Thursday, January 29, 2009

Federal Register - Deferred Examination for Patent Applications

[Federal Register: January 28, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 17)]
[Notices][Page 4946-4947]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
United States Patent and Trademark Office
[Docket No.: PTO-P-2008-0063]

Request for Comments and Notice of Roundtable on Deferred Examination for Patent Applications
AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office, Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; Request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) frequently receives suggestions that the USPTO adopt a deferral of examination procedure. The USPTO is conducting a roundtable to obtain public input from diverse sources to determine whether the support expressed for deferral of examination is isolated or whether there is general support in the patent community and/or the public sector generally for the adoption of some type of deferral of examination. The roundtable is open to the public. Members of the public who wish to participate in the roundtable must do so by request, as the number of participants in the roundtable is limited to ensure that all who are speaking will have a meaningful chance to do so. Members of the public who wish solely to observe need not submit a request. Any member of the public may submit written comments on issues raised at the roundtable or on any issue pertaining to deferral of examination.

DATES: The roundtable will be held on Thursday, February 12, 2009, beginning at 9 a.m. and ending at 12:30 p.m.

The deadline for receipt of requests to participate in the roundtable is 5 p.m. on Thursday, February 5, 2009.

The deadline for receipt of written comments is February 26, 2009.

ADDRESSES: The roundtable will be held in at the USPTO, in the Madison Auditorium on the concourse level of the Madison Building, which is located at 600 Dulany Street, Alexandria, Virginia.

Requests to participate at the roundtable are required and must be submitted by electronic mail message through the Internet to robert.bahr@uspto.gov. Requests to participate at the roundtable should indicate the following information: (1) the name of the person desiring to participate and his or her contact information (telephone number and electronic mail address); and (2) the organization(s) he or she represents.

Written comments should be sent by electronic mail message over the Internet addressed to AC6comments@uspto.gov. Comments may also be submitted by mail addressed to: Mail Stop Comments--Patents, Commissioner for Patents, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450, marked to the attention of Robert W. Bahr. Although comments may be submitted by mail, the USPTO prefers to receive comments via the Internet.

The written comments and list of the roundtable participants and their associations will be available for public inspection at the Office of the Commissioner for Patents, located in Madison East, Tenth Floor, 600 Dulany Street, Alexandria, Virginia, and will be available via the USPTO Internet Web
[[Page 4947]]
site (address: http://www.uspto.gov). Because comments will be made available for public inspection, information that is not desired to be made public, such as an address or phone number, should not be included in the comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert W. Bahr, Senior Patent Counsel, Office of the Deputy Commissioner for Patent Examination Policy, by telephone at (571) 272-8800, or by mail addressed to: Mail Stop Comments--Patents, Commissioner for Patents, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450, marked to the attention of Robert W. Bahr.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Currently, many intellectual property (IP) offices that substantively examine patent applications do not perform a substantive examination on every patent application that is filed in the respective office. Specifically, a patent application is not given a substantive examination in many IP offices unless and until an applicant submits an express request for examination, and the failure to file any such request for examination within a specified time period results in abandonment or withdrawal of the application. This practice is commonly referred to as ``deferred examination.''

In the United States, the mere filing of a patent application and payment of the applicable fees is effectively a request for examination of the application. The USPTO frequently receives suggestions that the USPTO adopt a deferral of examination procedure. The USPTO has in place an optional deferred examination procedure that was adopted as part of the rule making to implement eighteen-month publication of patent applications. See Changes to Implement Eighteen-Month Publication of Patent Applications, 65 FR 57023, 57033, 57056 (Sept. 20, 2000), 1239 Off. Gaz. Pat. Office 63, 71-72, 92 (Oct. 10, 2000) (final rule). This deferral of examination procedure permits deferral of examination for up to three years from the earliest filing date for which a benefit is claimed under title 35, United States Code. See 37 CFR 1.103(d). The deferral of examination procedure set forth in 37 CFR 1.103(d), however, has been used in fewer than two hundred applications since its inception on November 29, 2000 (the effective date of eighteen-month publication and 37 CFR 1.103(d)).

The USPTO is conducting a roundtable to determine whether the support expressed for deferral of examination is isolated or whether there is general support in the patent community and/or the public sector generally for the adoption of some type of deferral of examination. The number of participants in the roundtable is limited to ensure that all who are speaking will have a meaningful chance to do so. The USPTO plans to invite a number of participants from patent user, practitioner, industry, and independent inventor organizations, academia, industry, and government. The USPTO also plans to have a few ``at-large'' participants based upon requests received in response to this notice to ensure that the USPTO is receiving a balanced array of views on deferral of examination.

The roundtable is open to the public, but participation in the roundtable is by request, as the number of participants in the roundtable is limited. While members of the public who wish to participate in the roundtable must do so by request, members of the public who wish solely to observe need not submit a request. Any member of the public, however, may submit written comments on issues raised at the roundtable or on any pertaining to deferral of examination, for consideration by the USPTO. Persons submitting written comments should note that the USPTO does not plan to provide a ``comment and response'' analysis of such comments as this notice is not a notice of proposed rule making.

The USPTO plans to make the roundtable available via Web cast. Web cast information will be available on the USPTO's Internet Web site before the roundtable. The written comments and list of the roundtable participants and their associations will be posted on the USPTO's Internet Web site.

Dated: January 22, 2009.
John J. Doll, Acting Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Acting
Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

[FR Doc. E9-1740 Filed 1-27-09; 8:45 am]

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Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Patent Maintenance Fees

[Federal Register: January 27, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 16)]
[Notices][Page 4737-4738]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr27ja09-16]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Patent and Trademark Office
Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will submit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for clearance the following proposal for collection of information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35).

Agency: United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

Title: Rules for Patent Maintenance Fees.

Form Number(s): PTO/SB/45/47/65/66.

Agency Approval Number: 0651-0016.

Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.

Burden: 33,426 hours annually.

Number of Respondents: 470,397 responses per year.

Avg. Hours per Response: The USPTO estimates that it will take the public approximately 20 seconds (0.006 hours) to eight hours to complete this information, depending on the form or petition. This includes time to gather the necessary information, prepare the form or petition, and submit the completed request.

Needs and Uses: Under 35 U.S.C. 41 and 37 CFR 1.20(e)-(i) and 1.362-1.378, the USPTO charges fees for maintaining in force all utility patents based on applications filed on or after December 12, 1980. Payment of these maintenance [[Page 4738]] fees is due at 3\1/2\, 7\1/2\, and 11\1/2\ years after the date the patent was granted. If the USPTO does not receive payment of the appropriate maintenance fee and any applicable surcharge within a grace period of six months following each of the above intervals, the patent will expire and no longer be enforceable. The public uses this collection to submit patent maintenance fee payments, to file petitions regarding delayed or refused payments, and to designate an address to be used for fee-related correspondence.

Affected Public: Individuals or households; businesses or other for-profits; and not-for-profit institutions.

Frequency: On occasion and three times at four-year intervals following the grant of the patent.

Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain benefits.

OMB Desk Officer: Nicholas A. Fraser, e-mail: Nicholas_A._Fraser@omb.eop.gov.

Once submitted, the request will be publicly available in electronic format through the Information Collection Review page at www.reginfo.gov.

Paper copies can be obtained by:
E-mail: Susan.Fawcett@uspto.gov. Include ``0651-0016 Rules for Patent Maintenance Fees copy request'' in the subject line of the message.

Fax: 571-273-0112, marked to the attention of Susan K. Fawcett.

Mail: Susan K. Fawcett, Records Officer, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Customer Information Services Group, Public Information Services Division, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450.

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent on or before February 25, 2009 to Nicholas A. Fraser, OMB Desk Officer, via e-mail at Nicholas_A._Fraser@omb.eop.gov, or by fax to 202-395-5167, marked to the attention of Nicholas A. Fraser.

Dated: January 15, 2009.
Susan K. Fawcett, Records Officer, USPTO, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Customer Information Services Group, Public Information Services Division.

[FR Doc. E9-1617 Filed 1-26-09; 8:45 am]
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Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Certificate Action Form

[Federal Register: January 9, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 6)]
[Notices][Page 890]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Patent and Trademark Office
Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will submit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for clearance the following proposal for collection of information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35).
Agency: United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
Title: Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Certificate Action Form.
Form Number(s): PTO-2042.
Agency Approval Number: 0651-0045.
Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved collection.
Burden: 1,383 hours annually.
Number of Respondents: 4,126 responses per year.
Avg. Hours Per Response: The USPTO estimates that it will take the public approximately 30 minutes (0.5 hours) to read the instructions and subscriber agreement, gather the necessary information, prepare the Certificate Action Form, and submit the completed request. The USPTO estimates that it will take the public approximately 10 minutes (0.17 hours) to complete and electronically submit the information required for certificate self-recovery.

Needs and Uses: The USPTO uses Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) technology to support electronic commerce between the USPTO and its customers. In order to access secure online systems offered by the USPTO for transactions such as electronic filing of patent applications and retrieving confidential patent application information, customers must first obtain a digital certificate. The public uses this collection to request a new digital certificate, the revocation of a current certificate, or the recovery of a lost certificate. This collection includes the existing Certificate Action Form (PTO-2042), which is provided by the USPTO to ensure that customers submit the necessary information for processing certificate requests. The accompanying subscriber agreement explains the regulations governing the use of the digital certificates and the software that creates and validates the encryption keys. The online self-recovery form allows the public to recover lost keys without having to contact support staff at the USPTO.

Affected Public: Individuals or households; businesses or other for-profits; and not-for-profit institutions.
Frequency: On occasion.
Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain benefits.
OMB Desk Officer: Nicholas A. Fraser, e-mail: Nicholas_A._Fraser@omb.eop.gov.

Once submitted, the request will be publicly available in electronic format through the Information Collection Review page at http://www.reginfo.gov.

Paper copies can be obtained by:
  • E-mail: Susan.Fawcett@uspto.gov. Include ``0651-0045 PKI Certificate Action Form copy request'' in the subject line of the
    message.
  • Fax: 571-273-0112, marked to the attention of Susan K.
    Fawcett.
  • Mail: Susan K. Fawcett, Records Officer, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Customer Information Services Group, Public Information Services Division, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450.

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent on or before February 9, 2009, to Nicholas A. Fraser, OMB Desk Officer, via e-mail at Nicholas_A._Fraser@omb.eop.gov, or by fax to 202-395-5167, marked to the attention of Nicholas A. Fraser.

Dated: January 5, 2009.
Susan K. Fawcett,Records Officer, USPTO, Office of the Chief Information Officer,
Customer Information Services Group, Public Information Services Division.
[FR Doc. E9-185 Filed 1-8-09; 8:45 am]

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National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Evaluation Committee

[Federal Register: January 8, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 5)]
[Notices][Page 800-801]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
United States Patent and Trademark Office
[Docket No. PTO-C-2008-0058]

National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Evaluation Committee

AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office.

ACTION: Notice and request for nominations.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (United States Patent and Trademark Office) is requesting nominations of individuals to serve on the National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Evaluation Committee. The United States Patent and Trademark Office will consider nominations received in response to this notice as well as from other sources. The SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this notice provides committee and membership criteria.
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DATES: Please submit nominations within 60 days of the publication of this notice.

ADDRESSES: Nominations should be submitted to Jennifer Lo, Program Manager, National Medal of Technology and Innovation Program, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450. Nominations also may be submitted via fax: (571) 270-9100 or by electronic mail to: nmti@uspto.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jennifer Lo, Program Manager, National Medal of Technology and Innovation Program, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450, telephone (571) 272-7640, or electronic mail: nmti@uspto.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The committee was established in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) (Title 5, United States Code, Appendix 2). The following provides information about the committee and membership:

Committee members are appointed by and serve at the discretion of the Secretary of Commerce. The committee provides advice to the Secretary on the implementation of Public Law 96-480 (15 U.S.C.3711), as amended August 9, 2007.

The committee functions solely as an advisory body under the FACA. Members are appointed to the 12-member committee for a term of three years. Each will be reevaluated at the conclusion of the three-year term with the prospect of renewal, pending advisory committee needs and the Secretary's concurrence. Selection of membership is made in accordance with applicable Department of Commerce
guidelines.

Members are responsible for reviewing nominations and making recommendations for the Nation's highest honor for technological innovation, awarded annually by the President of the United States.

Members of the committee must have an understanding of, and experience in, developing and utilizing technological innovation and/or be familiar with the education, training, employment and management of technological manpower.

Under the FACA, membership on a committee must be balanced. To achieve balance, the Department is seeking additional nominations of candidates from small, medium-sized, and large businesses or with special expertise in the following sub-sectors of the technology enterprise:
Medical Innovations/Bioengineering and Biomedical Technology/Technology
Management/Computing/IT/Manufacturing Innovation/Technological
Manpower/Workforce Training/Education

Committee members generally are Chief Executive Officers or former Chief Executive Officers; former winners of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation; presidents or distinguished faculty of universities; or senior executives of non-profit organizations. As such, they not only offer the stature of their positions but also possess intimate knowledge of the forces determining future directions for their organizations and industries. The committee as a whole is balanced in representing geographical, professional, and diverse interests.

Nomination Information:
Nominees must be United States citizens, must be able to fully participate in meetings pertaining to the review and selection of finalists for the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, and must uphold the confidential nature of an independent peer review and competitive selection process.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office is committed to equal opportunity in the workplace and seeks a broad-based and diverse committee membership.

Date: December 2, 2008.
Jon W. Dudas, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of
the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
[FR Doc. E9-104 Filed 1-7-09; 8:45 am]

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Federal Register - National Medal of Technology & Innovations Nominations

[Federal Register: January 8, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 5)]
[Notices][Page 801-802]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr08ja09-21]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
United States Patent and Trademark Office
[Docket No. PTO-C-2008-0059]

National Medal of Technology and Innovation Call for 2009
Nominations
AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office.
ACTION: Notice and request for nominations.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (United States Patent and Trademark Office) is accepting nominations for its National Medal of Technology and Innovation (NMTI) program. Since establishment by Congress in 1980, the President of the United States has awarded the National Medal of Technology and Innovation (formerly known as the National Medal of Technology) annually to our Nation's leading innovators. If you know of a candidate who has made an outstanding, lasting contribution to the economy through the promotion of technology or technological manpower, you may obtain a nomination form from: http://www.uspto.gov/nmti.

Eligibility and Criteria: Information on eligibility and nomination criteria is provided on the Nominations Guidelines Form at http://www.uspto.gov/nmti.

DATES: The deadline for submission of an application is May 29, 2009.

ADDRESSES: The NMTI Nomination form for the year 2009 may be obtained by visiting the Web site at http://www.uspto.gov/nmti. Nomination applications should be submitted to Jennifer Lo, Program Manager, National Medal of Technology and Innovation Program, by electronic mail to: NMTI@uspto.gov or by mail to: Jennifer Lo, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jennifer Lo, Program Manager, National Medal of Technology and Innovation Program, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450, telephone (571) 272-7640, or electronic mail: nmti@uspto.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Enacted by Congress in 1980, the Medal of Technology was first awarded in 1985. On August 9, 2007, the President signed the America COMPETES (Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education, and Science) Act of 2007. The Act amended section 16 of the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980, changing the name of the Medal to the ``National Medal of Technology and Innovation.'' The Medal is the highest honor awarded by the President of the United States to America's leading innovators in the field of technology, and is given annually to individuals, teams, or companies who have made outstanding contributions to the promotion of technology or technological manpower for the improvement of the economic, environmental or social well-being of the United States.

The primary purpose of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation is to recognize American innovators whose vision, creativity, and brilliance in moving ideas to market have had a profound and lasting impact on our economy and way of life. The Medal highlights the national importance of [[Page 802]]fostering technological innovation based upon solid science, resulting in commercially successful products and services.

Dated: December 2, 2008. Jon W. Dudas, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office. [FR Doc. E9-102 Filed 1-7-09; 8:45 am]

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Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Federal Register Notice: Mifamurtide Interim Extension

[Federal Register: December 29, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 249)]
[Notices][Page 79451]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Patent and Trademark Office
[Docket No. PTO-P-2008-0060]

Grant of Interim Extension of the Term of U.S. Patent No.4,971,802; Mifamurtide

AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office.

ACTION: Notice of interim patent term extension.
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SUMMARY: The United States Patent and Trademark Office has issued a certificate under 35 U.S.C. 156(d)(5) for a second one-year interim extension of the term of U.S. Patent No. 4,971,802.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Raul Tamayo by telephone at (571) 272-7728; by mail marked to his attention and addressed to the Commissioner for Patents, Mail Stop Hatch-Waxman PTE, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450; by fax marked to his attention at (571) 273-7728, or by e-mail to Raul.Tamayo@uspto.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 156 of Title 35, United States Code, generally provides that the term of a patent may be extended for a period of up to five years if the patent claims a product, or a method of making or using a product, that has been subject to certain defined regulatory review, and that the patent may be extended for interim periods of up to a year if the regulatory review is anticipated to extend beyond the expiration date of the patent.

On October 10, 2008, IDM Pharma, agent/licensee of patent owner Novartis, timely filed an application under 35 U.S.C. 156(d)(5) for a second interim extension of the term of U.S. Patent No. 4,971,802.

Claims of the patent cover the product Mifamurtide having the active ingredient muramyl tripeptide phosphatidyl ethanolamine. The application indicates, and the Food and Drug Administration has confirmed, that a New Drug Application for the human drug product Mifamurtide has been filed and is currently undergoing regulator review before the Food and Drug Administration for permission to market or use the product commercially.

Review of the application indicates that, except for permission to market or use the product commercially, the subject patent would be eligible for an extension of the patent term under 35 U.S.C. 156, and that the patent should be extended for an additional year as required by 35 U.S.C. 156(d)(5)(B). Because it is apparent that the regulatory review period will continue beyond the extended expiration date of the patent (November 20, 2008), interim extension of the patent term under 35 U.S.C. 156(d)(5) is appropriate.

A second interim extension under 35 U.S.C. 156(d)(5) of the term of U.S. Patent No. 4,971,802 is granted for a period of one year from the extended expiration date of the patent, i.e., until November 20, 2009.

Dated: December 18, 2008.
John J. Doll, Acting Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Acting Deputy Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

[FR Doc. E8-30781 Filed 12-24-08; 8:45 am]
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