Annual Technical Report 2003 on Patent Information Activities submitted by Syrian Arab Republic (SCIT/ATR/PI/2003/SY)
Where URLs are requested below, it is preferred that either URLs which are likely to remain stable over time (three years or more) are provided, or home (main) page URLs are provided with a short explanation of how to access the corresponding information.
The term "patent" covers utility models and Supplementary Protection Certificates (SPCs). Offices which issue design patents should report their design patent information activities in their Annual Technical Reports on Industrial Design Information Activities.
I. Evolution of patent activities
The Patent Division is part of the Directorate of Commercial & Industrial Property which follows the Ministry of Economy and Trade. The staff consists of 6 officials in the office , all of whom have academic certificates .
Syrian Patent Office is carrying out the following tasks :
A – receipt of applications
B – make formal exam
C – (a) primary substantive exam , in which the application is sent to specialized authority ( universities – scientific research centers )to study it and give the scientific consultation about the inventive step and the capability of industrial application
D – granting national patents
E – publishing
I – Evolution of patent activities :
As the value of patents is becoming higher , there is continuous hard work to promote the level of work in the Directorate of Commercial & Industrial Property, and that is represented in :
► adopting new work system :
● start making prior art exam on Internet .
● continue the efforts to automate the work in the office.
► joining the international treaties :
● Syria has joined the Patent Cooperation Treaty ( PCT) which entered into force on 26.6.2003 .
► Establishing a web site for the Directorate of Commercial & Industrial Property ,the address is : www.himaya.net
The web site contains :
- Information about the D.C.I.P and the tasks of its divisions.
- Administrative law of the D.C.I.P
- Data bases of patents , trademarks and designs
- Information about Al Bassel center of invention and innovation.
► continue the work in preparing new draft laws in the field of intellectual
property in general and patents specifically, which will be more facilitating for the applicant and the office .
See attached document.
► Al Bassel center of invention and innovation follows the D.C.I.P . It has been chosen by EPO as a regional documentation and training center.
The center has the following tasks:
● gives technical consultations and education to the public in the field of intellectual property.
● The center held training seminar addressed to university students in order to raise the interest in inventions and foster respect for creative ideas
● The center contains : CD library, computer division , translation
division , Internet and video projectors
● the new task of the center is to use Internet to make the prior-art search which is a great step in promoting the work in the Patent Office.
II. Matters concerning the generation, reproduction, distribution and use of primary and secondary sources of patent information
► copying and publishing :
the granted patents are published in the official gazette twice a year.
► There is a mutual cooperation agreement between Russia and Syria in the field of patent documents , and there is a mutual exchange of official gazettes between the two Offices.
► Mass storage media used :
by two ways : - paper form - microfilms
► The Office uses Word processing and office automation .
► There is a new technique which is the program offered by WIPO in cooperation with the Office where the patent information is entered automatically by " Internet Explorer " included in Internet
III. Matters concerning abstracting, classifying, reclassifying and indexing of technical information contained in patent documents
The Office uses International Patent Classification (IPC) according to the Strasbourg Agreement .
IV. Search file establishment and upkeep
The Patent division receives reports and patent documents from : Russian , Japanese , European and Spanish offices
V. Activities in the field of computerized and other mechanized search systems
The database changed from access to SQL.
VI. Administration of the industrial property office library and services available to the public (relating to facilities, e.g., for lodging applications, for assisting clients on searching procedures, for obtaining official publications and registry extracts)
There is a CD library in Al Bassel Center of Invention & Innovation .The Library contains all information related to commercial and industrial property .Moreover , it offers scientific consultations and help for the inventors by providing them with information about the recent technologies and inventions in the world by using Internet.
VII. Matters concerning mutual exchange of patent documentation and information
There is mutual cooperation in exchanging documents , information and official gazettes with the Russian Office . The Syrian office is trying to improve the process of exchange of patent documents with most develped offices.
VIII. Other relevant matters concerning education and training in, and promotion of, the use of patent information, including technical assistance to developing countries
► There were successful activities that occurred in 2003 :
● The exhibition of Al Bassel for invention & innovation in the period 5-9.4. 2003 . Countries that participated were Saudia Arabia , Sudan , Lebanon, Jordan , Tunisia , Iran Islamic Republic , Morocco, Romania, Cyprus and Syria.
● A seminar held in cooperation with WIPO on “procedures of PCT” in the period 20-21.1. 2003 .
► In the field of foreign training :
-A study visit offered by WIPO to Egypt ( three trainees )
- A training course for two trainees to practice on the procedures of PCT in Geneva.
- Visit to Egypt by Deputy Minister and two officials to study the new Egyptian law on Intellectual Property .
- Attending the Arab Reginal Conference on Recent Developments in the Field of Intellectual Property organized by WIPO and ESCWA in Beirut.
- Attending the Regional Coordination Meeting for the Heads of Industrial Property and Copyright Offices – Oman.
●A delegation from the EPO represented by Dr.Konstantinos Karachalios Manager of the Project for Africa And the Middle East, and Mr. Stoel, the expert in EPO. The EPO promised to help the Syrian Office by providing training and equipment .
● Mr. Hisham Alfied ,the expert in WIPO,visited Syrian Office to continue the automation in D.C.I.P
IX. Other relevant matters
The future activities of the D.C.I.P
The Syrian Office is trying to spread and distribute the education of IP specially in universities to raise the interest in inventions as their capacity to be an important resource to transfer technology
| 1. | Classification is allotting one or more classification symbols (e.g., IPC symbols) to a patent application, either before or during search and examination, which symbols are then published with the patent application.
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| 2. | Preclassification is allotting an initial broad classification symbol (e.g., IPC class or subclass, or administrative unit) to a patent application, using human or automated means for internal administrative purposes (e.g., routing an application to the appropriate examiner). Usually preclassification is applied by the administration of an office.
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| 3. | Reclassification is the reconsideration and usually the replacement of one or more previously allotted classification symbols to a patent document, following a revision and the entry into force of a new version of the Classification system (e.g., the IPC). The new symbols are available on patent databases.
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