Research guides: Intellectual Property Resources: Home

Patent and IP resources @ UTL

On this page you will find links to patent and trademark offices, search tips, classifications, citation information, statistics, books, and tutorials on patent searching, designed to complement the U of T Entrepreneurship IP Education Program.

The patent-related information on this page is from the Engineering and Computer Science Library's online guide Introduction to Patents & Patent Searching.

UTL offers a workshop on Resources for Patents Research that is open to U of T students, faculty, staff, and startups. The workshop is offered approx. 1-2 times in an academic calendar year.

The U of T Scholarly Communication and Copyright Office consults with faculty and provides resources on Canadian copyright issues, including fair dealing and open access.

If you have questions about patent searching, please contact the Engineering and Computer Science Library or email Entrepreneurship Librarian Carey Toane.

Patent and Trademark Offices

Canadian Patents Database (CIPO)
Canadian patent records from 1869 and full-text documents from 1920 to the present.
United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)
US patents from 1790, full-text available from 1976 to the present.
European Patent Office (EPO)
Espacenet: International patent database.
World Intellectual Property Office
WIPO is the global forum for intellectual property services, policy, information and cooperation.

Search Tips

To be most effective in your search for patents you must determine how your invention works, NOT how you will use your invention.

Start by making a list of words that describe your idea (including synonyms)
Record class/subclass of any related terms
Ask yourself:
- What does the invention do?
- What is the end result/anything unique/special/ unexpected?
- What is it made of/method or material of fabrication?
- What is it used for?
Keep track of useful and non-useful patents (by patent number) to avoid duplication of efforts

Free online patent databases

PatentScope (WIPO)
It includes over 73 million patent documents: PCT and national/regional collections, AI-based developed-in translation tool, chemical structure search and CLIR that finds synonyms search terms and translates everything into 13 languages.
The Lens
Australia, European, United States, and WIPO patent documents.
Google Patents
U.S. patents in pdf format from 1790 to the present.
EPO patents from 1978 to the present. Text only with links out to EPO and PDF download.

Patent Classification

Patent Classification is a system of codes designed to organize and index the technical content of patents.

Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC)
The Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) system, in force from 1 January 2013, is a bilateral system which has been jointly developed by the EPO and the USPTO. It combines the best classification practices of the two offices.

Tutorials

The following are a selection of useful free web resources to help you with your patent searching. UTL also has a selection of books to guide you through the process of patent searching (TCard required).

An excellent guide on patents and designs is available from Michael White at Queen's University, including strategies for finding patents by inventor or company, or related to a product.

OC Patent Lawyer has a guide to Conducting a Novelty Search.

CIPO's guide to patents includes tips on the patent process and how to interpret patent information.

USPTO offers a tutorial on How to conduct a preliminary U.S. Patent Search: A step-by-step strategy.

Two tutorials on U.S. Patent Searching from the University of Minnesota Libraries, Patents and Patentability and Patent Searching.

How to do a prior art search yourself - Henry.law

USPTO Basics of Prior Art Searching guide

WIPO Magazine - Launching a new product: Freedom to operate

Citing Patents

How to cite a patent
This site gives examples using multiple citation styles.
Citing Patents
This guide from the University of Kansas provides clear examples of patent citations in a variety of styles.

Patent Statistics

Canadian Copyright Information

Canadian IP Office - Copyright portal
Canadian IP Office website. Learn about copyright, access online registration and other services, and access legislation including the Copyright Act.

Books on Patent Searching

The ABA Consumer Guide to Obtaining a Patent (e-book) by Richard W. Goldstein
ISBN: 9781634256070
Publication Date: 2016-11-07
Before you do invest in a patent, it pays to invest a little time, learn about the process, and how the patent system works. This book will not teach you all of the detailed rules about patents. Instead, it will give you a framework and an understanding of the resources you will need, so that you can begin to think like a patent lawyer or better yet, think like an entrepreneur who is "patent savvy."
Patent Searching Made Easy by David Hitchcock
Call Number: T210 .H58 2013X
ISBN: 9781413318722
Publication Date: 2013-04-30
Patent Searching Made Easy shows you how do patent searches yourself, on the Internet, at little or no cost. Plus, you'll learn how to: verify the patent status of an idea; prepare for online searches with the right hardware, software and computer skills; access online patent searching resources; narrow online searches with keywords and Boolean logic; perform database searches at Patent and Trademark Resource Centers (PTRC); do prior art searches at PTRC; search fee-based patent databases on the Internet; search international patent offices; do advanced searches at the PTO and PTRC
From Invention to Patent by Steven H. Voldman
ISBN: 9781119125259
Publication Date: 2018-07-23
This book provides a picture of how to be a prolific inventor, to understand patents, and the patent process. It provides an illuminating insight into the writing of invention disclosures to patents from the submission process to final drafts.
First to File by M. Henry Heines
ISBN: 9781118839652
Publication Date: 2014-10-13
Bridges the gap between the realistic needs and questions of scientists and engineers and the legal skills of professionals in the patent field at a level accessible to those with no legal training * Written for inventors in lay terms that they can relate to or easily follow * Lays out the new features of patent law introduced by the America Invents Act of 2012 * Explains the differences between the first-to-invent and first-to-file rules and why the two rules will coexist * Focuses on the growth of new technologies in industry versus the laws protecting them
A Guide for Implementing a Patent Strategy by Donald S. Rimai
ISBN: 9781119407058
Publication Date: 2018-12-27
This book provides a strategic framework for cost efficient engineering of market moving patent portfolios by organizing patent engineering efforts around the problems that innovators solve for their customers and not the technologies developed to solve these problems.