Annual Technical Report 2006 on Industrial Design Information Activities submitted by Bulgaria (SCIT/ATR/ID/2006/BG)
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The expression "industrial designs" covers industrial designs and models. Offices which issue design patents should report their design patent information activities in this series of Annual Technical Reports.
I. Evolution of registration activities
Changes experienced in terms of application filings and grants (registrations) with respect to the previous year:
Applications
2001 – 1023 (national 449)
2002 – 1018 (national 519)
2003 – 1095 (national 534)
2004 – 1011(national 498)
2005 - 1027(national 550 and 50 from foreign applicants in national order)
2006 – 977 (national 418 and 44 from foreign applicants in national order)
Registrations
2001 – 784 (national 232)
2002 – 877 (national 303)
2003 – 879 (national 372)
2004 – 1033 (national 510)
2005 – 885 (national 411 and 54 from foreign applicants in national order)
2006 – 944 (national 335 and 35 from foreign applicants in national order)
Trends or areas experiencing rapid changes with respect to the previous year:
There are no particular areas experiencing rapid changes with respect to the previous year.
II. Matters concerning the generation, reproduction, and distribution of industrial design documents and of secondary sources of industrial design information, i.e., official gazettes
Publishing, including printing, copying techniques and electronic printing:
The Patent Office of the Republic of Bulgaria publishes the registered national industrial designs on paper in the Official Bulletin monthly.
Main types of announcements of the Office in the field of industrial designs:
In connection with the Law for industrial design with alterations and supplements, in force from 6.10.2006, publications of applications for industrial design are expected in 2007.
The publication will comprise bibliographical data and the graphical presentations or coloured images of the industrial designs applications.
The publication in the Official Bulletin comprises bibliographical data and the graphical presentations or coloured images of the registered industrial designs.
Mass storage media and microforms used:
The dossiers are on paper and are stored following the registration number or the application number for the refusals.
Databases and office automation:
The office automation, functioning as of 01.10.2001, is for administrative support, for searching industrial designs information. There are national and international (according to the Hague Agreement concerning Bulgaria) database with graphical presentations or coloured images. The database contains the bibliographic data, the legal status and correspondence, fees, forms, etc..
Functions of this Oracle Based “Industrial Design Information System” (IDIS), developed from outside company, are currently being updated.
III. Matters concerning classifying, reclassifying and indexing of industrial design information according to the classification systems applied
Classification and reclassification activities; classification system used:
The Patent Office of the Republic of Bulgaria uses the International Classification for Industrial Designs (Locarno Classification) since 1968. All the documents are classified according to class and subclass of the Locarno Classification. In 1995 the card file was reclassified. Now the Office uses and classifies according to the 2003 Edition (8th) of the Classification.
Bibliographic data and processing for search purposes:
The classification is used for the novelty examination and for search purposes in the PC (IDIS - Industrial Designs Information System), paper or electronic (CD) files, for statistics and for searches in the Official gazettes.
IV. Search file establishment and upkeep
The BG registration process includes a novelty search.
File building:
The Patent Office of the Republic of Bulgaria maintains an Automation Database – IDIS, Register and four paper files (archives) of the industrial designs:
1. Automation Database – IDIS.
2. Dossiers of the registered designs arranged in numerical order according to the registration number.
3. Dossiers of the rejected design applications arranged in numerical order according to the application number.
4. The other paper card file contains the bibliographic data and the graphical presentation of all expired registered industrial designs. The file is arranged according to the classes and subclasses of the Locarno Classification.
Updating:
The updating of the files is regular depending on the number of registrations and rejections.
Storage, including mass storage media:
The storage is in boxes and storage closets.
Documentation from other offices maintained and/or considered part of the available search file:
Documentation from other offices maintained and/or considered part of the available search file and is constituted from the following official bulletins:
WIPO “INTERNATIONAL DESIGNS BULLETIN" (WO);
“OFFICIAL GAZETTE OF THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE” (US);
“GESCHMACKSMUSTERBLATT” (DE);
"...И ПРОМЬIШЛЕННЬIЕ ОБРАЗЦЬI" (RU);
“BULLETIN OFFICIEL DE LA PROPRIÉTÉ
INDUSTRIELLE DESSINS ET MODÈLES” (FR), etc.
V. Activities in the field of computerized search systems for industrial designs
In-house systems (online/offline):
In the Bulgarian Patent Office there are computer aided possibilities for searching industrial designs information and correspondences. There are national and international (according to the Hague Agreement concerning Bulgaria) databases with graphical presentations and coloured images. For all purposes the computerized system is used therefore.
External databases:
There are Internet external databases available.
Administrative management systems (e.g., register, legal status, administrative support, etc.):
There is a computerized system – IDIS (Industrial Designs Information System) for administrative support - register, legal status, fees and statistics in regular using.
Equipment used (hardware, including the types of terminal and network used, and software), data carriers used:
Hardware:
Server: HP K360 9000/800;
Workstations: Intel Pentium based PCs, about 60;
Software:
Server: UNIX 11.xx as OS, Oracle 8i as DBMS
Workstations: Windows’XP as OS, MS Office as documents management, etc;
Carriers used: CDs, DVDs.
VI. Administration of industrial design information products and services available to the public (relating to facilities, e.g., for lodging applications, registering designs, assisting clients with search procedures, obtaining official publications and registry extracts)
The information services available to the public through the Patent Office are as follows:
1. Searches related to the legal status
2. Subject search
3. Numerical search
4. State of the art search
5. Searches in one or several classes
6. Searches on firm names
7. Combination of the above mentioned.
All the searches are carried in house and in the available collections of documents and official bulletins and paper cards.
The Central Patent Library provides for public access to the Official Bulletins from 32 countries, containing industrial design information.
VII. Matters concerning mutual exchange of industrial design documentation and information
The international and regional cooperation is in the form of exchange of official gazettes.
There is a collection of the “WIPO International Designs Bulletin” on CD-ROM.
VIII. Matters concerning education and training including technical assistance to developing countries (please indicate URLs of web pages of the Office’s website wherever appropriate)
Promotional activities:
1 .Preparation for Community design. We are prepared, as we expected our integration with the European union. Next year we’ll report in this regard.
2.Participation of the delegation of Bulgarian Patent Office as observer in the work of the Administrative council and the Budget committee of OHIM.
3. Participation of representatives of the Office to the sessions of the work groups between experts of OHIM and the National offices: first meeting in technical cooperation and those in the sphere of the trade-marks and the industrial designs.
4. Participation of the personnel of BPO in a series of trainings and seminars concerning work with searching systems, building information net, organized by OHIM
5 .International seminar in “Application of the industrial designs in commercial business and their international registration according to the Genevian Act of Hague’s agreement” together with WIPO and the Association of the representatives of industrial property in Sofia, 27-28 February
6. Participation in the exhibition „Vinarija 2006” with a consultative stand in March
7. Celebration of the “World day of the intellectual property -26 April.
8. Participation in the campaign for fighting piracy and fakes together with the Ministry of culture –preparation of the campaign and culmination of the festival “Intellectual property rights”in Ruse-9-12 May
9. Third international science conference in the frame of the 7th International exhibition for defense engineering „Hemus+-2006” – June
10. Seminar “Challenges in prosecution of crimes against intellectual property - Hisarja, June
11. Regional seminar in trade-marks, geographic symbols and industry design, together with the Chamber of industry – Rousse, June
12. National conference „Unity of action between national and European institutions – key factor for the development of intellectual property”-Sofia, 19-20 October
13. Round-table in the Center of IP in Varna with topic “Problems of the border and customs control in protecting the industrial property rights during the integration of Republic of Bulgaria with European union”-23-24 November
14. Organization and participation in a series of training seminars for the medias under the heading of “Basic notions in IP” for the medias, respectively: “Industrial design – nature, request, expertise, range of legal protection”;“Requesting industrial design abroad – Hague’s agreement”; “Administrative – penal amenability in violating rights on trade-marks and designs”;
15.Regional seminar in trade-marks, geographic symbols and industrial design – legal aspects, 29 June, PATLIB center, Ruse, for representatives of SME and regional business;
16.Regional seminar “Changes in the legislation in the sphere of industrial property, 14 December, PATLIB center, Plovdiv, for SME from the region, patent representatives;
Training courses for national and foreign participants:
1. Training and refreshing courses for national patent attorneys;
IX.Other general information related to the Office that is available on the Internet -- URLs of web pages of the Office’s website that:
There are no other relevant matters to mention.