e-Government and intellectual property performance
Under the 21st Century Strategic Plan, the USPTO will work with our intellectual property partners to improve the efficiency of our processing systems by increasing the number of applications and communications received and processed electronically, create more coordinated and streamlined work processes, and best position the USPTO for the globalization that characterizes the 21st century economy. The following performance measures have been established to reflect the USPTO's success and progress in meeting the Strategic Plan goals supporting the agility theme.
MEASURE: Patent Applications Filed Electronically
PATENT APPLICATIONS FILED ELECTRONICALLY
D |
DATA VALIDATION AND VERIFICATION
Data source: Patent Application Location and Monitoring (PALM) system.
Frequency: Daily input, weekly reporting.
Data storage: PALM and automated systems.
Verification: Accuracy of supporting data is controlled
through internal program edits in the PALM system and cross checks against other automated systems.
Data Limitations: None. |
Target and Actual Rates for Patent Applications
Filed Electronically for the Last 4 Fiscal Years
Target |
- |
- |
2.0% |
2.0% |
Actual |
- |
- |
1.3% |
1.5% not met |
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Discussion: Target not met. This measure indicates USPTO's support of, and applicants' willingness to operate in, an e-Government environment and identifies the percent of basic patent applications filed electronically. There is some reluctance on the part of the patent applicants to file electronically including: 1) customers are familiar with the paper based systems already in place;
2) they have not invested the time and resources necessary to upgrade their internal systems to enable them to file electronically; and 3) they want a simple, user-friendly system which does not require them to change their internal processes. The agency will be implementing a customer outreach program designed to address patent applicants' concerns and promote the benefits of filing applications electronically. |
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NEW MEASURE: Patent Applications Managed Electronically
PATENT APPLICATIONS MANAGED ELECTRONICALLY
D |
DATA VALIDATION AND VERIFICATION
Data source: Patent Application Location and Monitoring (PALM) system.
Frequency: Daily input, weekly reporting.
Data storage: PALM and automated systems.
Verification: Accuracy of supporting data is controlled through
internal program edits in the PALM system and cross checks against other automated systems.
Data Limitations: None. |
Target and Actual Rates for Patent Applications
Managed Electronically for the Last 4 Fiscal Years
Target |
- |
- |
- |
70% |
Actual |
- |
- |
- |
88% met |
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Discussion: Target met. This measure indicates the USPTO's progress in moving toward operating in a fully electronic environment. During FY 2004, Patents achieved a significant e-Government milestone with the completion of the deployment of the Image File Wrapper (IFW) system to all patent examiners, technical support staff, and many other users to deploy an end-to-end electronic patent process. The IFW deployment schedule was coordinated with the move of several of the Technology Centers to the new headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia to eliminate movement of paper patent applications, and also related to the number of remaining paper applications (filed prior to June 30, 2003) available for examination in particular Technology Centers. The IFW system contains new applications filed since June 30, 2003, and many pending applications that were captured electronically during the IFW deployment. Scanning of additional pending applications is ongoing. This database of information enabled the expansion of the Public PAIR system.
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MEASURE: Trademark Applications Filed Electronically
TRADEMARK APPLICATIONS FILED ELECTRONICALLY
D |
DATA VALIDATION AND VERIFICATION
Data source: Trademark Reporting and Monitoring (TRAM) system.
Frequency: Daily input, weekly reporting.
Data storage: TRAM and automated systems.
Verification: Accuracy of supporting data is controlled
through internal program edits in the TRAM system and crosschecks against other automated systems.
Data Limitations: None. |
Target and Actual Rates for Trademark Applications
Filed Electronically for the Last 4 Fiscal Years
Target |
30% |
50% |
80% |
65% |
Actual |
24% |
38% |
57.5% |
73% met |
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Discussion: Target met. The measure indicates USPTO's support of, and applicants' willingness to operate in an electronic environment and identifies the percent of basic trademark applications filed electronically. Total electronic filings increased by nearly 27% over FY 2003 results. The rate of filing trademark applications has progressed steadily over the years as a result of promotional events, increased number and type of applications and documents that may be filed electronically, and improved functionality and enhancements that have been made to appeal to more customers. |
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NEW MEASURE: Trademark Applications Managed Electronically
This measure demonstrates the progress the Trademark organization has made to examine and process applications in a completely electronic environment. Trademarks has captured 98 percent of the application inventory as an electronic file record, which includes text and image of the initial application and subsequent applicant and office correspondence for nearly 500,000 pending applications. Examining attorneys have been using the electronic record of the initial application to conduct their first office actions since July 2003, through a system that manages the workflow and their transactions. In July 2004, second and subsequent actions were added, eliminating the need to use paper files to process and examine applications for the core examination function.
TRADEMARK APPLICATIONS MANAGED ELECTRONICALLY
D |
DATA VALIDATION AND VERIFICATION
Data source: Trademark Reporting and Monitoring (TRAM) system.
Frequency: Daily input, weekly reporting.
Data storage: TRAM and automated systems.
Verification: Accuracy of supporting data is controlled through
internal program edits in the TRAM system and crosschecks against other automated systems.
Data Limitations: None. |
Target and Actual Rates for Trademark Applications
Managed Electronically for the Last 4 Fiscal Years
Target |
- |
- |
- |
80.0% |
Actual |
- |
- |
- |
98% met |
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Discussion: Target met. The measure indicates USPTOs progress towards conducting business in an e-Government environment. |
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