Annual Technical Report on Patent Information Activities in 2017 submitted by Hungarian Intellectual Property Office
I. GENERAL OVERVIEW OF RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN PATENT INFORMATION ACTIVITIES CARRIED OUT BY THE OFFICE
Outline of main policies and plans aimed at development of patent information activities and expected time frames for their realization
The high quality performance of the quantitative and qualitative requirements of the national intellectual property protection activity (industrial property rights, copyright law) in accordance with the
- international professional expectations,
- requirements of ISO quality and information services management system and information security standards.
The enlargement of the Hungarian role in the field of international IP cooperation to become a regional center.
Strengthening the service provider's activity, maintaining a partner relationship with the clients.
New projects launched or resumed this year in the context of the policies and plans mentioned above, short description: aims, partners, tasks
The Visegrad Patent Institute (VPI), which has its seat in Budapest, became a full member of the Global Patent Prosecution Highway, a network of the 25 most important patent offices in the world. VPI – established by the intellectual property offices of the four Visegrad countries, started its operations one and a half years ago and is dealing with an increasing number of cases – significantly reduces the costs of obtaining international patents and extends the possibility of using Hungarian, Czech, Polish and Slovak as languages.
An amendment to Act XXXIII of 1995 on the Protection of Inventions by Patents (Patent Act) entered into force on 17 June 2017. Pursuant to the amendment, the three Vice-Presidents of HIPO are appointed and dismissed by the minister exercising the rights of supervision; in addition, HIPO's tasks and competences were broadened to include the performance of registration tasks related to the tax base reduction benefit that may be claimed by enterprises supporting start-up enterprises. Government Decree 331/2017. (XI. 9.) on the detailed rules of the registration of start-up enterprises and of enterprises supporting start-up enterprises entered into force on 9 December 2017.
The intellectual property diagnosis service of HIPO was restarted with the assistance of EPO. The intellectual property diagnostics service offers tailor-made advice to innovative enterprises on the possibilities of legal protection for their intellectual property. As part of the service a complex overview is prepared for the clients on the potential risks and the proposed course of action for the protection of intellectual property.
Main areas of patent information activities and related information and communication technology (ICT) practices which were in the focus of attention last year.
Statistics: changes in terms of application filings and grants with respect to previous year; trends or areas experiencing rapid changes.
Number of valid Patents, Supplementary protections and Plant variety protections in Hungary at the end of 2017
Patents granted via the national route: 3 184
European patents validated by HIPO: 23 041
Supplementary protection certificates granted via the national route: 134
Plant variety protections granted via the national route: 108
Community plant variety protections: 25 925
There were 26 225 valid patents at the end of 2017, which is a 10 % increase over the 2016 number. This increase was due to the 15 % growth of validated European patents, which numbered 23 041, while 3184 patents were granted via the national route.
Requests for validation of European patents in Hungary
Validations in 2016: 4095
Validations in 2017: 5211
Requests for validation in 2016: 4342
Requests for validation in 2017: 4801
In 2016, the number of patents granted by the European Patent Office (EPO) exceeded 95 thousand and in 2017 it exceeded 105 thousand. Parallel to the increase in granted patents, requests for the validation in Hungary of patents granted by EPO showed a further increase of 11%: in 2017 4801 requests for validation have been submitted to HIPO. Within the framework of European patent validation proceedings 5211 patents were validated in 2017. The number of cases ending in validation showed an increase of 27 % over the previous year.
The number of patent applications filed via the national route in 2017 was 532, out of which 490 applications were filed by clients having their seat or domicile in Hungary. Of domestic applications 69% were filed by individuals and 31% by legal persons.
Number of valid utility models in Hungary at the end of 2017:
Utility models granted via the national route: 858
Pending cases: 407
Applications in 2017: 235
Applications in 2016: 252
Granted rights in 2017: 157
Granted rights in 2016: 91
Closed proceedings in 2017: 283
Closed proceedings in 2016: 179
The number of utility model applications was 235 and 89% of them were filed by domestic applicants, 66% of whom were individual applicants. The number of granted utility model protections amounted to 157. At the end of the year, there were 858 valid national utility model protections.
Other matters and useful links (URLs): annual report of the Office, news page, statistics, etc.
HIPO Facts and Figures 2017: http://www.sztnh.gov.hu/hu/mivel-fordulhatok-a-hivatalhoz/tajekoztatas/kiadvanyok/a-hivatal-eves-jelentesei-0
II. SERVICES AND ACTIVITIES RELATED TO PATENT INFORMATION CARRIED OUT BY THE OFFICE
Information and support provided by the office to applicants regarding filings on paper and/or e-filing (instructions, seminars, etc.) URLs
Detailed information and support is accessible on the website of HIPO, e.g.:
e-Filing: https://ugyintezes.sztnh.gov.hu/eBej2/step1/case1
Forms and fees: https://ugyintezes.sztnh.gov.hu/eBej2/sugo#5
How can I protect my intellectual property?: https://www.sztnh.gov.hu/hu/hogyan-vedjem-a-szellemi-tulajdonomat/hogyan-vedjem-a-talalmanyomat
Availability of the application dossier in electronic form
The e-dossier gives inspection and communication platform providing online administration.
E-dossier: http://epub.hpo.hu/e-aktabetekintes/?lang=HU
Classification1,preclassification2 (if applicable), reclassification3 activities; classification systems used (e.g., International Patent Classification (IPC); matters concerning indexing of patent information
The Adavanced level of IPC is used by HIPO and the CPC classification system as well.
Both IPC and CPC systems are used in the HU Administration System and sent to the EPO (Espacenet).
Abstracting, reviewing, and translation of the information contained in patent documents.
Patent abstracts of Hungarian patent applications (that have no family members) are translated into English, and sent to the EPO (Espacenet).
Other activities
III. SOURCES OF PATENT INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THE OFFICE
Main types of publications of the Office (patent applications, full text, first pages, abstracts, bibliographic data, granted patents, etc.), medium (on paper, on CDs, online - URLs)
The IP search Hungarian intellectual property database is the basic tool of research of patents and designs valid in Hungary, and applications being processed.
Full-text of published patent applications and granted patent documents are also accessible in the IP-search in searchable format. http://epub.hpo.hu/e-kutatas/?lang=HU
Full-text granted HU patents are accessible in electronic format from 1896.
Full-text published patent applications are accessible in electronic format from 1992.
Official Gazettes: main types of announcements, frequency of publication, medium (on paper, on CDs, online - URL), etc.
Gazette of Patents and Trademarks has been published electronically, and accessible on the website of the Office free of charge, in searchable pdf-format, published twice a month. https://www.sztnh.gov.hu/hu/szakmai-oldalak/szabadalmi-kozlony-es-vedjegyertesito
Information products and patent document collections (coverage, medium, etc.) available to examiners, including external collections and databases
The Unified Administrative System of the Office covers the bibliographic and image data, the documents and the official letters belonging to the different intellectual property rights (with the additional data that are not accessible for the public). The public electronic-databases GAZETTE, IP-SEARCH, E-REGISTER, E-DOSSIER are also used by the Examiners. The IP-SEARCH database has an internal version covering public and non-public data.
Searches are performed mainly in the EPOQUENET system. Examiners regularly use EP-REG, Espacenet and other web-based patent databases. Commercial databases are also used in special technical fields, such as Clarivate Analytics: Thomson Reuters, STN and Elsevier both for patent and non-patent information.
Information products and patent document collections (coverage, medium, etc.) available to examiners, including external collections and databases
Intellectual property databases such as IP-search, Gazette, e-Register and e-Dossier are accessible on the webpage of HIPO free of charge: https://www.sztnh.gov.hu/hu/szakmai-oldalak
Legal status information (kind of information, coverage, medium, etc.)
Legal status information (not certified) can be accessed in e-Ddossier: https://www.sztnh.gov.hu/hu/szakmai-oldalak
Certified statements on the validity of protection can be received against payment.
Other sources
IV. ICT SUPPORT TO SERVICES AND ACTIVITIES RELATED TO PATENT INFORMATION CARRIED OUT BY THE OFFICE
Specific software tools supporting business procedures within the Office: general description, characteristics, advantages, possible improvements
The IT system of HIPO effectively provided the information technology background necessary for official and service activities and performed the tasks related to e-administration and information, and information security. HIPO continued to take the necessary steps in order to further reduce detected IT risks and to implement information security requirements. HIPO implemented the developments as mandated by the Act on Information Security and executed the tasks prescribed by the ISO risk management improvement plan. Clients can make use of the following services online: e-search, e-file inspection, e-filing, e-register, TM e-Filing, TMView, and DesignView.
Hardware used to supporting business processes of the Office
Internal databases: coverage, updates, interlinks with external sources
The Unified Administrative System of the Office comprise the bibliographic and image data, the documents and the official letters that belong to the different intellectual property rights, namely patent, plant variety protection, spc, utility model, trademark, industrial design.
The public electronic-databases GAZETTE, IP-SEARCH, E-REGISTER, E-DOSSIER are also used by the Examiners. The IP-SEARCH database has an internal version for internal use only with the additional data that are not accessible for the public.
Establishment and maintenance of electronic search file: file building, updating, storage, documents from other offices included in the search file
The Unified Administrative System of the Office is used for file building covering all industrial property titles of protection. It is updated real-time and has a daily backup storage. All incoming documents are scanned since 2012.
Administrative management electronic systems (register, legal status, statistics, and administrative support)
The Unified Administrative System of the Office is used for file building, which covers all industrial property titles of protection. It has a real-time update system and has a daily backup storage. This system is the source of the public electronic-databases, such as GAZETTE, IP-SEARCH, E-REGISTER, E-DOSSIER.
Other matters
V. PROMOTION ACTIVITIES AIMED TO SUPPORT USERS IN ACCESS AND EFFICIENT USE OF PATENT INFORMATION
Patent library: equipment, collection management, network of patent libraries in the country, cooperation with foreign patent libraries
See: Industrial Property Special Library: http://www.sztnh.gov.hu/en/services/industrial-property-special-library
Publications related to different business procedures and patent information sources available to users, for example, books, brochures, Internet publications, etc.
The partners and customers of HIPO, who are interested in intellectual property, can choose from a variety of services or programs of customer service, information provision and education, eg.: AIDA, IP-Panorama, Start-up guide, Partner Search, Tenders, IP-Valuation, etc.: http://www.sztnh.gov.hu/hu/vallalkozoknak/hogyan-kezdjek-hozza
The website of HIPO (www.sztnh.gov.hu) offers valuable information both to potential clients who are less well-informed of intellectual property matters and to professional users. The portal was visited on more than 1.5 million occasions by nearly 524 thousand individually identifiable users, who downloaded more than 14.5 million pages. According to statistics on use, the number of individual visitors, visits, hits and downloaded pages increased significantly, by one-third compared to the previous year. On the website of the HIPO more than 45 thousand documents are available.
Clients can access useful and free e-administration and information services on the website such as the e-search, e-file inspection, e-filing and e-register. In addition to those, they can use the TM e-Filing system to file national trade mark applications, the TMview system for electronic trade mark search, as well as the Designview database, which contains designs protected in the European Union.
The website for raising the IP awareness of the general public (www.szellemitulajdon.hu) had more than 36 thousand individual visitors. The National Board Against Counterfeiting has its own website (www.hamisitasellen.hu), which features recent news on the subject of counterfeiting.
Office's initiatives on providing foreign patent information in the local language(s) (e.g., machine translation tools, translation of abstracts)
The Hungarian version of IPC is accessible on the home-page. http://classifications.mszh.hu/ipc/
The Hungarian interface of ESPACENET is accessible: https://hu.espacenet.com/advancedSearch?locale=hu_HU
Cooperation with universities, research centers, technology and innovation support centers, etc.
Extending of knowledge on industrial property and copyright, as well as the improvement of awareness of intellectual property rights among small and medium-sized enterprises are objectives of outstanding importance. For entrepreneurs interested in industrial property protection it is essential that they be able to have personal consultation at information points or events close to them, in their regions, where they can be given information. In order to ensure this, 23 different organisations – 16 chambers of commerce and industry in counties and towns, 6 regional innovation agencies and one professional organisation – maintained information points based on agreements concluded with the HIPO. In addition to these, HIPO cooperates with so-called PATLIB (Patent Library) centres linked to six institutions of higher education outside Budapest: in Debrecen, Miskolc, Sopron, Pecs, Gyor and Szeged. The aim of the IP protection information and advisory network is to broaden the IP knowledge of enterprises, individual inventors, researchers, teachers, as well as of professionals in the areas of technology, science, agriculture and economics.
The aim of the IP protection information and advisory network is to broaden the IP knowledge of enterprises, individual inventors, researchers, teachers, as well as of professionals in the areas of technology, science, agriculture and economics. The information network provides topical information to clients, and, if there is a need for answering the queries of clients or if there is a demand for search services, it contacts the central Customer Service of HIPO.
The central customer service received nearly 17.5 thousand queries, out of which 10 thousand were made by phone, 5683 in person at HIPO, and 1599 were received electronically. Most queries aimed at trade mark information, but requests for patent information, copyright information and data provision represented also a significant share.
The patent search services of the assistance of HIPO provide user-friendly, evaluating type reports and patent search results. Clients have the following five services at their disposal: novelty search, novelty search with preliminary patentability report, preliminary patentability report, validity search and freedom to operate (FTO).
As a result of a review of trade mark services for a fee, as of 1 May 2017 two new trade mark services, “trade mark search” and “trade mark search with protectability opinion” have been introduced, for which there was a growing demand from clients, these services practically replacing the “express trade mark filtering” service.
Education and training: training courses, e-learning modules (URLs), seminars, exhibitions, etc.
HIPO has valid cooperation agreements with 17 institutions of higher education. In these agreements the HIPO undertook to participate in giving courses on the protection of intellectual property, to partake, where appropriate, in the elaboration of internal IP protection regulations, and to help implementing the technology transfer tasks of these institutions.
Our basic, intermediate and advanced level industrial property courses, the basic and intermediate level copyright courses as well as the special courses organized by HIPO were important fora for knowledge sharing and awareness raising in Hungary.
Colleagues from HIPO, academics and practicing lawyers authored the manual “Copyright for everybody”, published in October 2017 and serving as a useful reference book not only for the participants of the intermediate level copyright course, but also for all authors, creators and users interested in copyright.
Based on agreements with HIPO, intellectual property as a separate subject was taught in 10 institutions of higher education, and at 8 other universities intellectual property protection was taught linked with other subjects. Within the framework of e-learning in the field of intellectual property protection, six higher education institutions participated in providing courses in the subjects of “Intellectual property protection” and “Innovation management and industrial property protection”.
In 2017, the total number of hours of intellectual property education provided in cooperation with HIPO amounted to 1368, and the number of persons attending those courses was 2917. Total teaching time exceeded that of the previous year by 59%, which is a significant increase.
HIPO once again invited applications for the „Ujvári János Award for Diploma Works” the purpose of which is to provide incentives for graduating students of higher education to develop the intellectual property protection aspects of their theses or dissertations. In the school year of 2016/2017 23 students submitted their applications, most of them from Eotvos Lorand University, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, and Pazmany Peter Catholic University.
E-learning modules:
http://www.sztnh.gov.hu/hu/sztnh/szellemitulajdon-vedelmi-kepzes/tavoktatas
Other activities
VI. INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION ACTIVITIES IN THE FIELD OF PATENT INFORMATION
International exchange and sharing of patent information in machine-readable form, e.g., priority documents, bibliographic data, abstracts, search reports, full text information
Bibliographic data including CPC, abstracts and titles in English and published and granted patent documents are sent to the EPO databases.
Participation in international or regional activities and projects related to patent information
It is an important achievement in the field of patents that as of 1 July 2016 applicants from the Visegrad countries applying for international patents may also choose – besides the EPO – the Visegrad Patent Institute (VPI) as an International Searching Authority (ISA) and a Preliminary Examination Authority (IPEA), i.e. as a PCT Authority. Among Hungarian applicants VPI has become significantly more attractive during the last one and a half years owing to its favourable arrangements for the use of languages and also its cost efficiency. Indeed, in this so-called international phase of the proceedings the languages applicants can choose from are more suitable for their needs. According to the language regime, Hungarian applicants may file the international patent application in Hungarian or in English; moreover they can communicate in their mother tongue with the patent examiners. In addition to that, they can reclaim 40% of the international search fee if the search report of HIPO is already available on the basis of an earlier application.
A growing number of Hungarian applicants take the opportunity offered by VPI: in 2017 in more than one third of their international (PCT) applications (in 43 cases) they already designated VPI as ISA and not EPO (69 cases). If VPI was designated as a search authority, the cost of the first, international phase of PCT applications was on average EUR 565 lower, than it would have been if designating EPO. During the first one and a half years of its operation (between 1 July 2016 and 31 December 2017) VPI received 174 search requests and 4 requests for preliminary examination. From among the requests submitted during this period, 48% came from Poland, 30% from Hungary, 17% from the Czech Republic and 5% from Slovakia. The fact that two thirds of the requests were submitted in one of the national languages and only one third in English clearly shows that applicants make use of the advantages offered by the language regime. The breakdown of applications according to language was the following: 34% were filed in Polish, 31% in English, 23% in Hungarian, 8% in Czech and 4% Slovak.
Homepage of the Visegrad Patent Institut: http://www.vpi.int/index.php/en/
Global Patent Prosecution Highway (GPPH): http://www.sztnh.gov.hu/en/patent/global-pph
Assistance to developing countries
Other activities
VII. OTHER RELATED MATTERS
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.
2. Pre-classification 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 pre-classification is applied by the administration of an office.
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.