Cassis Currents No. 21
April 2004

ANNUAL INDEX FOR 2003 PUBLISHED

The Annual Index of Patents Issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for 2003 was published in March. This index, similar to the electronic indexes issued for 2001 and 2003, contains all of the Electronic Official Gazette - Patents (eOG:P) records for 2003 and all related indexes.

Patents are indexed by patentee name, including inventor and assignee, patent type, i.e. utility or design, classification, and geographical location, both state and country. All index entries are linked to the eOG:P record. An added feature in the 2003 index is the ability to enter a patent number to jump to a specific patent. This feature is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1 Retrieval of Patent by Patent Number - 2003 Annual Index

The eOG:P records include a representative claim and exemplary drawing, if applicable, in addition to bibliographic information. Bibliographic information includes inventor/assignee, classification, and application information. A link to the full text of the patent and image of the patent in the Full-Text and Full-Page Image Patent Database on the USPTO web site is also provided in the top left corner of the eOG:P record.

The Official Gazette Notices for 2003, covering both patents and trademarks, are included as is the Consolidated Listing of Official Gazette Notices Re-Patent and Trademark Office Practices and Procedures. This listing is a compilation of the most important notices and rule changes which have been published in the Official Gazette from July 1, 1964, through December 31, 2003. All notices are indexed by number and subject.

Appendices include a summary of the number of Patents, Defensive Publications, and Statutory Invention Registrations issued from 1836 through 2003 as well as linked listings of Patent and Trademark Depository Libraries (PTDLs) and Federal Depository Libraries receiving USPTO publications.

Since the eOG:P began publication in July 2002, the 2003 Index was the first annual index to be compiled completely from existing eOG:P records. In order to produce the 2001 and 2002 indexes, it was necessary to create all of 2001 and the first six months of 2002 from other sources.

The Annual Index of Patents Issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office will continue to be published in paper through 2000. This publication will be available from the Government Printing Office. For more information, visit their site at http://bookstore.gpo.gov/.

The Annual Index of Patents Issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for 2001, 2002, and 2003 is available from the Office of Electronic Information Products for $300 per year. Please contact us for more information.

Figure 2 2003 Annual Index Disc

eOG:P FAQ

Q. What file type is used in eOG:P and Annual Index records?

A. eOG:P and Annual Index records are HTML pages with embedded GIFs. The exemplary drawings are stored as GIFs.

Q. Can I save an eOG:P or Annual Index record?

A. Yes, the procedure varies by the type of browser you are using.

Using Netscape, right-click on the eOG:P record. Depending on the version you are using, there are two options. Older versions offer an “Open Frame in New Window” option as in Figure 3. Once opened in a new window, the frame will fill the entire window. Use the “Save As” option from the File menu to save the page. Newer versions offer the “Save As” option when you right-click. Finally, with either version, select the drive and name the file. It will be saved as an HTML file.

Figure 3 Open Frame in New Window Option in Netscape

Using Internet Explorer, it is a little trickier. Right-click on the eOG:P record. Select the “Properties” option. On the Properties tab, highlight and copy the URL (see Figure 4). Return to the eOG:P page and paste the URL into the browser’s address input line. The record will now fill the entire new window. Use the “Save As” option from the File menu to save the page. Select the drive and name the file. It will be saved as an HTML file.

Figure 4 Property Tab in Internet Explorer

Q. Do I have to save the entire record or can I just save the drawing?

A. You can just save the drawing. To do this, follow these next steps:

Right-click on the drawing in the eOG:P record. Select “Save Picture As” in Internet Explorer or “Save Image As” in Netscape. Select the drive and name the file. The image is saved as a GIF file.

Note: If you right-click outside of the image area, you are not given the option to save image or picture. Move your cursor to the image area and right-click again.

Cassis FAQ

Q. How do you export records from Cassis?

A. Once you have performed your search and retrieved the results you want to export, determine if you want to sort the records or change the display style sheet. When you have the results in the order and have set up the display that you want, select the “Export” option under the File menu. Select “Selected Documents” or “All Documents” depending on the records you are exporting.

Next, select either “Delimited” or “SGML” to designate how you would like the data exported. If you selected “Delimited” you next need to specify which delimiter you want to use, the | symbol or “Pipe,” “comma,” or “tab.” We recommend that you use the pipe because commas and tabs are already used in the database records and this can cause confusion. Figure 5 below displays export menu selections.

Figure 5 Cassis2 Export Menu Selection

Specify the drive and file name. Once your export is set up, Cassis will begin exporting. The export status, the record number currently being exported, is indicated in the lower left corner of the Cassis2 user interface, as shown in Figure 6.

Figure 6 Export Status Indication on Cassis2 User Interface

Q. Can I retrieve all of the records on a Cassis disc?

A. Yes, you can. To retrieve all of the records on one of the Cassis discs, enter the search term “@DOCN” in the AllFields search field. You can then export or save all of the records.

You can also perform this same function with “chunking” the database by limiting your search by date, classification, or some other method. You can then reassemble the database after all of the parts have been retrieved.

Note: Keep in mind that if you decide to export or save the entire database, this means ALL of the records, which is nearly three million records in several of the databases!

Depending on your equipment, this will take hours and perhaps days. While the software is processing your job, it will take up to 100% of your CPU processing. It may appear to be frozen, but it is processing. Chunking the data will, of course, speed up the processing time.

As always, if you are having any problems with the Cassis products or have any questions, please contact us via any of the methods provided on Page 2.

INTERESTING PATENTS

Many noteworthy people have received U.S. patents in the past, including Abraham Lincoln, Mark Twain, and Hedy Lamarr. Danny Kaye, comedian, actor, musician, and humanitarian, received U.S. Patent No. D166,807, “Blowout Toy or the Like,” on May 20, 1952.

Figure 7 Drawings for U.S. Patent #D166,807

Figure 8 Specifications for U.S. Patent #D166,807

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