Skip to main content Skip to footer
HomeHome
 
  • Homepage
  • Searching for patents

    Patent knowledge

    Access our patent databases and search tools.

    Go to overview 

    • Overview
    • Technical information
      • Overview
      • Espacenet - patent search
      • European Publication Server
      • Searching Asian documents: patent search and monitoring services
      • EP full-text search
      • Bibliographic coverage in Espacenet and OPS
      • Full-text coverage in Espacenet and OPS
    • Legal information
      • Overview
      • European Patent Register
      • European Patent Bulletin
      • European Case Law Identifier sitemap
      • Searching Asian documents
      • Third-party observations
    • Business information
      • Overview
      • PATSTAT
      • IPscore
      • Patent insight reports
    • Data
      • Overview
      • Linked open EP data
      • Bulk data sets
      • Web services
      • Coverage, codes and statistics
    • Helpful resources
      • Overview
      • First time here?
      • Asian patent information
      • Patent information centres
      • Patent Translate
      • Patent Knowledge News
      • Business and statistics
      • Unitary Patent information in patent knowledge

    UP search

    Learn about the Unitary Patent in patent knowledge products and services

  • Applying for a patent

    Applying for a patent

    Practical information on filing and grant procedures.

    Go to overview 

    • Overview
    • European route
      • Overview
      • European Patent Guide
      • Oppositions
      • Oral proceedings
      • Appeals
      • Unitary Patent & Unified Patent Court
      • National validation
      • Request for extension/validation
    • International route (PCT)
      • Overview
      • Euro-PCT Guide – PCT procedure at the EPO
      • EPO decisions and notices
      • PCT provisions and resources
      • Extension/validation request
      • Reinforced partnership programme
      • Accelerating your PCT application
      • Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH)
      • Training and events
    • National route
    • MyEPO services
      • Overview
      • Understand our services
      • Get access
      • File with us
      • Interact on your files
      • Online Filing & fee payment outages
      • Tutorials
    • Find a professional representative
    • Forms
      • Overview
      • Request for examination
    • Fees
      • Overview
      • European fees (EPC)
      • International fees (PCT)
      • Unitary Patent fees (UP)
      • Fee payment and refunds
      • Warning

    UP

    Unitary Patent

  • Law & practice

    Law & practice

    European patent law, the Official Journal and other legal texts.

    Go to overview 

    • Overview
    • Legal texts
      • Overview
      • European Patent Convention
      • Official Journal
      • EPC Guidelines
      • PCT-EPO Guidelines
      • Guidelines revision cycle
      • Extension / validation system
      • London Agreement
      • National law relating to the EPC
      • Unitary patent system
      • National law relating to the UP
    • Court practices
      • Overview
      • European Patent Judges' Symposium
    • User consultations
      • Overview
      • Ongoing consultations
      • Completed consultations
    • Substantive patent law harmonisation
      • Overview
      • The Tegernsee process
      • Group B+
    • Convergence of practice
    • Options for professional representatives

    legal text

    Legal texts

  • News & events

    News & events

    Our latest news, podcasts and events, including the European Inventor Award.

    Go to overview 

     

    • Overview
    • News
    • Events
    • European Inventor Award
      • Overview
      • About the award
      • Categories and prizes
      • Meet the finalists
      • Nominations
      • Watch the 2022 ceremony
    • Press centre
      • Overview
      • Patent Index and statistics
      • Search in press centre
      • Background information
      • Copyright
      • Press contacts
      • Call back form
      • Email alert service
    • Innovation and patenting in focus
      • Overview
      • Firefighting technologies
      • Green tech in focus
      • CodeFest on Green Plastics
      • Clean energy technologies
      • IP and youth
      • Research institutes
      • Women inventors
      • Fighting coronavirus
      • Lifestyle
      • Space and satellites
      • The future of medicine
      • Materials science
      • Mobile communications
      • Biotechnology
      • Patent classification
      • Digital technologies
      • The future of manufacturing
      • Books by EPO experts
    • "Talk innovation" podcast

    Podcast

    Listen to our podcast

  • Learning

    Learning

    The e-Academy – the point of access to your learning

    Go to overview 

    • Overview
    • European Patent Academy
      • Overview
      • Learning activities
      • Learning paths
    • Professional hub
      • Overview
      • EQE - European qualifying examination
      • EPAC - European patent administration certification
    • Learning resources by area of interest
      • Overview
      • Patent granting
      • Technology transfer and dissemination
      • Patent enforcement and litigation
    • Learning resources by area by profile
      • Overview
      • Business and IP managers
      • EQE candidates
      • Judges, lawyers and prosecutors
      • National offices and IP authorities
      • Patent attorneys and paralegals
      • Universities, research centres and technology transfer centres (TTOs)

    European Patent Academy

    Boost your IP knowledge with (e-)training from the European Patent Academy

  • About us

    About us

    Find out more about our work, values, history and vision

    Go to overview 

    • Overview
    • The EPO at a glance
    • 50 years of the EPC
      • Overview
      • A glimpse of the planned activities
      • Kids’ collaborative art competition
      • 50 Leading Tech Voices
    • Legal foundations and member states
      • Overview
      • Legal foundations
      • Member states of the European Patent Organisation
      • Extension states
      • Validation states
    • Governance
      • Overview
      • Communiqués
      • Calendar
      • Select Committee documents
      • Administrative Council
    • Principles & strategy
      • Overview
      • Our mission, vision, values and corporate policy
      • Public consultation on the EPO's Strategic Plan 2028
      • Towards a New Normal
    • Leadership & management
      • Overview
      • President António Campinos
      • Management Advisory Committee
    • Social responsibility
      • Overview
      • Environment and sustainability
      • Art collection
    • Services & activities
      • Overview
      • Our services & structure
      • Quality
      • Consulting our users
      • European and international co-operation
      • European Patent Academy
      • Chief Economist
      • Ombuds Office
      • Reporting wrongdoing
    • Procurement
      • Overview
      • Procurement forecast
      • Doing business with the EPO
      • Procurement procedures
      • About eTendering and electronic signatures
      • Procurement portal
      • Invoicing
      • General conditions
      • Archived tenders
    • Transparency portal
      • Overview
      • General
      • Human
      • Environmental
      • Organisational
      • Social and relational
      • Economic
      • Governance
    • Statistics and trends
      • Overview
      • Statistics & Trends Centre
      • EPO Data Hub
      • Clarification on data sources
    • History
      • Overview
      • 1970s
      • 1980s
      • 1990s
      • 2000s
      • 2010s
      • 2020s

    about us

    Patent Index 2022

 
en de fr
  • Language selection
  • English
  • Deutsch
  • Français
Main navigation
  • Homepage
  • New to patents
    • Go back
    • Overview
    • What's your big idea?
    • Are you ready?
    • What to expect
    • How to apply for a patent
    • Your business and patents
    • Is it patentable?
    • Are you first?
    • Why do we have patents?
    • Patent quiz
    • Unitary patent video
  • Searching for patents
    • Go back
    • Overview
    • Technical information
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Espacenet - patent search
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • National patent office databases
        • Global Patent Index (GPI)
        • Release notes
      • European Publication Server
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Cross-reference index for Euro-PCT applications
        • EP authority file
        • Help
      • Searching Asian documents
      • EP full-text search
      • Bibliographic coverage in Espacenet and OPS
      • Full-text coverage in Espacenet
    • Legal information
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • European Patent Register
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Release notes archive
        • Register documentation
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Deep link data coverage
          • Federated Register
            • Go back
            • Overview
            • BG - Federated Register Service
            • GB - Federated Register Service
            • NL - Federated Register Service
            • MK - Federated Register Service
            • ES - Federated Register Service
            • GR - Federated Register Service
            • SK - Federated Register Service
            • FR - Federated Register Service
            • MT - Federated Register Service
          • Register events
      • European Patent Bulletin
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Download Bulletin
        • EP Bulletin search
        • Help
      • European Case Law Identifier sitemap
      • Searching Asian documents
      • Third-party observations
    • Business information
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • PATSTAT
      • IPscore
        • Go back
        • Release notes
      • Patent insight reports
    • Data
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Linked open EP data
      • Bulk data sets
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Manuals
        • Sequence listings
        • National full-text data
        • European Patent Register data
        • EPO worldwide bibliographic data (DOCDB)
        • EP full-text data
        • EPO worldwide legal event data (INPADOC)
        • EP bibliographic data (EBD)
          • Go back
          • EBD files (weekly download) - free of charge
            • Go back
            • Secure EBD ST.36 files (weekly download) - for national patent offices only
        • Boards of Appeal decisions
        • EP full-text data for text analytics
      • Web services
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Open Patent Services (OPS)
        • European Publication Server
      • Coverage, codes and statistics
        • Go back
        • Weekly updates
        • Updated regularly
    • Helpful resources
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • First time here? Patent information explained.
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Basic definitions
        • Patent classification
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC)
        • Patent families
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • DOCDB simple patent family
          • INPADOC extended patent family
        • Legal event data
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • INPADOC classification scheme
      • Asian patent information
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • China (CN)
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Facts and figures
          • Grant procedure
          • Numbering system
          • Useful terms
          • Searching in databases
        • Chinese Taipei (TW)
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Grant procedure
          • Numbering system
          • Useful terms
          • Searching in databases
        • India (IN)
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Facts and figures
          • Grant procedure
          • Numbering system
        • Japan (JP)
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Facts and figures
          • Grant procedure
          • Numbering system
          • Useful terms
          • Searching in databases
        • Korea (KR)
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Facts and figures
          • Grant procedure
          • Numbering system
          • Useful terms
          • Searching in databases
        • Russian Federation (RU)
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Facts and figures
          • Numbering system
          • Searching in databases
        • Useful links
      • Patent information centres (PATLIB)
      • Patent Translate
      • Patent Knowledge News
      • Business and statistics
      • Unitary Patent information in patent knowledge
  • Applying for a patent
    • Go back
    • Overview
    • European route
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • European Patent Guide
      • Oppositions
      • Oral proceedings
        • Go back
        • Oral proceedings calendar
          • Go back
          • Calendar
          • Public access to appeal proceedings
          • Public access to opposition proceedings
          • Technical guidelines
      • Appeals
      • Unitary Patent & Unified Patent Court
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Unitary Patent
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Legal framework
          • Unitary Patent Guide
          • Main features
          • Applying for a Unitary Patent
          • Cost of a Unitary Patent
          • Translation and compensation
          • Start date
        • Unified Patent Court
      • National validation
      • Extension/validation request
    • International route
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Euro-PCT Guide
      • Entry into the European phase
      • Decisions and notices
      • PCT provisions and resources
      • Extension/validation request
      • Reinforced partnership programme
      • Accelerating your PCT application
      • Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH)
        • Go back
        • Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) programme outline
      • Training and events
    • National route
    • MyEPO services
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Understand our services
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Online Filing 2.0 pilot
        • MyEPO Portfolio - pilot phase
        • Online Filing 2.0 pilot continuation
        • Exchange data with us using an API
      • Get access
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Installation and activation
      • File with us
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • What if our online filing services are down?
        • Release notes
      • Interact on your files
      • Online Filing & fee payment outages
      • Tutorials
    • Fees
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • European fees (EPC)
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Decisions and notices
      • International fees (PCT)
        • Go back
        • Reduction in fees
        • Fees for international applications
        • Decisions and notices
        • Overview
      • Unitary Patent fees (UP)
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Decisions and notices
      • Fee payment and refunds
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Payment methods
        • Getting started
        • FAQs and other documentation
        • Technical information for batch payments
        • Decisions and notices
        • Release notes
      • Warning
    • Forms
      • Go back
      • Request for examination
    • Find a professional representative
  • Law & practice
    • Go back
    • Overview
    • Legal texts
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • European Patent Convention
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Archive
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Documentation on the EPC revision 2000
            • Go back
            • Overview
            • Diplomatic Conference for the revision of the EPC
            • Travaux préparatoires
            • New text
            • Transitional provisions
            • Implementing regulations to the EPC 2000
            • Rules relating to Fees
            • Ratifications and accessions
          • Travaux Préparatoires EPC 1973
      • Official Journal
      • EPC Guidelines
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Archive
      • PCT-EPO Guidelines
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Archive
      • Guidelines revision cycle
      • Extension / validation system
      • London Agreement
      • National law relating to the EPC
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Archive
      • Unitary Patent system
      • National measures relating to the Unitary Patent 
    • Court practices
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • European Patent Judges' Symposium
    • User consultations
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Ongoing consultations
      • Completed consultations
    • Substantive patent law harmonisation
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • The Tegernsee process
      • Group B+
    • Convergence of practice
    • Options for professional representatives
  • News & events
    • Go back
    • Overview
    • News
    • Events
    • European Inventor Award
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • About the award
      • Categories and prizes
      • Meet the finalists
      • Nominations
      • Watch the 2023 ceremony
      • European Inventor Network
        • Go back
        • Activities granted in 2023
    • Press centre
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Patent Index and statistics
      • Search in press centre
      • Background information
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • European Patent Office
        • Q&A on patents related to coronavirus
        • Q&A on plant patents
      • Copyright
      • Press contacts
      • Call back form
      • Email alert service
    • In focus
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Firefighting technologies
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Detection and prevention of fires
        • Fire extinguishing
        • Protective equipment
        • Post-fire restoration
      • Green tech in focus
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • About green tech
        • Renewable energies
        • Energy transition technologies
        • Building a greener future
      • CodeFest on Green Plastics
      • Clean energy technologies
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Renewable energy
        • Carbon-intensive industries
        • Energy storage and other enabling technologies
      • IP and youth
      • Research institutes
      • Women inventors
      • Fighting coronavirus
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Vaccines and therapeutics
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Vaccines
          • Overview of candidate therapies for COVID-19
          • Candidate antiviral and symptomatic therapeutics
          • Nucleic acids and antibodies to fight coronavirus
        • Diagnostics and analytics
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Protein and nucleic acid assays
          • Analytical protocols
        • Informatics
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Bioinformatics
          • Healthcare informatics
        • Technologies for the new normal
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Devices, materials and equipment
          • Procedures, actions and activities
          • Digital technologies
        • Inventors against coronavirus
      • Lifestyle
      • Space and satellites
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Patents and space technologies
      • Healthcare
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Medical technologies and cancer
        • Personalised medicine
      • Materials science
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Nanotechnology
      • Mobile communications
      • Biotechnology
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Red, white or green
        • The role of the EPO
        • What is patentable?
        • Biotech inventors
      • Classification
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Nanotechnology
        • Climate change mitigation technologies
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • External partners
          • Updates on Y02 and Y04S
      • Digital technologies
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • About ICT
        • Hardware and software
        • Patents and standards
        • Artificial intelligence
        • Fourth Industrial Revolution
      • Additive manufacturing
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • About AM
        • AM innovation
      • Books by EPO experts
    • Podcast
  • Learning
    • Go back
    • Overview
    • European Patent Academy
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Learning activities
      • Learning Paths
    • Professional hub
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • EPAC - European patent administration certification
      • EQE - European Qualifying Examination
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Archive
        • Candidates successful in the European qualifying examination
        • Compendium
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Pre-examination
          • Paper A
          • Paper B
          • Paper C
          • Paper D
    • Learning resources by area of interest
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Patent granting
      • Technology transfer and dissemination
      • Patent enforcement and litigation
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Patent enforcement in Europe
        • Patent litigation in Europe
    • Learning resources by profile
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Business and IP managers
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Innovation case studies
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • SME case studies
          • Technology transfer case studies
          • High-growth technology case studies
        • Inventors' handbook
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Introduction
          • Disclosure and confidentiality
          • Novelty and prior art
            • Go back
            • Overview
            • Is the idea ‘obvious’?
            • Prior art searching
            • Professional patent searching
            • Simple Espacenet searching
            • What is prior art?
            • Why is novelty important?
          • Competition and market potential
            • Go back
            • Overview
            • Research guidelines
          • Assessing the risk ahead
            • Go back
            • Overview
            • Exploitation routes
            • Significant commercial potential
            • Significant novelty
            • What about you?
            • What if your idea is not novel but does have commercial potential?
          • Proving the invention
            • Go back
            • Overview
            • Help with design or redesign
            • Prototype strategy
          • Protecting your idea
            • Go back
            • Overview
            • Forms of IPR
            • Patenting strategy
            • The patenting process
          • Building a team and seeking funding
            • Go back
            • Overview
            • Building a team
            • Sources of funding
            • Sources of help for invention
          • Business planning
            • Go back
            • Overview
            • Constructing a business plan
            • Keep it short!
          • Finding and approaching companies
            • Go back
            • Overview
            • First contact
            • Meetings
          • Dealing with companies
            • Go back
            • Overview
            • Advance or guaranteed payment
            • Companies and your prototype
            • Full agreement – and beyond
            • Negotiating a licensing agreement
            • Reaching agreement
            • Royalties
        • Best of search matters
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Tools and databases
          • EPO procedures and initiatives
          • Search strategies
          • Challenges and specific topics
        • Support for high-growth technology businesses
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • For IP professionals
          • For business decision-makers
          • For stakeholders of the innovation ecosystem
        • IP clinics
      • EQE Candidates
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Coffee-break questions
        • Daily D questions
        • European qualifying examination - Guide for preparation
      • Judges, lawyers and prosecutors
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Compulsory licensing in Europe
        • The jurisdiction of European courts in patent disputes
      • National offices and IP authorities
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Learning material for examiners of national officers
        • Learning material for formalities officers and paralegals
      • Patent attorneys and paralegals
      • Universities, research centres and TTOs
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Academic Research Programme
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Completed research projects
          • Current research projects
        • Pan-European Seal Young Professionals Programme
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • For students
          • For universities
            • Go back
            • Overview
            • IP education resources
            • University memberships
          • Our young professionals
          • Professional development plan
        • IP Teaching Kit
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Download modules
        • Intellectual property course design manual
  • About us
    • Go back
    • Overview
    • The EPO at a glance
    • 50 years of the EPC
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • 50 Leading Tech Voices
      • Kids’ collaborative art competition
    • Legal foundations and member states
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Legal foundations
      • Member states
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Member states by date of accession
      • Extension states
      • Validation states
    • Governance
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Communiqués
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • 2022
        • 2021
        • 2020
        • 2019
        • 2018
        • 2017
        • 2016
        • 2015
        • 2014
        • 2013
      • Calendar
      • Documents and publications
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Select Committee documents
      • Administrative Council
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Composition
        • Representatives
        • Rules of Procedure
        • Board of Auditors
        • Secretariat
        • Council bodies
    • Principles & strategy
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Mission, vision, values & corporate policy
      • Strategic Plan 2028
      • Towards a New Normal
      • Data protection & privacy notice
    • Leadership & management
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • About the President
      • Management Advisory Committee
    • Procurement
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Procurement forecast
      • Doing business with the EPO
      • Procurement procedures
      • About eTendering
      • Procurement portal
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • e-Signing contracts
      • Invoicing
      • General conditions
      • Archived tenders
    • Services & activities
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Our services & structure
      • Quality
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Foundations
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • European Patent Convention
          • Guidelines for examination
          • Our staff
        • Enabling quality
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Prior art
          • Classification
          • Tools
          • Processes
        • Products & services
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Search
          • Examination
          • Opposition
          • Continuous improvement
        • Quality through networking
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • User engagement
          • Co-operation
          • User satisfaction survey
          • Stakeholder Quality Assurance Panels
        • Patent Quality Charter
        • Statistics
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Search
          • Examination
          • Opposition
      • Consulting our users
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Standing Advisory Committee before the EPO (SACEPO)
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Objectives
          • SACEPO and its working parties
          • Meetings
          • Single Access Portal – SACEPO Area
      • Our user service charter
      • European and international co-operation
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Co-operation with member states
          • Go back
          • Overview
        • Bilateral co-operation with non-member states
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Validation system
          • Reinforced Partnership programme
        • Multilateral international co-operation with IP offices and organisations
        • Co-operation with international organisations outside the IP system
      • European Patent Academy
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Partners
      • Chief Economist
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Economic studies
      • Ombuds Office
      • Reporting wrongdoing
    • Statistics and trends
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Statistics & Trends Centre
      • EPO Data Hub
      • Clarification on data sources
    • Social responsibility
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Environment
      • Art collection
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • The collection
        • Let's talk about art
        • Artists
        • Media library
        • What's on
        • Publications
        • Contact
    • History
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • 1970s
      • 1980s
      • 1990s
      • 2000s
      • 2010s
      • 2020s
    • Transparency portal
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • General
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Annual Review 2022
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Foreword
          • Executive summary
          • Goal 1: Engaged and empowered
          • Goal 2: Digital transformation
          • Goal 3: Master quality
          • Goal 4: Partner for positive impact
          • Goal 5: Secure sustainability
      • Human
      • Environmental
      • Organisational
      • Social and relational
      • Economic
      • Governance
  • Boards of Appeal
    • Go back
    • Overview
    • Decisions of the Boards of Appeal
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Recent decisions
      • Selected decisions
    • Procedure
    • Annual reports
      • Go back
      • Overview
    • Organisation
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • President of the Boards of Appeal
      • Enlarged Board of Appeal
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Pending referrals (Art. 112 EPC)
        • Decisions sorted by number (Art. 112 EPC)
        • Pending petitions for review (Art. 112a EPC)
        • Decisions on petitions for review (Art. 112a EPC)
      • Technical Boards of Appeal
      • Legal Board of Appeal
      • Disciplinary Board of Appeal
      • Presidium
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Composition of the Presidium
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Archive
    • Code of Conduct
    • Business distribution scheme
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Technical boards of appeal by IPC in 2023
      • Archive
    • Annual list of cases
    • Communications
    • Publications
    • Case Law of the Boards of Appeal
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Archive
    • Case Law from the Contracting States to the EPC
    • Oral proceedings
  • Service & support
    • Go back
    • Overview
    • Website updates
    • Availability of online services
      • Go back
      • Overview
    • FAQ
      • Go back
      • Overview
    • Publications
    • Ordering
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Terms and conditions
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Patent information products
        • Bulk data sets
        • Open Patent Services (OPS)
        • Fair use charter
    • Procedural communications
    • Useful links
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Patent offices of member states
      • Other patent offices
      • Legal resources
      • Directories of patent attorneys
      • Patent databases, registers and gazettes
      • Disclaimer
    • Contact us
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Filing options
      • Locations
      • Specific contact
      • Surveys
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Search services
        • Examination services, final actions and publication
        • Opposition services
        • Patent filings
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Detailed methodology
          • Archive
        • Online Services
        • Patent information
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Innovation process survey
        • Customer services
        • Filing services
        • Website
        • Survey on electronic invoicing
        • Companies innovating in clean and sustainable technologies
    • Subscription centre
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Subscribe
      • Change preferences
      • Unsubscribe
    • Official holidays
    • Forums
    • Glossary
    • RSS feeds
Board of Appeals
Decisions

Recent decisions

Overview
  • 2023 decisions
  • 2022 decisions
  • 2021 decisions
https://www.epo.org/en/node/t081485eu1
  1. Home
  2. T 1485/08 (Black azo dyes/DYSTAR) 20-12-2012
Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email

T 1485/08 (Black azo dyes/DYSTAR) 20-12-2012

European Case Law Identifier
ECLI:EP:BA:2012:T148508.20121220
Date of decision
20 December 2012
Case number
T 1485/08
Petition for review of
-
Application number
00905576.5
IPC class
C09B 67/22
C09B 67/24
C07D 251/50
C07C 317/32
C07D 251/54
C07D 251/46
C07D 239/42
Language of proceedings
EN
Distribution
DISTRIBUTED TO BOARD CHAIRMEN (C)

Download and more information:

Decision in EN 375.69 KB
Documentation of the appeal procedure can be found in the European Patent Register
Bibliographic information is available in:
EN
Versions
Unpublished
Application title

Reactive dye composition

Applicant name
Everlight USA, Inc.
Opponent name

Dr. Stephan Laubereau as insolvency administrator of

DyStar Textilfarben GmbH & Co Deutschland KG

Board
3.3.01
Headnote
-
Relevant legal provisions
European Patent Convention Art 54
European Patent Convention Art 123(2)
Keywords

Admissibility of document not admitted during opposition proceedings (yes) - highly relevant, discretion not correctly exercised

Second auxiliary request maintained by Opposition Division: novelty (no)

Third auxiliary request: amendments supported by the application as filed (no) - unallowable generalisation

Catchword
-
Cited decisions
T 1002/92
T 0288/92
Citing decisions
T 0418/10
T 0283/11
T 0084/17

I. The Appellant (Opponent) lodged an appeal against the interlocutory decision of the Opposition Division dispatched on 21 May 2008 on the amended form in which European patent No. 1 151 043 could be maintained.

II. In this decision the following numbering will be used to refer to the documents:

(1) Brochure "Current fashion shades 89/90" of Casella

AG and Hoechst AG, June 1988

(2) Brochure "Current fashion shades 90/91" of Casella

AG and Hoechst AG, June 1989

(3) Brochure "Current fashion shades 91/92" of Casella

AG and Hoechst AG, June 1990

(4) Brochure "Current fashion shades 94/95" of Casella

AG and Hoechst AG, July 1993

(10) JP 1-315469

(16) KR 94-2560

(16T) English translation of document (16)

(16A) Annexes 1 and 2 summarising examples 7 and 8 of

document (16T)

(57) Comparative data: Appendix 1-4 and 4 colour cards

submitted by the Respondent

III. Opposition was filed requesting revocation of the patent in suit in its entirety on the grounds of lack of novelty and inventive step (Article 100(a) EPC). With letter of 2 September 2005 the Opponent raised an additional objection of prior use.

IV. The decision under appeal was based on the main request consisting of the claims as granted, auxiliary request 1 filed with letter of 27 May 2005 and auxiliary request 2 filed on 5 February 2008 during oral proceedings before the Opposition Division.

The Opposition Division held that

- the main request and auxiliary request 1 lacked novelty in view of documents (1) - (4) and (10)

- auxiliary request 2 complied with the requirements of Article 123(2) EPC, was novel over documents (1) - (4) and (10) and involved an inventive step over document (10) taking into account the comparative data provided with respect to this document.

Furthermore, the Opposition Division disregarded document (16), in particular the English translation of this document (16T) provided by the Appellant during oral proceedings, as well as several documents which were considered not to have been available to the public. The alleged prior use was considered to be insufficiently substantiated.

V. Auxiliary request 2, which according to the decision under appeal met the requirements of the EPC, consists of 23 claims. Independent claim 1, which is the only claim relevant for the present decision, reads as follows (definition of the components (V) to (XI) being reproduced as far as pertinent):

"1. A reactive dye composition which comprises:

(a) at least a black or navy reactive dye with a good color fastness to laundering-oxidative bleach, said black or navy reactive dye is selected from the group consisting of formula (III)

FORMULA/TABLE/GRAPHIC

wherein Y and Y’ each independent, is —SO2X, —NH—W,

FORMULA/TABLE/GRAPHIC

W is

FORMULA/TABLE/GRAPHIC

X is —OH, —CH=CH2, —C2H4OSO3H, or —C2H4Cl, T is -NHCN, -F or -Cl, P is hydrogen, halogen, C1-C4 alkyl or C1-C4 alkoxyl, R5 is C1-C4 alkoxyl, R1, R2, R3 and R4, each independent, is hydrogen, halogen, hydroxyl, C1-C4 alkyl C1-C4 alkoxyl, or sulfonyl groups and at least one of R1 R2, R3 and R4 is other than hydrogen, or formula (IV)

FORMULA/TABLE/GRAPHIC

wherein Y and Y', R1 and R2 are defined as above and

b) at least a red, orange, yellow or other shade of reactive azo dye, said red, orange, yellow or other shade of reactive azo dye is selected from the group consisting of formula (V), formula (VI), formula (VII), formula (VIII), formula (IX), formula (X) or formula (XI)

FORMULA/TABLE/GRAPHIC

wherein Y, R1 and R2 are as defined above, R7 and R8 each independent is hydrogen, C1-C4 alkyl or amino,

....."

VI. With the statement of grounds of appeal the Appellant resubmitted document (16T), which it had filed during oral proceedings before the Opposition Division, together with Annexes 1 and 2 (document (16A)) summarising examples 7 and 8 of document (16T).

VII. With letter of 9 April 2009 the Respondent (Patent Proprietor) filed auxiliary request 3 as well as additional comparative data (document (57)) in support of an inventive step over document (16).

Independent claim 1 of auxiliary request 3 is distinguished from claim 1 of auxiliary request 2 in that formula V has been deleted and that the feature "and wherein Y is at the para-position" has been added to formula IX.

VIII. Under the cover of a letter dated 28 July 2010, Dystar Colours Deutschland GmbH requested acknowledgement of a transfer of party status to it from the Appellant/Opponent Dystar Textilfarben GmbH & Co. Deutschland KG.

IX. With the interlocutory decision dated 23 September 2011, the Board refused the request for transfer of appellant status to Dystar Colours Deutschland GmbH. The Board informed the parties that proceedings would be continued with Dr. Stephan Laubereau as insolvency administrator of Dystar Textilfarben GmbH & Co. Deutschland KG as Appellant.

X. In a communication accompanying the summons to oral proceedings, the Board informed the parties of the issues that it would be necessary to discuss during oral proceedings. The Board indicated its intention to admit document (16T), as it was of the preliminary opinion that this document was relevant at least to the question of novelty and that the Opposition Division, in not admitting it without having examined its relevance, had not correctly exercised its discretion. The Board also invited the Respondent to provide a clear and unambiguous basis in the application for the amendment made to formula (IX) in claims 1 and 10 of auxiliary request 3, namely that the substituent Y is at the para-position. Concerning the assessment of inventive step, the Board indicated that one of the issue to be discussed would be whether or not the comparative data provided by the Respondent with respect to documents (10) and (16) could support the alleged effects.

XI. By letter of 20 November 2012 the Respondent notified the Board that it would not be attending oral proceedings and requested "to decide the case according to the facts of the file". No further submissions concerning substantive issues in reply to the Board's communication were made.

XII. The arguments provided by the Appellant in writing and during the oral proceedings before the Board, to the extent that they are relevant for the present decision, can be summarised as follows:

Document (16T) should have been considered by the Opposition Division, because it confirmed in a straightforward manner that document (16), which had been filed with the notice of opposition against novelty of the patent in suit, contained novelty-destroying subject-matter. The relevance of document (16) was already recognisable even without the translation and all that was necessary for the Opposition Division was to establish the meaning of the substituents, which could be easily done with the help of document (16T). However, notwithstanding the Opposition Division's decision to disregard this document, due to its high relevance it should be admitted by the Board into the appeal proceedings.

The subject-matter of claim 1 of auxiliary request 2 was not novel in view of examples 7 and 8 of document (16T), which disclosed a black dye mixture comprising compounds according to the claimed formulae (III) and (IX). The respective formulae of the reactant and the product mixture were summarised in document (16A).

Auxiliary request 3 did not comply with the requirement of Article 123(2) EPC, because there was no basis in the application as filed for the feature that Y was in para-position. Nor could the four examples on pages 22 and 23 with their specific substituent combination support this amendment.

XIII. The arguments provided by the Respondent in writing, to the extent that they are relevant for the present decision, can be summarised as follows:

Document (16T) should not be admitted into the proceedings, because it had been filed too late without any reason. The Appellant had submitted this document more than 30 months after the Respondent had indicated in its reply to the notice of opposition that the alleged novelty-destroying disclosure of document (16) could not be verified because it was in Korean.

The introduction of the feature that the substituent Y was attached in para-position restricted the claims and was therefore admissible under Article 123(2) EPC.

XIV. The Appellant requested that the decision be set aside and that the patent in suit be revoked in its entirety. Furthermore, it requested that document (16T) be admitted into the proceedings.

XV. The Respondent requested in writing that the appeal be dismissed, i.e. that the patent be maintained on the basis of auxiliary request 2 underlying the contested decision or, alternatively, that the patent be maintained on the basis of auxiliary request 3 filed with the reply to the statement of grounds of appeal of 9 April 2009. It also requested that document (16T) not be admitted into the procedure.

XVI. Oral proceedings took place as scheduled on 20 December 2012 in the absence of the Respondent (Rule 115(2) EPC, Article 15(3) RPBA). At the end of the oral proceedings the decision of the Board was announced.

1. The appeal is admissible.

2. Admissibility of document (16T)

2.1 Document (16T), which is an English translation of Korean patent No. 94-2560 (document (16)) filed with the notice of opposition, was submitted by the Appellant during oral proceedings before the Opposition Division and was resubmitted with the statement of grounds of appeal. According to the decision under appeal (page 8, first and second paragraphs) the Opposition Division adopted the Respondent's position that the translation had been filed too late in the proceedings and should therefore be disregarded.

This decision was challenged by the Appellant on the grounds that the Opposition Division in disregarding document (16T), which was highly relevant to the issue of novelty, had not properly exercised its discretion.

2.2 An Opposition Division has a discretionary power under Article 114(2) EPC to disregard evidence which has not been submitted in time. A Board of Appeal should only overrule the way in which a first-instance department has exercised its discretion in a decision in a particular case if the Board comes to the conclusion that the first-instance department in its decision has exercised its discretion according to the wrong principles, or without taking into account the right principles, or in an unreasonable way (G 7/93, OJ EPO 1994, 775, point 2.6 of the reasons).

The question to be examined therefore is whether or not the Opposition Division has exercised it discretion correctly.

2.3 According to established jurisprudence of the Boards of Appeal, a decisive criterion for admitting late-filed documents is their prima facie relevance (T 1002/92 OJ EPO, 1995, 605, point 3.3).

In this context the Board notes that document (16) was filed with the notice of opposition against novelty of the patent in suit. Although not in one of the official languages of the EPO, from the use of various English terms in the description of document (16) it is already discernible that its subject-matter is related to the claimed subject-matter (see page 4 of document (16), which refers to "exhausting dying", "printing", and "cold pad batch dying"). Moreover, the structural formulae according to claim 1 and on pages 1-2 closely correspond to the formulae of compounds III, VIII and IX of the patent in suit. The definition of the substituents in the formulae of document (16) cannot be clearly determined from the Korean patent, but this information is available in a straightforward manner, without requiring particular effort, from the English translation of document (16), in particular the examples. Taking into account the diazo starting material, it can immediately be seen that some of these examples disclose mixtures falling within the scope of the patent in suit. Document (16T) was, therefore, prima facie relevant to the issue of novelty.

The contested decision and the minutes of the oral proceedings, however, do not contain anything that allows the conclusion that the Opposition Division considered the relevance of document (16T).

2.4 Other criteria for deciding on the admissibility of late-filed documents, such as whether their submission disadvantaged the other party in presenting its case or even constituted a procedural abuse or led to excessive delay in the proceedings, have also been held to be relevant for the exercise of discretion. However, neither the decision under appeal nor the minutes of the oral proceedings contain anything that allows the conclusion that the Opposition Division took into consideration any criteria other than the late-filing of the translation.

2.5 In view of the above, it is the Board's opinion that the Opposition Division in not admitting document (16T) for the sole reason that it was late-filed, without having examined its relevance or considered any other criteria, did not properly exercise its discretion.

2.6 In its reply to the statement of grounds of appeal the Respondent argued that the late-filing of document (16T) was at odds with fair proceedings. The document had been filed more than 30 months after the Respondent's reply to the notice of opposition, where it had been pointed out that document (16) was in Korean and could not be understood. Moreover, the Appellant had made further submissions on 2 September 2005 before the oral proceedings before the Opposition Division without addressing document (16).

2.7 The Board is not convinced by the Respondent's argument.

2.7.1 Although the Appellant should have provided a translation of document (16) much earlier, preferably with the notice of opposition or at least sufficiently in advance of the oral proceedings, nevertheless, in the present case considering the prima facie relevance of document (16T) the decision of the Opposition Division to disregard this document solely because it was filed at a late stage in the proceedings was not justified. The Board also notes that the Respondent did not provide any arguments to the effect that it would not have been in a position to adequately deal with the content of document (16T) and to properly address the objection of lack of novelty during the oral proceedings before the Opposition Division. The argument that it would have been unfair to admit document (16) can therefore not succeed.

2.7.2 Furthermore, document (16T), which was resubmitted with the Appellant's statement of grounds of appeal, is sufficiently highly relevant to justify its admission into the appeal proceedings, as the Board had clear reasons to believe that it would prejudice the maintenance of the patent (see point XI above). The Board is also satisfied that the Respondent had ample time to consider the content of document (16T) and a fair chance to prepare a proper defence.

2.8 For the above reasons, the Board decided, in the exercise of its discretion pursuant to Article 12(4) RPBA, not to hold document (16T) inadmissible.

Auxiliary request 2

3. Novelty

3.1 According to the Appellant, claim 1 of auxiliary request 2 lacked novelty in view of examples 7 and 8 of document (16T).

3.2 Document (16T) discloses deeply black reactive dye compositions (I) obtained via the reaction of the diazotised compound of formula (II) with compounds of formula (III-1), (III-2) and (III-3).

FORMULA/TABLE/GRAPHIC

FORMULA/TABLE/GRAPHIC

(see formulae on page 2 and page 2, lines 2-7 of document (16T)). The Board notes that the first formula of product (I) contains an obvious error in that the group SO2CH2CH2X on the left phenyl ring should be attached via the sulfone group. This error is obvious with regard to formula (II).

According to example 7, 4 mol of 1-amino-2-methoxy-benzene-5-beta-sulfatoethyl sulfone, a compound of formula (II), was diazotised and reacted with 1 mol of each of the compounds 1-amino-8-hydroxynaphthalene 3,6-disulfonic acid (compound III-1), 1,3-diaminobenzene-4-sulfonic acid (compound (III-2) and 1-naphthylamine-4-sulfonic acid (a compound of formula (III-3) (see table on page 7 of document (16T)). The Board agrees with the Appellant (see Annex 1 of document (16A)) that the resulting black reactive dye composition thus comprises the following compounds:

FORMULA/TABLE/GRAPHIC

In example 8 of document (16T) the reaction takes place with 1-amino-2-methyl benzene-5-beta-sulfatoethyl sulfone, resulting in a composition as described above with a methyl instead of a methoxy group in the structure of each of the compounds (see table on page 7 of document (16T) and Annex 2 of document (16A)).

The first of the compounds in the aforementioned compositions corresponds to a compound of formula (III) of auxiliary request 2, with R1/R3 equal to methoxy (C1 alkoxy) or methyl (C1 alkyl), R2/R4 equal to hydrogen and Y/Y' equal to SO2X with X equal to CH2CH2OSO3H. The second compound of the aforementioned compositions corresponds to a compound of formula (IX) of auxiliary request 2, with R7/R8 equal to amino, R1 equal to methoxy (C1 alkoxy) or methyl (C1 alkyl), R2 equal to hydrogen and Y equal to SO2X with X equal to CH2CH2OSO3H.

Due to the word "comprises" in claim 1 of auxiliary request 2, compounds other than those of formula (III) and (IX) can be present, for example the third compound of the composition according to examples 7 and 8 of document (16T). Accordingly, compositions obtained in examples 7 and 8 of document (16T) fall within the scope of claim 1 of auxiliary request 2.

3.3 The Respondent did not provide any arguments concerning this issue.

3.4 For the aforementioned reasons, the Board concludes that the subject-matter of claim 1 of auxiliary request 2 is not novel within the meaning of Article 54 EPC.

Auxiliary request 3

4. Amendments

4.1 Claim 1 of auxiliary request 3 was amended inter alia by introducing the feature that the substituent Y in the general formula (IX) is at the para-position.

4.2 The Respondent did not provide a basis for this amendment in the application as filed, but rather argued that the amendment restricted the claim and was therefore admissible under Article 123(2) EPC.

4.3 The Board cannot accept this argument. Article 123(2) EPC prohibits amendments which generate "subject-matter that extends beyond the content of the application as originally filed". Thus, the introduction of any technical information which a skilled person would not have objectively and unambiguously derived from the application as filed, even if it results in a restriction, is prohibited (see decision T 288/92, not published in OJ EPO, point 3.1 of the reasons)

4.4 According to the general formula IX of the application as filed, the position of the substituent Y at the phenyl ring to which it is attached is not defined (see page 14 of the description and claim 1) and no explicit disclosure can be found elsewhere in the description referring to a particular position of Y. The Board notes that in addition to the general formula (IX) the application as filed also refers to four individual compounds (IX-1) to (IX-4) (see pages 22 and 23). In these compounds Y is attached in para-position to the azo group. However, at the same time Y is always a particular residue, namely -SO2CH2CH2OSO3H, and, except for the azo group, no further substituent is present on the phenyl ring to which Y is attached, i.e. R1 and R2 according to the general formula (IX) are hydrogen. Moreover, in all four individual compounds, the second phenyl ring also has a specific substitution pattern, i.e. an amino group in para- and the required -SO3H residue in meta-position. Therefore, the original disclosure of these individual compounds cannot support the generalisation in amended claim 1, which results in claiming compounds of formula (IX) where Y, independently of its definition and independently of the definition of the other substituents, is in para-position.

Thus, the amendment that Y in the general formula (IX) is in para-position represents technical information which is not objectively and unambiguously derivable from the application as filed.

4.5 For the aforementioned reasons, the Board concludes that claim 1 of auxiliary request 3 extends the subject-matter claimed beyond the application as originally filed and thus contravenes Article 123(2) EPC.

Order

ORDER

For these reasons it is decided that:

1. The decision under appeal is set aside.

2. The patent is revoked.

Footer - Service & support
  • Service & support
    • FAQ
    • Contact us
    • Subscription centre
    • Official holidays
    • Publications
    • Procedural communications
    • Ordering
    • Glossary
Footer - More links
  • Jobs & careers
  • Press centre
  • Single Access Portal
  • Procurement
  • Boards of Appeal
SoMe facebook 0
European Patent Office
EPO Jobs
SoMe instagram
EuropeanPatentOffice
SoMe linkedIn
European Patent Office
EPO Jobs
EPO Procurement
SoMe twitter
EPOorg
EPOjobs
SoMe youtube
TheEPO
Footer
  • Legal notice
  • Terms of use
  • Data protection and privacy
  • Accessibility