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PTO's Patent Application Electronic Filing System & Software
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The U.S. Patent & Trademark Office
(USPTO) uses contractors such as
Lockheed Martin to implement its Electronic Filing System
(EFS) for filing both Provisional and Non-Provisional
utility patent applications via the Internet. To file electronically one must
prepare the application with an editor kit called
PASAT (Patent Application Specification Authoring Tool), downloadable from
the USPTO.
An add-on to Microsoft
Word 97, PASAT assembles the application into an open-standard
XML (Extensible Markup
Language) ) format. Drawings must converted to a specified
B&W TIFF image file format. Then the XML documents are electronically filed by a
program called
ePave (electronic packaging and validation engine), which provides
encryption and an electronic signature. For
WordPerfect users, a
WP XML template and WP Authoring Manual are also downloadable.
The EFS software works
only with Win 95, 98, NT, and 2000 platforms, but there are workarounds for
Win ME & XP.
The current EFS software tools will NOT work with Win 3.1, Macintosh,
Linux, Solaris, OS/2, UNIX, and DOS platforms.
Here are some helpful non-USPTO links about using PASAT:
- EFS Filing & Support Services
- PASAT developer Michel Vulpe and a WIPO developer discuss technical aspects:
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