Patent

Indian Patent Search System

The Indian Patent Advanced Search System, InPASS, was introduced on 27.02.2015. Prior to InPASS, IPAIRS [Indian Patent Information Retrieval System] was used to conduct patent search in India. InPASS is an updated version of IPAIRS as it allows for a full-text search of all Indian patents and Patent Applications. Apart from this InPASS also allows a person to conduct a patent search using Wild Cards and Boolean Operators. Now, InPASS is the Indian patent office database used to conduct an advanced patent search in India.

Conducting a patent search is indispensable before filing a patent application. At the outset, it is important to explain the layout of InPASS. In the  InPASS four menu tabs are provided namely Patent Search, Patent E-register, Application Status and Help.

Patent Search in India

In the ‘Patent Search’ tab, there are two check boxes provided those allow you to search for either Granted patents or Published applications or both.

After choosing that you can search for patents or applications published based on any of the following search parameters:

Keyword Search: First, you will have to collect the keywords relevant to your invention or patent. The keyword search can only be used in the search parameters – title, abstract, claims, and description. The patent search can be performed using the keywords along with ‘Boolean Operators’ and/or ‘Wild Cards’. The search results will show in two columns. In the left column, the application number/patent number, title, application date and status will display. Based on the selection of a row in the left column, details [Bibliographic Data, Specification, and Status] of the patent application/granted patent will display in the right column. Further, you can view the details of Bibliographic data, patent specification, and application/patent status in the respective tab. However, there is a limitation to display the number of search records up to 1000 and 25 records per page.

Applicant Name Search: The Indian patent search database allows you to search for patent applications/patents by entering the name of the applicant against the relevant row. All you have to do is enter the Applicant’s name and press search. The result will display the title of all inventions published or granted in the name that you entered.

Inventor Name Search: Similar to the applicant name search, you can also search the inventor name in the relevant row and the result display.

In addition to the above searches, you can perform various search queries to retrieve the results based on your requirements. You may also read the ‘Help’ provided on the tab to learn more about how to use Boolean operators and Wild cards.

Patent E-register

The Indian patent search database allows you to the check the legal status of the granted patent. In the ‘Patent E-register’ tab, enter the patent number along the displayed code and click to Show E-register. The result will display the legal status of the patent, date next renewal date, and Bibliographic data of patent.

Application Status

Similar to patent grant search, the Indian patent search database allows you to check the status of the patent application. In the ‘Application Status’ tab, enter the application number along with the displayed code and click on ‘Show Application Status’. The result will display the details of application such as application number, applicant number, date of filing, priority date, title of the invention, publication date and also application status. Besides, you will be able to view all the documents relevant to the patent application in the ‘View Documents’ tab provided at the bottom page of result.

Provisional Patent

The patent is an exclusive legal right of the patentee that grants him the legal authority to prohibit others from making or using a patented invention. A provisional application is a brief synopsis disclosing the essence and the nature of the invention. It is the preliminary application that can be filed before filing the complete specification. It explains the patent in brief but not completely. Filing a provisional patent is very useful for inventors as it locks the priority date and secures the invention so that no one else can claim authority over it. Compared to a complete patent a provisional patent has shortcomings, especially upon the period of protection given to the intellectual property that has been provisionally patented.

Advantages of a Provisional Patent

When it’s about filing for a patent, many factors such as cost of filing, date of filing, protection period, etc come into play. Therefore filing a provisional patent renders the following advantages: