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
      • EP full-text search
    • Legal information
      • Overview
      • European Patent Register
      • European Patent Bulletin
      • European Case Law Identifier sitemap
      • Third-party observations
    • Business information
      • Overview
      • PATSTAT
      • IPscore
      • Technology insight reports
    • Data
      • Overview
      • Technology Intelligence Platform
      • Linked open EP data
      • Bulk data sets
      • Web services
      • Coverage, codes and statistics
    • Technology platforms
      • Overview
      • Plastics in transition
      • Water innovation
      • Space innovation
      • Technologies combatting cancer
      • Firefighting technologies
      • Clean energy technologies
      • Fighting coronavirus
    • 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
    Image
    Plastics in Transition

    Technology insight report on plastic waste management

  • 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
    • Find a professional representative
    • MyEPO services
      • Overview
      • Understand our services
      • Get access
      • File with us
      • Interact with us on your files
      • Online Filing & fee payment outages
    • Forms
      • Overview
      • Request for examination
    • Fees
      • Overview
      • European fees (EPC)
      • International fees (PCT)
      • Unitary Patent fees (UP)
      • Fee payment and refunds
      • Warning

    UP

    Find out how the Unitary Patent can enhance your IP strategy

  • 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
      • Guidelines
      • Extension / validation system
      • London Agreement
      • National law relating to the EPC
      • Unitary patent system
      • National measures relating to the Unitary Patent
    • 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
    Image
    Law and practice scales 720x237

    Keep up with key aspects of selected BoA decisions with our monthly "Abstracts of decisions”

  • 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
      • The meaning of tomorrow
      • About the award
      • Categories and prizes
      • Meet the finalists
      • Nominations
      • European Inventor Network
      • The 2024 event
    • Young Inventors Prize
      • Overview
      • About the prize
      • Nominations
      • The jury
      • The world, reimagined
    • 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
      • Water-related technologies
      • CodeFest
      • Green tech in focus
      • Research institutes
      • Women inventors
      • 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

    From ideas to inventions: tune into our podcast for the latest in tech and IP

  • Learning

    Learning

    The European Patent Academy – the point of access to your learning

    Go to overview 

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

    Have a look at the extensive range of learning opportunities in the European Patent Academy training catalogue

  • 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
      • Official celebrations
      • Member states’ video statements
      • 50 Leading Tech Voices
      • Athens Marathon
      • Kids’ collaborative art competition
    • Legal foundations and member states
      • Overview
      • Legal foundations
      • Member states of the European Patent Organisation
      • Extension states
      • Validation states
    • Administrative Council and subsidiary bodies
      • Overview
      • Communiqués
      • Calendar
      • Documents and publications
      • Administrative Council
    • Principles & strategy
      • Overview
      • Our mission, vision, values and corporate policy
      • Strategic Plan 2028
      • Towards a New Normal
    • Leadership & management
      • Overview
      • President António Campinos
      • Management Advisory Committee
    • Sustainability at the EPO
      • Overview
      • Environmental
      • Social
      • Governance and Financial sustainability
    • Services & activities
      • Overview
      • Our services & structure
      • Quality
      • Consulting our users
      • European and international co-operation
      • European Patent Academy
      • Chief Economist
      • Ombuds Office
      • Reporting wrongdoing
    • Observatory on Patents and Technology
      • Overview
      • Technologies
      • Innovation actors
      • Policy and funding
      • Tools
      • About the Observatory
    • Procurement
      • Overview
      • Procurement forecast
      • Doing business with the EPO
      • Procurement procedures
      • Sustainable Procurement Policy
      • 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
      • Patent Index 2024
      • EPO Data Hub
      • Clarification on data sources
    • History
      • Overview
      • 1970s
      • 1980s
      • 1990s
      • 2000s
      • 2010s
      • 2020s
    • Art collection
      • Overview
      • The collection
      • Let's talk about art
      • Artists
      • Media library
      • What's on
      • Publications
      • Contact
      • Culture Space A&T 5-10
      • "Long Night"
    Image
    Patent Index 2024 keyvisual showing brightly lit up data chip, tinted in purple, bright blue

    Track the latest tech trends with our Patent Index

 
en de fr
  • Language selection
  • English
  • Deutsch
  • Français
Main navigation
  • Homepage
    • Go back
    • New to patents
  • New to patents
    • Go back
    • Your business and patents
    • Why do we have patents?
    • What's your big idea?
    • Are you ready?
    • What to expect
    • How to apply for a patent
    • Is it patentable?
    • Are you first?
    • 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
        • Release notes
        • Cross-reference index for Euro-PCT applications
        • EP authority file
        • Help
      • EP full-text search
    • 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
          • Register events
      • European Patent Bulletin
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Download Bulletin
        • EP Bulletin search
        • Help
      • European Case Law Identifier sitemap
      • Third-party observations
    • Business information
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • PATSTAT
      • IPscore
        • Go back
        • Release notes
      • Technology insight reports
    • Data
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Technology Intelligence Platform
      • 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)
        • Boards of Appeal decisions
      • Web services
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Open Patent Services (OPS)
        • European Publication Server web service
      • Coverage, codes and statistics
        • Go back
        • Weekly updates
        • Updated regularly
    • Technology platforms
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Plastics in transition
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Plastics waste recovery
        • Plastics waste recycling
        • Alternative plastics
      • Innovation in water technologies
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Clean water
        • Protection from water
      • Space innovation
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Cosmonautics
        • Space observation
      • Technologies combatting cancer
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Prevention and early detection
        • Diagnostics
        • Therapies
        • Wellbeing and aftercare
      • Firefighting technologies
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Detection and prevention of fires
        • Fire extinguishing
        • Protective equipment
        • Post-fire restoration
      • Clean energy technologies
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Renewable energy
        • Carbon-intensive industries
        • Energy storage and other enabling technologies
      • 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
    • Helpful resources
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • First time here?
        • 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
          • Main features
          • Applying for a Unitary Patent
          • Cost of a Unitary Patent
          • Translation and compensation
          • Start date
          • Introductory brochures
        • 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
        • Exchange data with us using an API
          • Go back
          • Release notes
      • Get access
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Release notes
      • File with us
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • What if our online filing services are down?
        • Release notes
      • Interact with us on your files
        • Go back
        • Release notes
      • Online Filing & fee payment outages
    • 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
      • Overview
      • 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
      • Guidelines
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • EPC Guidelines
        • PCT-EPO Guidelines
        • Unitary Patent Guidelines
        • Guidelines revision cycle
        • Consultation results
        • Summary of user responses
        • Archive
      • Extension / validation system
      • London Agreement
      • National law relating to the EPC
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Archive
      • Unitary Patent system
        • Go back
        • Travaux préparatoires to UP and UPC
      • 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
      • The meaning of tomorrow
      • About the award
      • Categories and prizes
      • Meet the inventors
      • Nominations
      • European Inventor Network
        • Go back
        • 2024 activities
        • 2025 activities
        • Rules and criteria
        • FAQ
      • The 2024 event
    • Young Inventors Prize
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • About the prize
      • Nominations
      • The jury
      • The world, reimagined
      • The 2025 event
    • 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
      • Water-related technologies
      • CodeFest
        • Go back
        • CodeFest Spring 2025 on classifying patent data for sustainable development
        • Overview
        • CodeFest 2024 on generative AI
        • CodeFest 2023 on Green Plastics
      • Green tech in focus
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • About green tech
        • Renewable energies
        • Energy transition technologies
        • Building a greener future
      • Research institutes
      • Women inventors
      • 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
        • Artificial intelligence
        • Fourth Industrial Revolution
      • Additive manufacturing
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • About AM
        • AM innovation
      • Books by EPO experts
    • Podcast
  • Learning
    • Go back
    • Overview
    • Learning activities and paths
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Learning activities: types and formats
      • Learning paths
    • EQE and EPAC
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • EQE - European Qualifying Examination
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Compendium
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Paper F
          • Paper A
          • Paper B
          • Paper C
          • Paper D
          • Pre-examination
        • Candidates successful in the European qualifying examination
        • Archive
      • EPAC - European patent administration certification
      • CSP – Candidate Support Programme
    • Learning resources by area of interest
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Patent granting
      • Technology transfer and dissemination
      • Patent enforcement and litigation
    • 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
        • Inventor's handbook
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Introduction
          • Disclosure and confidentiality
          • Novelty and prior art
          • Competition and market potential
          • Assessing the risk ahead
          • Proving the invention
          • Protecting your idea
          • Building a team and seeking funding
          • Business planning
          • Finding and approaching companies
          • Dealing with companies
        • 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
          • Business decision-makers
          • IP professionals
          • Stakeholders of the Innovation Ecosystem
      • EQE and EPAC Candidates
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Paper F brain-teasers
        • Daily D questions
        • European qualifying examination - Guide for preparation
        • EPAC
      • 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
        • Modular IP Education Framework (MIPEF)
        • 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
        • Academic Research Programme
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Completed research projects
          • Current research projects
        • IP Teaching Kit
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Download modules
        • Intellectual property course design manual
        • PATLIB Knowledge Transfer to Africa
          • Go back
          • The PATLIB Knowledge Transfer to Africa initiative (KT2A)
          • KT2A core activities
          • Success story: Malawi University of Science and Technology and PATLIB Birmingham
  • About us
    • Go back
    • Overview
    • The EPO at a glance
    • 50 years of the EPC
      • Go back
      • Official celebrations
      • Overview
      • Member states’ video statements
        • Go back
        • Albania
        • Austria
        • Belgium
        • Bulgaria
        • Croatia
        • Cyprus
        • Czech Republic
        • Denmark
        • Estonia
        • Finland
        • France
        • Germany
        • Greece
        • Hungary
        • Iceland
        • Ireland
        • Italy
        • Latvia
        • Liechtenstein
        • Lithuania
        • Luxembourg
        • Malta
        • Monaco
        • Montenegro
        • Netherlands
        • North Macedonia
        • Norway
        • Poland
        • Portugal
        • Romania
        • San Marino
        • Serbia
        • Slovakia
        • Slovenia
        • Spain
        • Sweden
        • Switzerland
        • Türkiye
        • United Kingdom
      • 50 Leading Tech Voices
      • Athens Marathon
      • 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
    • Administrative Council and subsidiary bodies
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Communiqués
        • Go back
        • 2024
        • Overview
        • 2023
        • 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
        • Go back
        • Driver 1: People
        • Driver 2: Technologies
        • Driver 3: High-quality, timely products and services
        • Driver 4: Partnerships
        • Driver 5: Financial sustainability
      • Towards a New Normal
      • Data protection & privacy notice
    • Leadership & management
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • About the President
      • Management Advisory Committee
    • Sustainability at the EPO
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Environmental
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Inspiring environmental inventions
      • Social
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Inspiring social inventions
      • Governance and Financial sustainability
    • Procurement
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Procurement forecast
      • Doing business with the EPO
      • Procurement procedures
      • Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) publications
      • Sustainable Procurement Policy
      • About eTendering
      • Invoicing
      • Procurement portal
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • e-Signing contracts
      • 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
        • Quality Action Plan
        • Quality dashboard
        • Statistics
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Search
          • Examination
          • Opposition
        • Integrated management at the EPO
      • 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
        • Surveys
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Detailed methodology
          • Search services
          • Examination services, final actions and publication
          • Opposition services
          • Formalities services
          • Customer services
          • Filing services
          • Key Account Management (KAM)
          • Website
          • Archive
      • 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
    • Observatory on Patents and Technology
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Technologies
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Innovation against cancer
        • Assistive robotics
        • Space technologies
      • Innovation actors
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Startups and SMEs
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Publications
        • Research universities and public research organisations
      • Policy and funding
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Financing innovation programme
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Our studies on the financing of innovation
          • EPO initiatives for patent applicants
          • Financial support for innovators in Europe
        • Patents and standards
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Publications
          • Patent standards explorer
      • Tools
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Deep Tech Finder
      • About the Observatory
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Work plan
    • Transparency portal
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • General
        • Go back
        • Overview
        • Annual Review 2023
          • Go back
          • Overview
          • Foreword
          • Executive summary
          • 50 years of the EPC
          • Strategic key performance indicators
          • Goal 1: Engaged and empowered
          • Goal 2: Digital transformation
          • Goal 3: Master quality
          • Goal 4: Partner for positive impact
          • Goal 5: Secure sustainability
        • 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
    • Statistics and trends
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Statistics & Trends Centre
      • Patent Index 2024
        • Go back
        • Insight into computer technology and AI
        • Insight into clean energy technologies
        • Statistics and indicators
          • Go back
          • European patent applications
            • Go back
            • Key trend
            • Origin
            • Top 10 technical fields
              • Go back
              • Computer technology
              • Electrical machinery, apparatus, energy
              • Digital communication
              • Medical technology
              • Transport
              • Measurement
              • Biotechnology
              • Pharmaceuticals
              • Other special machines
              • Organic fine chemistry
            • All technical fields
          • Applicants
            • Go back
            • Top 50
            • Categories
            • Women inventors
          • Granted patents
            • Go back
            • Key trend
            • Origin
            • Designations
      • Data to download
      • EPO Data Hub
      • Clarification on data sources
    • History
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • 1970s
      • 1980s
      • 1990s
      • 2000s
      • 2010s
      • 2020s
    • Art collection
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • The collection
      • Let's talk about art
      • Artists
      • Media library
      • What's on
      • Publications
      • Contact
      • Culture Space A&T 5-10
        • Go back
        • Catalyst lab & Deep vision
          • Go back
          • Irene Sauter (DE)
          • AVPD (DK)
          • Jan Robert Leegte (NL)
          • Jānis Dzirnieks (LV) #1
          • Jānis Dzirnieks (LV) #2
          • Péter Szalay (HU)
          • Thomas Feuerstein (AT)
          • Tom Burr (US)
          • Wolfgang Tillmans (DE)
          • TerraPort
          • Unfinished Sculpture - Captives #1
          • Deep vision – immersive exhibition
          • Previous exhibitions
        • The European Patent Journey
        • Sustaining life. Art in the climate emergency
        • Next generation statements
        • Open storage
        • Cosmic bar
      • "Long Night"
  • Boards of Appeal
    • Go back
    • Overview
    • Decisions of the Boards of Appeal
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Recent decisions
      • Selected decisions
    • Information from the Boards of Appeal
    • Procedure
    • Oral proceedings
    • About the Boards of Appeal
      • 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
    • Code of Conduct
    • Business distribution scheme
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Technical boards of appeal by IPC in 2025
      • Archive
    • Annual list of cases
    • Communications
    • Annual reports
      • Go back
      • Overview
    • Publications
      • Go back
      • Abstracts of decisions
    • Case Law of the Boards of Appeal
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Archive
  • Service & support
    • Go back
    • Overview
    • Website updates
    • Availability of online services
      • Go back
      • Overview
    • FAQ
      • Go back
      • Overview
    • Publications
    • Ordering
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Patent Knowledge Products and Services
      • 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
      • Directories of patent attorneys
      • Patent databases, registers and gazettes
      • Disclaimer
    • Contact us
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Filing options
      • Locations
    • Subscription centre
      • Go back
      • Overview
      • Subscribe
      • Change preferences
      • Unsubscribe
    • Official holidays
    • Glossary
    • RSS feeds
Board of Appeals
Decisions

Recent decisions

Overview
  • 2025 decisions
  • 2024 decisions
  • 2023 decisions
  1. Home
  2. T 0535/12 09-05-2017
Facebook X Linkedin Email

T 0535/12 09-05-2017

European Case Law Identifier
ECLI:EP:BA:2017:T053512.20170509
Date of decision
09 May 2017
Case number
T 0535/12
Petition for review of
-
Application number
02017928.9
IPC class
G07D 7/00
G07D 11/00
Language of proceedings
EN
Distribution
NO DISTRIBUTION (D)

Download and more information:

Decision in EN 346.81 KB
Documentation of the appeal procedure can be found in the European Patent Register
Bibliographic information is available in:
EN
Versions
Unpublished
Application title

Bank note evaluation apparatus and bank note evaluation result data processing method

Applicant name
Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
Opponent name
GIESECKE & DEVRIENT GmbH
Board
3.4.03
Headnote
-
Relevant legal provisions
European Patent Convention Art 54(1)
European Patent Convention Art 54(2)
European Patent Convention Art 56 1973
Keywords

Novelty - (yes)

Inventive step - (yes)

Catchword
-
Cited decisions
T 0312/94
Citing decisions
-

I. The appeal of the opponent concerns the decision of the opposition division rejecting the opposition against European patent No. 1286314.

II. The opposition had been filed against the patent as a whole. Grounds of opposition were lack of novelty and inventive step (Articles 54, 56 and 100(a) EPC).

III. At the oral proceedings before the opposition division, the opposition division on its own motion raised a further ground of opposition under Article 100(c) EPC. The opponent was not present at these oral proceedings.

IV. At the oral proceedings before the board, the opponent (appellant) requested that the decision under appeal be set aside and that the patent be revoked.

The respondent (proprietor) requested that the appeal be dismissed, i.e., that the patent be maintained as granted.

V. Reference is made to the following document

D1: DE-A-4013585

VI. Independent claims 1 and 6 as granted by the examining division and maintained by the opposition division read as follows:

1. A bank note evaluation system comprising:

a bank note evaluation apparatus (1-N) adapted to evaluate a bank note and output a bank note evaluation result, comprising:

an encrypted data generation unit (11) configured to encrypt the bank note evaluation result data and unique data by an encryption key, thereby generating encrypted data;

and

an output unit (11) configured to output the encrypted data, characterized in that:

the output unit (11) is configured to output the bank note evaluation result data and the unique data, in addition to the encrypted data; and

a customer server (31) is adapted to:

receive the bank note count data, the unique data and the encrypted data from the bank note evaluation apparatus (1-N);

encrypt the received bank note evaluation result data and the received unique data by the encryption key to newly generate encrypted data; and

compare the newly generated encrypted data with the received encrypted data to confirm that the output bank note evaluation result data has been correctly received without tampering.

6. A bank note evaluation data processing method of processing a bank note evaluation result, comprising:

in a bank note evaluation apparatus (1-N), encrypting bank note evaluation result data and unique data by an encryption key to generate encrypted data (ST3); and

outputting the encrypted data (ST4) from the bank note evaluation apparatus,

characterized by:

outputting the bank note evaluation result data and the unique data, in addition to the encrypted data (ST4), from the bank note evaluation apparatus (1-N);

in a customer server (31), receiving the outputted bank note evaluation result data, the outputted unique data, and the outputted encrypted data (ST6);

encrypting the received bank note evaluation result data and the received unique data by the encryption key to newly generate encrypted data (ST7); and

comparing the newly generated encrypted data with the received encrypted data to confirm that the output bank note evaluation result data has been correctly received without tampering (ST7).

VII. The arguments of the parties regarding novelty, as far as they are relevant for the present decision, may be summarized as follows.

(a) The appellant argued that claim 8 of document D1 disclosed an automatic recalculation of the authentication code and its comparison (automatisch ...die Nachberechnung und den Vergleich durchführt) to the (original) authentication code by the terminal (über die Schnittstelle ... verbundenen Einheit). The fact that claim 8 referred back to claim 6, according to which the authentication code was printed on the log, had only relevance to the scope of protection of the claims, but was not of relevance for the technical disclosure of document D1.

The technical teaching conveyed by claim 8 was also consistent with the rest of the disclosure of document D1: Column 4, lines 9 to 15 further defined that the data necessary for doing so (die notwendigen Daten) were transmitted to the terminal. Furthermore, column 2, lines 10 to 15 described the authentication or verification process in general without any reference to a printed code. These two passages implied that the authentication code also had to be transmitted to the terminal to make the comparison by the terminal possible.

In conclusion, document D1 disclosed the transmission of the authentication code to the terminal as well as its verification by means of a recalculation of the authentication code and comparison with the transmitted authentication code by that terminal.

(b) The respondent argued that in document D1, the verification of the authentication code with the help of the terminal (mit Hilfe eines Terminals), as described in column 4, lines 9 to 15, did not imply that the whole verification process was performed by the terminal. Instead, the role of the terminal was confined to the recalculation of the authentication code, while the comparison of that recalculated code with the printed code was always performed by the user. Whilst document D1 suggested providing technical means for assisting a user in checking the authenticity of data printed on a document against fraud, there was no suggestion to replace the user by technical means.

The last feature of claim 8 of document D1 had to be read using this interpretation, even more so since claim 8 depended on claim 6 which explicitly defined the comparison of a recalculated code with a printed code.

Hence, document D1 neither disclosed the transmission of the authentication code to the terminal, nor a comparison of two authentication codes by the terminal.

VIII. The arguments of the parties with respect to inventive step, as far as they are relevant for the present decision, may be summarized as follows.

(a) The appellant argued that discussions about paperless offices and administrations had been generally ongoing well before 2001, the priority year of the patent. This general trend would have incited the skilled person to consider paperless alternatives for systems and methods as the ones disclosed in document D1.

In particular, document D1 itself contained various hints for the skilled person suggesting to dispense with the paper shift log: The authentication code was available electronically, since it could be stored for later verifications (column 2, lines 37 to 43 and column 4, lines 16-21). Furthermore, the authentication process as described in general in column 2, lines 10 to 15 did not require the use of a printed authentication code. Moreover, column 2, lines 16-28 of document D1 mentioned that in the area of telecommunications, it had been known since a long time to authenticate transmitted data automatically by means of a transmitted authentication code. Finally, claim 8 of D1 at least suggested to perform the comparison between the recalculated and the original authentication codes automatically by means of the terminal.

The skilled person starting from D1 and generally looking for alternatives, would as a matter of course try to solve the objective technical problem of "finding a paperless alternative to the use of the printed log of D1". The claimed solution would be achieved without the exercise of an inventive step.

(b) The respondent agreed that document D1 was suitable to be used as representing the closest prior art in the problem solution approach. Document D1, however, was exclusively directed at verifying the authenticity of a printed shift log, as explained in column 1, line 67 to column 2, line 3. In the area of banknote handling, security was an important issue and in 2001 (priority date of the contested patent), even less in 1990 (filing date of document D1), nobody would have relied on verifications by electronic means only, and nobody working in that area would have dispensed with a verifiable paper documentation.

Hence the objective technical problem proposed by the appellant ("providing a paperless alternative to the use of the printed log") contained elements of the solution and was thus based on hindsight.

A proper objective technical problem not based on the knowledge of the invention should rather be formulated as "improving the security of the system disclosed in D1".

Document D1 referred to the field of telecommunications only for presenting the authentication code as a tool for authenticating data. This could not be interpreted as an incentive or hint to get rid of paper documentation in the field of banknote handling.

1. Amendments (Article 100(c) EPC)

The opposition division raised the ground of opposition under Article 100(c) EPC on its own motion and came to the conclusion that the amendments to claim 1 carried out during the examination procedure complied with Article 123(2) EPC. Neither the appellant nor the respondent made any submissions on this issue. Since the board concurs with the conclusion of the opposition division, it is not necessary to further discuss this ground of opposition.

2. Novelty

2.1 Both parties agreed that most features of the independent claims 1 and 6 of the contested patent as granted are disclosed in D1. The contested issue is whether document D1 also discloses that:

- a customer server is provided which

- receives the bank note count data, the unique data and the encrypted data from the bank note evaluation apparatus (1-N);

- encrypts the received bank note evaluation result data and the received unique data by the encryption key to newly generate encrypted data; and

- compares the newly generated encrypted data with the received encrypted data to confirm that the output bank note evaluation result data has been correctly received without tampering.

2.2 Document D1 discloses a bank note evaluation of the same type as that of the contested patent. The bank notes are processed in an automatic bank note sorting machine for sorting bank notes into different categories according to given criteria, whereby partial amounts of bank notes are destroyed if necessary. A printed shift log is produced by the sorting machine to record information about the processed bank notes. In order to ensure that the printed shift log has not been tampered with, it additionally contains an authentication code which is produced by encrypting the bank note evaluation result together with the date and time of the log. Verification is carried out by inputting the bank note evaluation result, date and time printed on the log on a terminal which carries out the same encryption algorithm used to produce the authentication code on the log. The result is displayed and compared by the user with the authentication code printed on the shift log. The data from the sorting machine can also be sent automatically to the terminal for verification (column 4, lines 9 to 15).

2.3 The appellant argued that claim 8 of document D1 disclosed that both the recalculation of the authentication code and the comparison with the authentication code of the shift log could be carried out automatically (see item VII(a) above).

2.4 Claim 8 of D1 reads:

Verfahren nach Anspruch 6, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass zur Prüfung des Protokolls die Daten über die Schnittstelle einer mit der Sortiervorrichtung verbundenen Einheit zugeführt werden, die automatisch anhand der Daten die Nachberechnung und den Vergleich durchführt.

2.5 The board concurs with the appellant that the wording of claim 8 of document D1 lends itself to an interpretation that the terminal, which would correspond to the "customer server" as defined in the independent claims, would automatically perform both a recalculation of the authentication code and a subsequent comparison with the originally calculated authentication code. Such an automatic comparison by the terminal, however, implies that the terminal must have received the authentication code from the sorting machine.

The above argument, however, overlooks that claim 8 depends on claim 6, as pointed out by the respondent (see item VII(b) above). Claim 6, on the other hand, requires a comparison of the recalculated code with the original code printed on the log (Vergleich mit dem auf dem Protokoll ausgedruckten Echtheitskennzeichen durchgeführt wird). Such a comparison has to be carried out by a user at the terminal. This is in line with the rest of document D1 which consistently discloses that the comparison of the authentication codes is performed by a user (see e.g. column 3, lines 57 to 61).

The board was also unable to find any suggestion in document D1, including the passages cited by the appellant, that explicitly indicates that the authentication code itself would be transmitted or made available by electronic means to the terminal. The passages cited by the appellant rather relate to the transmission of the data necessary for recalculating the authentication code. There is no disclosure that the authentication code itself is transmitted to the terminal (column 4, lines 12-15, Die Daten ... woraus ... der Echtheitscode ... errechnet wird.).

Thus, the interpretation of claim 8 as suggested by the appellant is only possible when the claim is read in isolation, disregarding the fact that it is referring back to claim 6.

When interpreting a document to determine its disclosure, its parts should not be construed in isolation from each other but in the context of the document as a whole (see T312/94, catchword).

In the present case, the context of document D1 as a whole is exclusively directed at the verification of an original authentication code as printed on a log and not any automatic comparison of codes at a terminal.

In view of the above, the board comes to the conclusion that document D1 neither discloses a transmission of the authentication code to a terminal, nor an automatic comparison at the terminal of such a transmitted authentication code with an automatically recalculated authentication code.

For the above reasons, the subject-matter of independent claims 1 and 6 of the contested patent is new within the meaning of Article 54(1) and (2) EPC.

3. Inventive step

3.1 The parties agreed that document D1 is considered closest prior art and the board concurs.

As discussed above the subject-matter of independent claims 1 and 6 of the contested patent differs from the disclosure of document D1 in that

- the encrypted data (authentication code) is received by the customer server (terminal), which further compares the newly generated encrypted data with the received encrypted data.

3.2 The appellant proposed that the objective technical problem to be solved related to finding a paperless alternative to the printed log of document D1 (see item VIII(a) above).

3.3 The board in principle concurs with the appellant that discussions relating to paperless offices were widespread before 2001, and therefore, it was considered a general trend to replace paper documents by corresponding electronic documents.

As the respondent pointed out (see item VIII(b) above), however, the very purpose of document D1 is to verify the authenticity of a printed shift log (column 1, line 43 to column 2, line 9). These shift logs are handed over together with the sorted banknotes and thus play an important role in the overall banknote handling process (column 3, lines 6 to 11). Thus, replacing the printed shift log of D1 by a corresponding electronic log would amount to redesigning the whole banknote handling process. It is difficult for the board to believe that the skilled person would consider replacing the printed shift log of document D1 due to general considerations alone, taking into account that security issues are of outmost importance in the field of banknote handling.

The board was not able to find any disclosure in document D1 that would suggest dispensing with the printed shift log. On the contrary, the only explicit example of the verification process is the (manual) verification of a printed shift log by a user (column 3, lines 49 to 62).

Although document D1 discloses that the authentication codes may be stored electronically (column 3, lines 6 to 11) in a memory of the sorting machine (column 4, lines 16 to 21), the purpose of storing the authentication codes electronically is to enable a later (re-)verification of older logs (column 2, lines 41 to 43 and column 4, line 19 to 21). Thus, the electronic storage of the authentication codes is performed in addition to their printing on the shift logs. There is however no hint that these stored authentication codes would be sent to the terminal.

As pointed out by the appellant, document D1 acknowledges that authentication codes were widely used in the field of telecommunications (column 2, lines 16 to 18). However, the board concurs with the respondent that the cited passage is directed at the use of the authentication codes as a tool to ensure the authenticity of the (printed) logs. This passage can not be seen as a suggestion to replace the printed logs, the authenticity of which is to be ensured, by an electronic log.

As pointed out before on novelty, the skilled person would interpret the wording of claim 8 in the context of the other parts of document D1, and therefore, claim 8 would also not provide the skilled person with a specific suggestion to dispense with the printed shift log.

3.4 Thus, the board holds that starting from document D1, the skilled person would not consider dispensing with the printed (paper) shift log due to the general considerations to move to a more paperless administration. Document D1 itself also fails to give the skilled person any specific suggestion to do so.

The skilled person would thus have no reason to make the terminal receive, in addition to the banknote evaluation result data and the unique data, also the authentication code, because this would not serve any purpose in verifying the authenticity of the printed shift log.

The board therefore concurs with the conclusion of the opposition division that the independent claims of the contested patent as granted involves an inventive step within the meaning of Article 56 EPC 1973.

4. As the grounds for opposition raised by the appellant opponent do not prejudice the maintenance of the patent as granted, the appeal must fail.

Order

For these reasons it is decided that:

The appeal is dismissed.

Footer - Service & support
  • Service & support
    • Website updates
    • Availability of online services
    • FAQ
    • Publications
    • Procedural communications
    • Contact us
    • Subscription centre
    • Official holidays
    • Glossary
Footer - More links
  • Jobs & careers
  • Press centre
  • Single Access Portal
  • Procurement
  • Boards of Appeal
Facebook
European Patent Office
EPO Jobs
Instagram
EuropeanPatentOffice
Linkedin
European Patent Office
EPO Jobs
EPO Procurement
X (formerly Twitter)
EPOorg
EPOjobs
Youtube
TheEPO
Footer
  • Legal notice
  • Terms of use
  • Data protection and privacy
  • Accessibility