Information Consultant

Core Services:

Business/Industry/Market Research

Competitive Intelligence

Current Awareness/Alert Services/Clipping Services

Database Searching

Document Delivery

Competitive Intelligence

Intellectual Property/Patents/Copyright/Trademark

Patent & Literature Searching: Equivalents, Legal Status, Patentee, Inventor, Company/Institutions, Authors Novelty, Prior Art, Freedom to Operate Oppositions, Infringements Substances, Properties, Preparations, Uses Technology, Formulations, Health & Safety Citation, Reviews, Conferences, Dissertations.

Chemical Structure Searching: Exact, Substructure, Polymers, Mixtures, Markush, Reactions

Organizations use patent searches to help them address these types of questions or situations:

• Sources of new innovation ideas... to help focus research and development efforts to gain competitive advantage.

• Is your invention patentable? Can you obtain protection for your invention?

• Are you free to practice a technology—manufacture or sell a product, or carry out a process—without fear of being sued for infringing a patent?

• Should you be concerned about others’ patents that relate to your business plans?

• Can you keep others from practicing your technology by enforcing your patents?

• Can (or should) you manufacture, sell or operatewithout patent protection?

• Track the development activities of key industry players

• Identify newcomers to the industry

• Identify emerging threats (e.g.,China)

• Determine if foreign competition is a factor

• Gain insight into marketing strategy by seeing in which countries a competitor is patenting

• Identify emerging competitor products; follow trends and technological developments in R&D

• Monitor who is citing your patents

• Explore potential customers for patents you want to license or sell

• Track patent expiration dates so that you are ready to strike as soon as your competitors are vulnerable

• Liability (Infringement)

• Who are potential Licensors/Licensees?

• Also look for reassignments, oppositions, legal status