Welcome to the website of the Patent and Trademark Depository Library of the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez; an excellent source of technical, scientific, commercial and industrial information.  Our collection consists of over 6.3 million U.S. patents and over 2.1 million U.S. registered trademarks.  In addition, we receive patent abstracts from the Japanese and European Union patent offices and publications from the World Intellectual Property Organization. 

The Library is part of a network of patent and trademark depository libraries serving the 50 states of the Union and Puerto Rico.  It is located on the third floor of the General Library Building, on a beautiful 243 acres university campus, north of Mayagüez.  The City of Mayagüez is the fourth largest in Puerto Rico with a population of about 100,000.  It is situated on the western part of the Island, 100 miles (two hours drive) west of San Juan, the state capital.

Puerto Rico's unique geographical location, coupled with the fact of being a U.S. jurisdiction, allow us to be the bridge between the Americas.  Besides serving the residents of Puerto Rico, the Library also serves the residents of the Caribbean Basin and Latin America. The U.S. Undersecretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of Patents and Trademarks officially designated the Library on March 10, 1995. It became operational on November 13, 1996.

We hope this site will be useful in providing information about the services and facilities that we have available. Our objectives are:  (1) to provide patent and trademark information; (2) to make copies of U.S. patents and trademarks readily and freely accessible; (3) to serve as the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office link to and from Latin America; and, (4) to provide quality services to all our customers.

Our mission is to support public and private organizations and individuals interested in innovations, economic development, technology transfer, and entrepreneurship, by facilitating technical information, fostering the formation of intellectual capital and fomenting the activities of inventors.

Toward this end, we cordially invite inventors, potential inventors, future inventors, scientists, students, engineers, industrialists, business people, entrepreneurs, lawyers, librarians and the public at large to visit our facilities and take advantage of the resources and the wealth of information that is available.

 [Top]

---

In support of our mission, goals and objectives, the Patent and Trademark Depository Library at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez offers the following services:

 

Reference Services

General information on patents and trademarks is provided as well as assistance in using the Library, its equipment and resources. Should the Library not be able to fulfill a request locally, users will be referred to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in Washington, DC.

 

Search/Research Services

The Library provides all the necessary search tools, reference materials and equipment so that customers may conduct their own comprehensive patent and trademark searches/research locally.  However, the staff is not authorized to conduct searches/research for any individual or organization.

 

Orientation and Training Services

The Library's staff will be more than happy to provide any customer who request it orientation and training in the use and handling of research tools, conducting a proper patent and trademark search, and using computer workstations and microform readers.

 

Copies of Patents

Copies of full patents, as issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, are available from 1790 to the present.

 

Copies of Trademarks

Copies of  all U.S. registered trademarks, as issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, are available.

 

Literature

A wide-range of informational literature in the form of books, brochures, pamphlets, guides, manuals, newsletters, booklets and special announcements, issued by the Patent and Trademark Office, are readily and freely available.  Also literature from the Japanese and European Union patent offices, the World Intellectual Property Organization, and the U.S. Copyright Office.

 

Computer Workstations

Computer workstations are available for searches in CD/DVD-ROM formats, connections to the Internet, access to online databases and for downloading to diskette and/or laser printers.

 

Photocopying

Photocopiers are available on the Second Floor of the General Library Building at 5 cents per sheet.

 

Laser Printing

Laser printouts of patents and trademarks from CD/DVD-ROMs, the Internet and other electronic sources are available.

 

Microform Copying

Paper copies of patents and trademarks from microfilm and microfiche formats are available.

 

Internet

Computer workstations with Internet access are available for connections to the website of the Patent and Trademark Office as well as other sites.

 

Website

The Library maintains this site (URL: http://www.uprm.edu/library/patents) as a source of information about its services, resources and facilities, in English and Spanish versions. It offers interconnections to the Patent and Trademark Office in Washington, DC, the websites of the General Library, the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez and other campuses of the University of Puerto Rico System island-wide, other universities in Puerto Rico, the City of Mayaguez as well as other sites of interest.

 

Interlibrary Loans

Copies of patents and trademarks may be sent to a customer's library upon request.  This arrangement must be initiated and carried out by the customer's library.  Customer must provide the patent or trademark registration number.  Charges associated with this service must be paid in advance by either the customer or the receiving library.

 

Document Delivery

Copies of patents and trademarks may be delivered to a customer's address upon request. Customer must provide the patent or trademark registration number.  Delivery of documents may be via first class U.S. Mail or customer's designated private carrier.  Fees for this service must be paid in advance and in U.S. currency as stated in the Fees Section below.

 

Application Forms

Application forms for the purchasing of various services and products from the Patent and Trademark Office and the Copyright Office are available in the Library.  These forms may also be downloaded directly from the Internet.

 

Statistics

A wide-range of statistical studies related to patents and trademarks may be conducted at the Library free of charge.

 

Seminars and Workshops

Periodically, the Library sponsors talks, seminars and workshops on patents and trademarks conducted by experts in the field from Puerto Rico and the Continental U.S.  Everyone is invited.  Be sure to send us you name and address to be included in our mailing list.

 

Exhibits

Occasionally, the Library offers exhibits on patents and trademarks.  There are, however, three permanent exhibits: (1) Historical Patents from the XIX Century issued to Puerto Rican residents, (2) Contemporary Patents from the XX Century issued to Puerto Rican residents, and (3) The First Patent issued in 1790 bearing the signature of President George Washington.

 

Patent Abstracts of Japan

Unexamined abstracts of Japanese patents issued by the Japanese Patent Office are available from 1976 to the present.

 

European Union Patents

Texts and drawings from the first page of patents issued by selected European Union members countries are available from 1971 to the present.

[Top]

Index to the U.S. Patent Classification System

An alphabetical subject index to the Manual of Classification. 

 

Manual of Classification

A loose-leaf book containing a list of all the classes and subclasses of inventions in the Patent and Trademark Office classification system. 

 

Index of Patents

An annual index to the Official Gazette. It is published in two volumes: (1) an index of patentees, and (2) an index by subject matter of patents. 

 

Index of Trademarks

An annual index of registrants of trademarks.

 

Official Gazette of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

This is the official journal relating to patents and trademarks. It is published weekly and issued in two parts, one describing patents, and the other, trademarks. It contains, among other things, a selected figure of the drawings of each patent issued, notices of patent and trademark suits, index of patents and patentees, list of patents available for license or sale, and information related to orders, notices, changes in rules, changes in classification, etc.

 

Attorneys and Agents Registered to Practice Before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

Contains the names and addresses of patent attorneys and agents authorized to represent inventors before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

 

CASSIS2 Patents BIB on DVD-ROM

Contains bibliographic information for utility patents issued from 1969 to the present, and for other types of patent documents issued from 1977 to the present. 

 

CASSIS Patents CLASS on CD-ROM

Contains current classification information for all utility, design, plant, reissue and X-numbered patents, as well as defensive publications and statutory invention registrations issued from 1790 to the present. 

 

CASSIS2 Patents & Trademarks ASSIGN on DVD-ROM

Contains data derived from assignment deeds for issued patents recorded at the Patent and Trademark Office after August 1980.  Includes trademark assignments through 2001.  Information is accessible by assignee or assignor name or by patent number or trademark registration number.

 

CASSIS Patents ASSIST on CD-ROM

Contains a compilation of many patent search tools including the following: Manual of Classification, Index to the U.S. Patent Classification, Manual of Patent Examining Procedure, IPC-USPC Concordance, and Attorneys and Agents Registered to Practice Before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. 

 

CASSIS Patents SNAP on CD-ROM

Contains a concordance between U.S. patent numbers and application serial numbers. Includes data for patents with an application date from January 1, 1977 through the date specified on the disc. Updated annually.  It ceased publication with the 1998 issue.  The information contained in Patents SNAP is being added to Patents BIB on DVD-ROM.

 

CASSIS2 Trademarks REGISTERED on DVD-ROM

Contains the bibliographic information of all active U.S. registered trademarks. 

 

CASSIS2 Trademarks PENDING on DVD-ROM

Contains the bibliographic information of all U.S. pending trademark applications which have been filed but not yet approved for registration.

 

CASSIS Trademarks ASSIST on CD-ROM

Contains a compilation of many trademarks search tools including the following: Trademark Trial and Appeal Board Manual of Procedure, Trademark Statute and Rules, Trademark Examination Guide and Notes, Trademark Telephone Index, and Information Dissemination Organization (IDO) Products and Services Catalog. It also includes the Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure and the Goods and Services Manual. 

 

Technology Sets of Patents

Contains patent images and text in designated technologies in CD-ROM format. These technology sets are collections of U.S. patents, which by virtue of their placement in the U.S. Patent Classification System represent meaningful technological groupings. The two technology sets are Genetic Engineering, and Acid Rain. This information is current as of January 1993 and April 1992 respectively. The series is no longer produced. 

 

USAPat

Contains facsimile images of U.S. patents from 1790 to the present. An "image" is the actual page of the patent as issued, including all drawings, pictures and text. 

 

USAMark

Contains facsimile images of all U.S. registered trademarks. 

 

GLOBALPat

Contains the text and drawings from patent first pages of a representative member of each patent family published by the United States, the European Union Patent Office, France, Germany, Great Britain, Switzerland, and the World Intellectual Property Organization.  Records contains bibliographic and patent family information, an abstract, and a drawing.  An English language collection representing nearly all of the world's patent literature published since 1971.

 

Patent Abstracts of Japan

Contains English abstracts of unexamined patent applications issued by the Japanese Patent Office since 1976 to the present.

 

Journal of Patent Associated Literature (JOPAL)

A publication of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Contains more than 100,000 bibliographic references of articles about patents published in leading scientific and technical international journals.

[Top]

During normal business hours, the Patent and Trademark Depository Library is staffed by a  professional librarian.  Should the librarian not be available, personnel from the Document Collection of the General Library will assist all users.  Normal business hours are from 8:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M., Mondays through Fridays.  The Library is closed on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.

Although anyone may drop in at any time during normal business hours, customers from outside the Mayagüez area are advised to make an appointment with the librarian ahead of time. Please refer to the Contact Section below for information on how to reach the librarian.

The librarian will be more than happy to train customers in the effective use of search tools--electronic or otherwise--so that customers may perform their own searches.  However, the librarian as well as any other member of the staff, may not perform searches for customers. Please refer to the section, An Important Note to Users, that follows, regarding the role of the library staff on patent and trademark searches.

The patent and trademark librarian or members of the staff are strictly prohibited from interpreting intellectual property laws (patents, trademarks, copyrights), offering legal advice or opinions, performing patent and trademark searches for customers, or providing advice on how to file a patent or trademark application.

Customers shall not infer from any assistance provided by the librarian or any member of the staff, conclusions concerning the patentability of an invention or design or the validity of any trademark. Furthermore, the librarian and members of the staff are not permitted to provide opinions on the effectiveness of a customer's search efforts to identify a field of search, nor give advice or opinions pertaining to the specifics of the technology the customer is examining.

With the exception of printouts in hardcopy, all of the services and facilities provided by the Library are free of charge.  Upon request, the librarian will train customers on how to conduct searches and how to use the equipment.  Downloading information to floppy diskettes is also free of charge (users must bring their own diskettes).  Printouts are available at 15 cents per sheet.

Fees for document delivery of patents and trademarks (customer must provide the document number) to a customer's address are at the rate of 15 cents per sheet of paper, plus US$3.00 for handling, plus the cost of shipping the materials.  All fees must be paid in advance. Please contact the librarian for more details.

The State Department of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is the agency, at the state level, in charge of registering trademarks. It administers the state trademark laws, examines applications for trademarks, determine if applicants are entitled to the trademark under the law, publishes issued trademarks, records and maintains a file of trademarks registered, and provides general information about trademarks to the public.

Trademarks issued by the Puerto Rico Trademark Office are valid only in Puerto Rico.  Customers interested in interstate commerce, that is, conducting business in Puerto Rico as well as other states and jurisdictions of the United States or seeking trademark protection nationwide (which includes Puerto Rico) are advised to file with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in Washington, DC.

For more information about the Puerto Rico Trademark Office, please call or write to:

Office of Corporations and Trademarks
Department of State
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
P.O. Box 9023271
San Juan, Puerto Rico 00902-3271
Phone: (787) 722-2121 Extensions 6485, 6486, 6337, 6343

[Top]

The Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce. The role of the PTO is to provide patent protection for inventions and to register trademarks. Through the preservation, classification, and dissemination of patent and trademark information, PTO aids and encourages innovation and scientific and technical advancement.

For more information about the Patent and Trademark Office, please call or write to:

The Director of Patents and Trademarks
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Washington, DC 20231

For general information and to speak with an agent, please call the HELP Line at (703) 308-HELP.

For additional information through the Internet, please visit the Patent and Trademark Office Website at www.uspto.gov.

Prof. Ronaldo Martinez

Patent and Trademark Librarian

Patent and Trademark Depository Library

University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez

P.O. Box 9022

Mayagüez, Puerto Rico 00681-9022

Tel. (787) 832-4040 Ext. 2307

Fax (787) 265-5483 

---

We would apprecite comments and suggestions about the content of this page.  Please send an email message to patents@rumlib.uprm.edu.

---

 [General Library] [Top]