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United States Patent and Trademark Office
Performance and Accountability Report Fiscal Year 2003
Other Accompanying Information

Table of Contents |  Management |  Financial |  Supplemental |  Auditor |  IG |  Other

TABLE 1: SUMMARY OF PATENT EXAMINING ACTIVITIES
(As of September 30 of each fiscal year)
PATENT EXAMINING ACTIVITY 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
Applications filed, total 278,268 311,807 344,717 353,394 355,418

Utility Read Footnote 11

259,618 291,653 324,211 331,580 331,729

Reissue

664 805 956 974 938

Plant

759 786 914 1,134 785

Design

17,227 18,563 18,636 19,706 21,966
Provisional Applications Filed Read Footnote 22 54,727 78,963 86,123 89,537 92,517
First actions

Design

18,050 17,856 17,748 19,029 19,013

Utility, Plant, and Reissue

226,642 237,421 241,770 275,054 283,111

PCT/Chapter 1

14,316 16,331 17,972 19,460 23,277
Patent application disposals, total 238,292 252,871 257,467 279,297 303,635
Allowed patent applications, total 171,685 182,888 183,394 189,191 205,879

Design

16,305 16,688 16,526 17,377 17,596

Utility, Plant, and Reissue

155,380 166,200 166,868 171,814 188,283
Abandoned, total 66,493 69,895 74,014 90,092 97,745

Design

2,431 1,839 1,448 1,675 1,569

Utility, Plant, and Reissue

64,062 68,056 72,566 88,417 96,176
Statutory invention registration disposals, total 114 88 59 14 11
PCT/Chapter II examinations completed 12,886 15,471 18,859 16,456 21,005
Patents issued3 159,166 182,223 187,822 177,317 189,597

Utility

142,856 164,490 169,576 160,843 171,500

Reissue

437 561 504 466 394

Plant

393 453 563 912 1,178

Design

15,480 16,719 17,179 15,096 16,525
Pendency time of average patent application 4 25.0 25.0 24.7 24.0 26.7
Reexamination certificates issued 243 276 287 200 193
PCT international applications received by USPTO as receiving office 30,305 36,671 43,322 42,889 42,969
National requirements received by USPTO as designated/elected office 19,941 23,628 26,821 29,846 32,753
Patents renewed under Public Law (P.L.) 102-204 5 156,414 206,255 205,117 194,143 253,475
Patents expired under P.L. 102-204 5 52,289 47,958 49,077 53,724 57,770


Notes:

1/ Utility patents include chemical, electrical and mechanical applications. Back to Table

2/ Provisional applications provided for in P.L. 103-465. Back to Table

3/ Excludes withdrawn numbers. Back to Table

4/ Average time (in months) between filing and issuance or abandonment of utility, plant, and reissue applications. This average does not include design patents. Back to Table

5/ The provisions of P.L. 102-204 regarding the renewal of patents superceded P.L. 96-517 and P.L. 97-247. Back to Table

FY 1999 column revised from FY 1999 report.

 

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