How to Get a Utility Patent Application Issued After Filing
- 1). Assess your ability to qualify for accelerated patent processing. In order to accelerate the patent process under the Green Technology initiative or Project Exchange Plan for small entities with multiple applications, an application "to make special" must be filed prior to any communication notices from USPTO on the merits of your application, or if you are appealing a patent decision before the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences. To qualify based on age or health, the inventor must be at least 65 years old or have a doctor's certificate claiming that the inventor will not live through the end of the standard process. All applications must be filed online.
- 2). Conduct a search for your patent topic on USPTO.gov. Obtain attorney help to search for patents and to obtain a statement showing that a pre-examination search was conducted. The statement should include the search logic, chemical structure or sequence used to search, the files reviewed, the database service and the date of search. Skip this step if you qualify for accelerated examination based on age or health.
- 3). Obtain a customer number by completing the "Request a Customer Number" form and faxing to 571-273-0177. The "Request a Customer Number" form requires your name, address, company name and practitioner registration number (for attorneys and agents).
- 4). Complete the Customer Number Upload Spreadsheet. Enter your customer number where indicated at the top. Enter your name and address in lines 3 through 9. List all your patent numbers and their corresponding application numbers. Upload the spreadsheet on to a CD. Mail along with a cover letter to:
Mail Stop EBC
Commissioner for Patents
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, VA 22313-1450 - 5). Read the Public Key Infrastructure Subscriber Agreement. This agreement must be read before a digital certificate is requested. You must obtain a digital certificate to login to EFS-Web, where the application "to make special" will be filed.
- 6). Complete a Certificate Action Form and have it notarized to receive your digital certificate. Check whether you are a pro se inventor (an inventor who filed his own patent application). Input your personal information, including name, address and phone number. Check that you seek a certificate application, in box 3. Sign before a notary.
Mail to:
Mail Stop EBC Customer Number
Commissioner for Patents
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, VA 22313-1450
When the certificate action form has been approved, USPTO will provide you with two access codes to login in to EFS-Web. The authorization code will be delivered by email and the reference code will be delivered by phone. - 7). Sign in to EFS-Web through USPTO.gov. Complete the online form SB28 Petition to Make Special Under Accelerated Examination Program or SB130 Petition to Make Special based on Age. The SB28 form requires the inventor's name, application number, the pre-examination search statement and a statement explaining how the claims of the invention are patentable and a description of the invention separate from the claims. Form SB130 requires the full name and birth date of the inventor, the invention number and title of the invention.