
by law.

Rules

One of the sections of the patent statute, namely, 35 U.S.C. 6,
uthorizes the Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks, subject to the
approval of the Secretary of Commerce, to establish regulations, not
inconsistent with law, for the conduct of proceedings in the Patent and
Trademark Office.

These regulations or rules and amendments thereto are published in the
Federal Register and in the Official Gazette.  In the Federal Register
and in the Code of Federal Regulations the rules pertaining to patents
are in Parts 1, 3, 5, and 10 of Title 37, Patents, Trademarks, and
Copyrights.  In referring to a particular section of the rules the
citation is given, for example, as 37 CFR 1.31. A booklet entitled "Code
of Federal Regulations, Title 37, Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights,"
published by the Office of the Federal Register, contains all of the
patent rules as well as trademark rules and copyright rules. Persons
desiring a copy of this booklet should order a copy from the
Superintendent of Documents.

The primary function of the rules is to advise the public of the rules
which have been established in accordance with the statutes and which
must be followed before the Office. The rules govern the examiners, as
well as applicants and their attorneys and agents. The rules pertaining
to patent practice appear in the MPEP as Appendix R.

Commissioner's Orders and Notices

From time to time, the Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks has issued
Orders and Notices relating to various specific situations that have
arisen in operating the Patent and Trademark Office.  Notices and
circulars of information or instructions have also been issued by other
Office officials under authority of the Commissioner. Orders and Notices
have served various purposes including giving examiners instruction,
information, interpretations, and the like. Others have been for the
information of the public, advising what the Office will do under
specified circumstances.

Decisions

In addition to the statutes and rules, the actions taken by the examiner
in the examination of   applications for patents are to a great extent
governed by decisions on prior cases.  Applicants dissatisfied with an
examiner's action may have it reviewed.  In general, that portion of the
examiner's action pertaining to objections on formal matters may be
reviewed by petition to the Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks (see
MPEP Section  1002), and that portion of the examiner's action
pertaining to the rejection of claims on the merits may be reviewed by
appeal to the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (see MPEP
Section  1201).  The distinction is set forth in 37 CFR 1.181 and 1.191.
In citing decisions as authority for his or her actions, the examiner
should cite the decision in the manner set forth in MPEP Section
707.06.

Publications Available from Superintendent of Documents

The following is a partial list of patent related publications available
from the Superintendent of Documents.  Orders should be addressed and
remittances made payable to Superintendent of Documents, U. S.
Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402.

Official Gazette of the United States Patent and Trademark
Office-Patents.  The official journal of the Patent and Trademark Office
relating to patents. Issued each Tuesday, simultaneously with the weekly
issuance of patents, it contains a selected figure of the drawings and a
claim of each patent granted, indexes of patents, lists of patents
available for license or sale, and general information such as orders,
notices, changes in rules, and changes in classification.

Annual Indexes.  An index of the patents issued each year is published
in two volumes, one an alphabetical index of patentees and the other an
index by subject matter of inventions. The two parts are sold
separately.  Price varies from year to year, depending upon size of the
publication. An annual index of Trademarks contains an alphabetical
index of trademark registrants, registration numbers, dates published,
classification of goods for which registered, and decisions published
during the calendar year. Price varies from year to year, depending upon
size of the publication.

Guide for the Preparation of Patent Drawings.  Contains selected rules
of practice relating to patent drawings and interpretations of those
rules, including examples of patent drawings.

Manual of Classification. A looseleaf volume listing the numbers and
descriptive titles of the more than 300 classes and 95,000 subclasses
used in the subject classification of patents, with an index to the
classifications.  Substitute and additional pages, which are included in
the subscription service, are issued from time to time.

General Information Concerning Patents. Contains a vast amount of
general information concerning the application for and granting of
patents, expressed in nontechnical language for the layman. Multiple
copies available from Superintendent of Documents.

Manual of Patent Examining Procedure.  A looseleaf manual which serves
primarily as a detailed reference work on patent examining practice and
procedure for the Patent and Trademark Office's Examining Corps
including statutes, rules, treaties, etc.  Subscription service includes
basic manual, revisions, and change notices.

Attorneys and Agents Registered to Practice Before the U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office.  An alphabetically and a geographically arranged
listing of patent attorneys and agents registered to practice before the
U. S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Code of Federal Regulations, Title 37, Patents, Trademaks, and
Copyrights.  Compilation including the rules of practice of the U. S.
Patent and Trademark Office.

Publications Available From the Patent and Trademark Office

Orders should be addressed to Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks,
Washington, D.C. 20231.  Remittances should be made payable to
Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks.  Postage stamps, Superintendent
of Documents coupons or other Government coupons are not acceptable in
payment of Patent and Trademark Office fees (except as set forth in 37
CFR 1.24).

Basic Facts About Patents.  Brief nontechnical answers to questions most
frequently asked about Patents.

Guide to Filing a Patent Application. Brief technical description of the
required parts of a patent application.

Patents. Copies of the specification and drawings of all patents are
available at three dollars each.  When ordering, identify the patent by
the patent number, or give full name of the inventor and approximate
date of issuance of the patent.

Classification Definitions. Contain the changes in classification of
patents as well as definitions of new and revised classes and
subclasses.  Price is based upon size of publication.

For a current list of Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) publications and
the sources from which these publications are available, contact the PTO
General Information Services Division at 1-800-786-9199 or 703-308-4357.

See MPEP Section  1730 for additional information sources.
