Expertise/ Skills
Summary of Technical Experience:
Two
years of hands-on patent searching, analysis, and mapping experience in the
variety of technological area including pharma, chemistry, food technology,
biotechnology, etc., with a focus on technology identification, technology
tracing, competitive intelligence, infringement, validity, freedom to operate,
etc., both in terms of database searching and data mining and further
qualitative and quantitative analysis to bring out the competitor activity and
its technology focus. Also extensive hands-on experience in both free and paid
patent and non-patent literature searching databases, and on-line research.
Summary of Creative
Experience:
Extensive professional experience in
report writing, creative illustrative graphs and maps to bring out the texture
patent data in organized IP maps.
Patent/IPR related
skills/Expertise:
(1)
Novelty Search/Patentability Search
Focuses on the most unique details of an invention or its
most patentable qualities. Whether or not an invention is
"patentable" is a subject belonging to patent law. It is important
for searching purposes to note that an invention "must have novelty, or be
new and original". Specifically, "'novelty' means that before the
'invention' by the applicant the exact invention disclosed and claimed in a
patent application must not have been: (i) known or used by others; or (ii)
patented or described in a printed publication anywhere in the world; or (iii)
invented by another who has not abandoned, suppressed or concealed the invention;
or (iv) described in a patent application filed by another". A significant
purpose of a patentability search is to determine if an invention is suitably
"novel." If the invention can be patented, the search also helps to
determine "what the scope of that protection will be". Essentially, a
thorough patentability search should "define the prior art and the
background of (an) invention," which can reveal the "patentable
features" (or claims) of the invention. By retrieving relevant prior
patents, the patentability search can also help to insure that the claims of
the new invention are not too broad -- which would invalidate them -- nor
"so limited as to fail to provide the scope of protection deserved".
(2)
Patent Collection Search
Shows the evolution of a technology over a specified period
of time. Both expired and unexpired patents are included as references.
(3)
State-of-the-Art Search
Gives an overview of a technology area. A State of
the Art Patent Search is a patent search that seeks to collect most -- or at
least, several -- patents that disclose information concerning a "new
product or apparatus in which an improvement is desired". The purpose is
to detail a patent history of a particular art or subject matter with the idea
of determining if it is possible to create or derive a sufficiently new product
that goes beyond the current state of the art. Essentially, an effort is made
to employ a set of patents as "stepping stones toward the development of
new products or improvements"
(4)
Infringement Search
Looks for unexpired patents with claims that may bar you
from making, using, or selling a product. Patent infringement is “the
unauthorized practicing of a patented invention”. As with a patentability
search, an infringement search is concerned with novelty and prior art, but for
different reasons. An infringement search is carried out specifically with the
idea of determining whether or you can make, use, or sell an invention “without
infringing the unexpired patents of others”. The infringement search is
intended “to insure that the subject matter you are acquiring is not covered by
other patents”. An infringement search is also sometimes carried out as part of
an effort to prevent others from making, using, or selling the invention
claimed in your patent.
(5)
Right-to-Use Search
Includes a patent infringement search. This search also
includes patents that have expired. A right-to-use search combines an
infringement search and a patentability search. The ultimate goal of a
right-to-use search is as the name implies — the right to use the product or
process. This includes determining the likelihood a new concept, process,
device, etc. is patentable and attempting to uncover patents and patent application
publications that may pose an infringement risk to a product. Preferably, the
right-to-use search is performed before the release of the product.
(6)
Validity Search
Compares the claims of the patent in question to claims of
unexpired patents and details of other types of prior art. A validity
search is sometimes undertaken to determine if a patent is actually valid and
in force. This type of search is essentially an example of the use of patents
as a competitive or strategic weapon.
The idea is to locate "prior art patents or other
facts (italics added) which will anticipate the claimed subject matter of the
problem patent or will render it obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art,
either of which would invalidate the patent". In this type of search,
other materials can be particularly helpful, such as "old sales catalogs,
trade journals, (and) prior literature".
(7)
Clearance search
A clearance search (also referred to as an infringement
search) attempts to uncover patents issued within the last 20 years that may
pose an infringement risk to a product. Preferably, the clearance search is
performed before the release of the product. We review the uncovered patents of
the clearance search and inform you whether any uncovered patent is a potential
risk. If a patent is a potential risk, we can provide an opinion letter to you
why we think your product does not infringe the uncovered patent and/or make
recommendations on how to avoid the risk as the product is being developed.
The goal of a clearance search is to uncover patents and
patent application publications that are a potential infringement risk before a
product is released. A clearance search is not perfect, but it increases the
likelihood of avoiding a potential problem before a patent owner contacts you.
Additionally, it is typically good practice to perform a clearance search when
the product design is finished, even if a patentability search was previously
performed.
(8)
Competitors’ patents search
A search for competitors’ patents is typically performed on
a periodic basis and looks for patents that issue to one or more competitors.
The search is typically restricted to geographic areas and may include specific
technology restrictions. For example, Company ABC may perform a monthly search for
all patents issued to Companies XYZ and 123 in the United States Japan
In addition to uncovering competitors’ patents, this
search can also look for patent application publications that issue to one or
more competitors. However, because most patent application publications do not
list an assignee, creative search strategies are typically used to uncover how
a competitor is attempting to obtain patent coverage.
Research
Skills/Expertise
Microbiology: Media preparation, fungal isolation, culture and
identification, serial dilution.
Molecular Biology: Bacterial cloning, Bacterial DNA isolation, DNA
isolation from whole blood of human, Electrophoresis (Agarose and PAGE),
Karyotyping, Metaphase plate preparation, Restriction digestion,
transformation, ligation, PCR, Mini-DNA preparation, Western Blotting, and
Concentration estimation.
Immunology: Lymphocyte and fibroblast culture, Immunoblotting, Dot
blotting, inhibition, Blot inhibition, Antigen Preparation, Total IgE, specific
IgE and IgG estimation.
Protein biology: Protein estimation, Iso-electric focusing, SDS-PAGE,
Calorimetry, Spectrophotometry.
Environmental: BOD, COD, and DO measurement.
Industrial microbiology: Alcohol production by Sacchromycease cereveseae,
Citric acid and protease production and estimation, Estimation of sugar concentration.
Demonstration
of Micro-array slide preparation of human cloned ESTs.
Computer
Skills/Expertise
- Plate-form: DOS, Windows 95,
98, 2000, XP
- Packages/Software: Microsoft office,
Microsoft Access, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Golive, Image forge, Smart Draw,
StudioLine, Front Page.
- Languages: C++, HTML
- Internet: Searching and
surfing.
COMPETENCIES
1. Detail
oriented
2.
Dependable and consistent
3.
Customer oriented
4. Quality
oriented
5. Ability
to work with little supervision
6. Motivated and self-starter