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
      • Find a professional representative
      • File with us
      • Interact on your files
      • Online Filing & fee payment outages
      • Tutorials
    • 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
      • 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
      • Find a professional representative
      • 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
  • 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
Board of Appeals
Decisions

Recent decisions

Overview
  • 2023 decisions
  • 2022 decisions
  • 2021 decisions
https://www.epo.org/en/node/t110551eu1
  1. Home
  2. T 0551/11 (Assigning keywords to content/SKYWORD) 20-09-2017
Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email

T 0551/11 (Assigning keywords to content/SKYWORD) 20-09-2017

European Case Law Identifier
ECLI:EP:BA:2017:T055111.20170920
Date of decision
20 September 2017
Case number
T 0551/11
Petition for review of
-
Application number
06827607.0
IPC class
G06Q 10/00
Language of proceedings
EN
Distribution
NO DISTRIBUTION (D)

Download and more information:

Decision in EN 360.55 KB
Documentation of the appeal procedure can be found in the European Patent Register
Bibliographic information is available in:
EN
Versions
Unpublished
Application title

COMPUTER METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PUBLISHING CONTENT ON A GLOBAL COMPUTER NETWORK

Applicant name
Skyword Inc.
Opponent name
-
Board
3.5.01
Headnote
-
Relevant legal provisions
European Patent Convention Art 56
European Patent Convention Art 84
Keywords

Inventive step - mixture of technical and non-technical features

Inventive step - displaying suggested keywords in rank order (no

Inventive step - display of information)

Inventive step - only displaying frequently suggested keywords (no

Inventive step - administrative scheme)

Inventive step - no inventive technical contribution

Inventive step - all requests (no)

Claims - clarity

Claims - fifth auxiliary request (no)

Catchword
-
Cited decisions
T 0769/92
T 1194/97
T 0641/00
T 0643/00
T 0258/03
T 0125/04
Citing decisions
-

I. This appeal is against the decision of the examining division refusing European patent application No. 06827607.0 pursuant to Article 97(2) EPC on the ground of lack of inventive step (Article 56 EPC) with regard to prior-art publication:

D1: WO 01/80039 A2.

The examining division essentially argued that all distinguishing features over D1 were in the non-technical domain, because they were related to administrative considerations, which therefore did not provide an inventive technical contribution. Furthermore, it was argued that the alleged problem of high processor load was not solved by the claimed subject-matter.

II. In the statement setting out the grounds of appeal, the appellant requested that the appealed decision be set aside and that a patent be granted on the basis of the main request or the first to fourth auxiliary requests as submitted with the statement setting out the grounds of appeal. Oral proceedings were requested on an auxiliary basis.

III. In its communication, subsequent to the summons to oral proceedings, the Board expressed its preliminary opinion that all requests lacked inventive step (Article 56 EPC). It furthermore appeared that the main request, first and fourth auxiliary requests did not fulfill the requirements of Article 84 EPC.

IV. Oral proceedings were held on 20 September 2017 during the course of which the appellant presented amended sets of claims according to a main request and first to fifth auxiliary requests replacing the previous requests on file. The Board admitted these newly filed sets of claims into the proceedings.

The appellant requested that the decision under appeal be set aside and that a patent be granted on the basis of the main request or one of the first to fifth auxiliary requests, as filed during the oral proceedings.

After due consideration of the appellant's arguments the Chair announced the decision.

V. Independent claim 1 according to the main request reads as follows:

"1. A computer system (100) for publishing content comprising:

computer means (50), operable in a global computer network, for enabling network users to produce respective authored works (29) that are viewable by other network users, a network user being an author-user in connection with producing a respective authored work and a network user being a reader-user when viewing an authored work;

a categorization member (92) coupled to the computer means (50) and for each authored work (29) produced through the computer means (50), enabling a respective author-user of the authored work to categorize content of the authored work (29) by the author-user assigning one or more keywords or one or more key phrases to the authored work (29), wherein the assigned one or more keywords or the assigned one or more key phrases are stored as metadata of the authored work,

publication distribution means (11) coupled to the computer means, for each authored work (29), the publication distribution means (11) enabling the respective author to designate which users are allowed to view the authored work (29);

wherein the computer means is operable to enable users to search by or navigate by the one or more keywords and key phrases, and to display in rank order keywords or key phrases assigned to an authored work and in that the categorization member (92) further enables reader-users to re-categorize authored works (29) by suggesting alternative taxonomical categories, including new categories, and/or alternative keywords or key phrases, said categorization member configured to add said suggested alternative taxonomical categories and/or alternative keywords or key phases that have been suggested a threshold number of times, wherein the alternative keywords or key phrases are added to the metadata of the authored work."

Claim 1 of the first auxiliary request essentially adds to claim 1 of the main request that the categorization member is configured to suggest the one or more keywords or key phrases that are stored as metadata. Claim 1 of the second auxiliary request further adds that this is based on content of the authored work.

Claim 1 of the third auxiliary request essentially adds to the end of claim 1 of the main request that reader-user suggested alternative taxonomical categories and/or alternative keywords are ranked by frequency. Claim 1 of the fourth auxiliary request further adds that the author-user assigned keywords have a default rank.

Claim 1 of the fifth auxiliary request further adds to claim 1 of the third auxiliary request that the computer means "displays a taxonomical categorization of a given authored work in a manner that enables users to select any level of that categorization and in response to said user selection, the computer means enables display of other authored works similarly categorized as each other".

VI. The appellant argued essentially as follows:

D1 did not disclose important features of claim 1. In particular, D1 did not disclose enabling reader-users to re-categorise authored works to be stored as metadata and displaying keywords in rank order. A rank according to the invention defined a hierarchical organisation. Furthermore, D1 did not disclose that alternative keywords or key phrases were added to the metadata.

The aim of the invention was to improve the navigation and searching of large amounts of data. Thus, the technical problem solved could be seen as how to find published content quickly and efficiently, and in a manner requiring less computer resources and processing power. This was a technical consequence of providing a mechanism by which the inputs are taken, applied and used.

This problem was solved by displaying in rank order, keywords or key phrases assigned to an authored work. Reader users could add further keywords or key phrases, or suggest new or alternative taxonomical categories in order to assist other similarly situated reader users to more effectively navigate the Internet. Reader users could provide many such suggestions. In order to prevent every suggestion from appearing, the invention only added them when they had been suggested a threshold number of times.

The use of a hierarchical rank order to which reader users may collectively add new suggested keywords or key phrases, provided a technical contribution according to prevailing case law. It enabled the user to manage a technical task, such as searching and retrieving authored works stored in a database as in T 0643/00. The technical contribution was similar to that provided in T 0769/92, in that it helped to enable tasks involving the format of input data (i.e. the suggestions made by the reader-users) rather than mere data output and display of information (as in T 0125/04). The invention therefore provided a technical contribution over the prior art.

Introductory remarks

1. The claimed invention is directed to a system and method for publishing content. Such content is categorised by the author assigning keywords or key phrases used for searching or navigating. Categories, keywords or key phrases can later on be re-categorised by other users and for this purpose are displayed in rank order. Depending on how often a re-categorisation has been suggested, it is replaced or added.

Main request

2. Article 56 EPC - Inventive step

2.1 The independent claims are directed to a mix of technical and non-technical features. Claim 1 is directed to a computer system which is technical per se. The Board also does not dispute that the corresponding method according to independent claim 14 appears in a technical context. The method can be considered to be performed by technical means, because it involves a computer with means for storing data and means for processing data, and, therefore, has technical character. Accordingly, the claimed subject-matter is an invention in the sense of Article 52(1) EPC (see T 258/03 "Auction method/HITACHI").

2.2 However, the question of inventive step requires an assessment of whether the invention makes a technical contribution over the prior art. Features which do not make such a contribution cannot support the presence of an inventive step (see T 641/00 "Two identities/COMVIK", Headnote I).

2.3 The Board agrees with the analysis of D1 with regard to the features of claim 1 in the contested decision (see point 9.1).

D1 discloses the following features set out in independent claim 1:

A computer system for publishing content (page 2, lines 1 and 2) comprising:

computer means, operable in a global computer network, for enabling network users to produce respective authored works that are viewable by other network users, a network user being an author-user in connection with producing a respective authored work and a network user being a reader-user when viewing an authored work ("server 110 provides for online publishing of media by a member from a remote computer system", last paragraph on page 6; "members may upload media content to the website for broadcast on demand to users over the Internet", see page 8, paragraph 4; "viewers can also access webcast content previously uploaded for download or streaming" in paragraph 2 on page 10);

a categorization member coupled to the computer means and for each authored work produced through the computer means, enabling a respective author-user of the authored work to categorize content of the authored work, the author-user assigning one or more keywords or one or more key phrases to the authored work ("website would be divided and indexed into major categories of interest, so viewers can find the audio and video they want quickly", second paragraph on page 18; "search block 812 that enables a user of the system to find member's webcast content and other webcast sites on the Internet", item (c) on page 20; "metadata" in paragraph 2 on page 23);

publication distribution means coupled to the computer means, for each authored work, the publication distribution means enabling the respective author to designate which users are allowed to view the authored work (see page 18, paragraph starting with "The system and method thus [...]" as well as page 19, item (f): "downstreaming permissions block 809");

wherein the computer means is operable to enable users to search by or navigate by the one or more keywords and key phrases, and to display keywords or key phrases assigned to an authored work (page 20, item (c) "search block 812" and page 23, meta-data is considered to comprise keywords, see also figure 10 in which videos are described via "key phrases"; also in D1 an order has to be chosen for the meta-data which is stored in a database, see also page 9, second paragraph which in detail discloses the use of the meta-data).

Particularly, the Board refers to page 23, second paragraph of D1, which discloses that meta-data is used for search purposes and it can be edited. The fact of editing meta-data for advanced search ("very granular search") at least implies the use of categories or keywords/key phrases. According to D1 meta-data resides in an SQL database, disparate from the actual media file (see page 9, second paragraph). If not synonymous as argued in the contested decision (see page 5, first paragraph), knowing about SQL databases renders clear that meta-data can be compared to an index in the relational database. D1 mentions as examples title or member's name (see page 23, second paragraph), i.e. keywords or key-phrases according to claim 1. Using a relational database like SQL in D1 therefore also involves accommodation and consideration of a variety of keywords (in contrast to the appellant's argument, see e.g. on page 4, second paragraph of the statement setting out the grounds of appeal).

Furthermore, editing meta-data in D1 is considered to be within the broad formulation of a re-categorisation according to claim 1 and also allows continued updating and improvement of categorisation (in contrast to the appellant's argument, see e.g. on page 4, third paragraph of the statement setting out the grounds of appeal).

2.4 D1 does not disclose the same re-categorisation as claim 1, i.e. displaying in rank order keywords or key phrases and adding suggested alternatives once they have been suggested a threshold number of times.

With regard to displaying the keywords in rank order, the Board considers the rank order of the displayed information to be directed to the information content as such. The mere fact of displaying such information was known from D1, because in order to edit meta-data such data must be displayed (e.g. using a web-page, see D1, page 9, second paragraph, last sentence). Regarding the rank order, this is considered to be displaying of cognitive information and not functional data (see T 1194/97), since the system works the same way irrespective of what the rank order actually is. A wrong ranking would not affect the technical functioning of the claimed system.

2.5 The appellant alleged that search and navigation through large amounts of data content was improved by the invention. The appellant argued during oral proceedings that this resulted from using suggestions of keywords from many reader-users rendering the keywords better, since what many users came up with was usually of higher relevance and quality.

However, such large scale effects were well known principles in the fields of statistics and economic analysis and, hence, stem from business related administrative considerations. The basic idea behind the invention is to use only keywords (or key phrases) that many users suggest. This, in the Board's judgement, is an entirely administrative and therefore non-technical concept, which per se does not provide for a technical contribution over the prior art. The quality of a keyword is a highly subjective issue and not linked to any technical data or to any technical considerations. The claimed system merely provides an infrastructure for potentially taking advantage of those large scale effects, but this does not necessarily lead to an improved search and navigation.

This is all the more so since the value for the threshold is not specified and therefore can also have the value of two, three or four etc.

2.6 The Board considers the claimed way of re-categorisation to be within the administrative, i.e. non-technical domain, which cannot involve an inventive technical contribution over the disclosure of D1. It is regarded as an abstract non-technical concept how to organise the way categories, keywords etc. are provided and used, which is not driven by technical considerations, but merely by abstract administrative considerations. Particularly, it is not a technical feature who the person categorising content is, be it the author or a reader. It depends on the intellectual background and experience of the individual suggesting a keyword whether it is suitable or not, but not on the role (author/reader) the person plays, and it is irrespective of technical considerations for implementing such a concept on a computer system.

In contrast to the present invention, decision T 0643/00 referred to by the appellant concluded that a technical effect resulted from overcoming physical limitations of the size and resolution of a computer screen, but not from making the searching easier. In the present case, however, the use of a hierarchical rank order to which the user may collectively add new suggested keywords or key phrases does not provide a corresponding technical effect. It might reduce the mental effort required, which depends on subjective user skills or preferences. The Board is not convinced that an objectively credible technical effect is thereby achieved and regards this distinguishing feature to be only a secondary consideration not providing a technical contribution.

Decision T 0769/92 further referred to by the appellant essentially held that output formats are usually dictated by subjective preferences of humans and do not provide for a technical contribution, whereas features related to a specific input format might involve a technical contribution. Despite being quite old and having been overturned by more recent decisions of the Boards of Appeal, the present distinguishing features do not correspond to a specific input format as argued by the appellant (see e.g. page 6, paragraph 7 of the letter dated 16 August 2017). Claim 1 does not specify a specific format of an input for suggestions made by reader-users. Rather the rank order specifies an output format, which according to the reasoning of T 0769/92 does not provide for a technical contribution. The appellant's argument therefore does not convince the Board.

The further decision referred to, T 0125/04, essentially relates to a mere presentation of output data and does not support the appellant's arguments.

2.7 The Board does not agree with the appellant that the invention reduces the amount of computer resources and processing power required in order to execute a search as a technical consequence of providing a mechanism by which the inputs are taken, applied and used. Rather, the Board concurs with the contested decision (see point 9.5) that in the present case the alleged reduction of processor load would depend on the intellectual inputs provided by human users and the resulting tags selected, and the claimed system would therefore not necessarily result in a reduction of processing power required.

Even if a reduction of processing power was achieved, this would be the mere consequence of administrative measures and subjective human decisions, i.e. subjective user skills or preferences. Technical considerations are only involved through their implementation on a technical system such as the one disclosed in D1. Any administrative scheme, once implemented on a computer system, will have consequences in respect of the load on the technical means used.

2.8 The person skilled in the art within the meaning of Article 56 EPC, a computer expert provided with the complete description of the non-technical abstract administrative concept, in particular with the basic idea to use only keywords (or key phrases) that many users suggest, would have considered the claimed implementation obvious in view of the normal skills and the general knowledge of computer programming in view of the known system in D1.

The appellant's arguments to the contrary therefore do not convince for the aforementioned reasons.

2.9 In the absence of any technical contribution beyond the straight-forward computer-implementation, the subject-matter of claim 1 does not involve an inventive step (Article 56 EPC).

2.10 Similar objections and arguments apply mutatis mutandis to corresponding method claim 14.

Auxiliary requests

3. Regarding the first auxiliary request, the Board concurs with the decision under appeal that the added feature of claim 1 according to which the categorization member is configured to suggest one or more keywords or key phrases relates to an administrative task, the implementation of which does not involve an inventive technical contribution (Article 56 EPC). The Board is not convinced that suggesting keywords or key phrases is technical. Claim 1 is silent on how this is exactly achieved, e.g. whether some kind of artificial intelligence is needed. The appellant referred to page 23, first paragraph of the description of the present application, but the passage referred to does not give technical details in this regard.

3.1 In addition, D1 also discloses to automatically extract meta-data from the content (see figure 3 "Extract Meta-data" and page 9, second paragraph, "The meta-data... gets parsed out of the local file and input into the appropriate field... as part of the media management process"). The Board does not see a technical difference between the terms "suggest" used in claim 1 and "extract" in D1.

3.2 The additional feature therefore does not provide an inventive technical contribution over the disclosure of D1.

4. Regarding the second auxiliary request, the Board considers the feature "based on content of the authored work" not to add further information, since the wording of the respective feature in claim 1 according to the first auxiliary request has been interpreted in the same way. The same objections and arguments therefore apply (see point 4 above).

4.1 The additional feature therefore does not provide an inventive technical contribution over the disclosure of D1.

5. Regarding the third auxiliary request, the Board also considers the feature "ranked by frequency" not to add further information, since the wording of the respective feature in claim 1 according to the main request has been interpreted in this way. The same objections and arguments therefore apply (see points 3.4 to 3.6 above).

5.1 The additional feature therefore does not provide an inventive technical contribution over the disclosure of D1.

6. Regarding the fourth auxiliary request, the provision of a default rank does not require an inventive technical contribution, since it only further refines the administrative concept of which the implementation is still regarded as obvious. Again, it is noted that the role of the user (author/reader) who categorises is in the non-technical domain.

6.1 The additional feature therefore does not provide an inventive technical contribution over the disclosure of D1.

7. The fifth auxiliary request additionally specifies what is displayed, but not how it is displayed ("display a taxonomical categorization of a given authored work in a manner that enables users to select any level" and "enables display of other authored works similarly categorized as each other"). The Board does not agree with the appellant's argument that these additional features yield an improvement of the man-machine-interface. It rather defines a presentation of information content, which can differ only in administrative aspects. The implementation in a technical infrastructure as already present in D1 would not involve an inventive step (Article 56 EPC). The type of information presented is therefore considered to be in the non-technical domain. The appellant did not provide convincing arguments that an inventive technical contribution is achieved.

7.1 The additional feature therefore does not provide an inventive technical contribution over the disclosure of D1.

7.2 Furthermore, the added features do not use information defined in the previous requests, are not connected to the adding of keywords or key phrases and are specified by the result to be achieved rather than specifying the technical means for achieving it. For this reason, the added features also lack clarity (Article 84 EPC).

8. Therefore, none of the requests fulfils the requirements of the EPC.

Order

For these reasons it is decided that:

The appeal is dismissed.

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