Process status monitoring

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In monitoring the status of proceedings, the various stages of the patent application process are monitored. This includes application, examination, opposition and grant. This type of monitoring is important for companies that want to stay informed about the progress of their own patent applications and those of their competitors.

By monitoring the procedural status of patent applications, companies can identify potential areas of innovation and adjust their research efforts accordingly. In addition, procedural status monitoring can help companies stay informed about the current filing or publication status of their competitors and identify potential areas for patent infringement or licensing opportunities.

Monitoring procedural status is particularly important for companies operating in international markets, where patent application procedures can vary widely.

In PATOffice you may automatically get notified in realtime about new changes of the status of a patent. This can be set up for each patent individually and also individually per user.

How to switch it on for automatic notifications?

In order to switch on status monitoring for a patent in PATOffice please navigate to an according patent's detail view:



The column on the right side of the detail view is the place where you can actually work with the patent by rating, commenting or adjust monitoring settings.
To activate the status monitoring for the patent, you can simply set the controller "Status" to green. Next to it, on the left hand side you can see the current status. In this case the patent is "Active". Once this status changes you will be notified accordigly.



Of course you can always deactivate the status monitoring again by simply setting the controller back to grey.

How do I find an overview of patents with switched on status monitoring?

You can also access your IP rights that you have included in the status monitoring via your personal dashboard.



All new status changes, that you should take a look at can be found here ("New")



All patents that the status monitoring is switched on for can be found here ("Active")


Note: Please don't mix up "Active" in the dashboard, with the actual status of the patent. "Active" in the dashboard only means that this the number of patents we are actually monitoring.
We are working on fixing these easy-to-mix-up terms.

What are the statuses of applications?

Status	Description
Abandoned	Applied when the PTO delivers a legal event code stating the application has been abandoned.
Ceased	Used for applications that are refused / terminated before grant or rejected.
Expired - Lifetime	Generally reserved for granted / issued / registered records in CLAIMS Direct. This status is normally used for applications that have passed their full patent term.
Granted	Triggered by granting legal event or delivery of publication of a grant / issue / registration in Gazette or PTO journals as well as the availability of the respective granted document in CLAIMS Direct.
Pending	Applied upon publication of a filed application.
Revoked	Generally reserved for granted / issued / registered records in CLAIMS Direct, this status is sometimes used for records that were granted and then terminated (e.g. after invalidataion or appeal proceedings).
Withdrawn	Applied when an applicant chooses to discontinue prosecuting an application and the PTO delivers a legal event code stating the application is withdrawn.
Withdrawn - After Issue	Generally reserved for granted / issued / registered records. This status is triggered when a legal event code is received from the PTO indicating an applicant has chosen to terminate / withdraw the granted record.

What are the statuses of granted patents?

Status	Description
Active	Triggered by publication of the granted / issued / registered record. This status is maintained until there is a subsequent legal event code that changes it to inactive / expired.
Active - Reinstated	Applied when an ofifce delivers a legal event code indicating that the IP right has been reinstated.
Expired - Fee Related	Applied when an annuity or maintenance fee payment is missed.
Expired	Used for events similar to those with a status "Ceased", including non-payment of annuities, but occurs more frequently in CLAIMS Direct. The generic "Expired" indicator is used for all patents published before 1990, regardless of whether an expiration date has been calculated for them and regardless of prior legal status events such as fee-related expirations, withdrawals, revocations, etc.
Expired - Lifetime	Applied when all fees have been paid, the grant was in-force for the entire patent or utility model term, and the grant has exceeded its term limit.
Ceased	Applied when an office delivers a legal event code that terminates an IP right before the patent term ends, e.g. in AU termination according to Section 143(A) where applicant does not pay the required fee or fails to submit the required documents. In CN, "Ceased" is most often used for termination due to invalidation. Refusals, rejections and nullifications can also trigger a status of "Ceased".
Withdrawn - After Issue	Applied when the PTO delivers a legal event code indicating that the applicant has withdrawn the granted patent. This usually occurs to avoid double patenting.
In-force (designated stated only)	Used for EP records when an EP designated country remains in-force. Used only for EP designated countries within an EP record. See new IFI patent status for EP for examples.
Not-in-force (designated stated only)	Used for EP records when no EP designated country remains in-force. Used only for EP designated countries within an EP record. See new IFI patent status for EP for examples.
Revoked	Applied when an office terminates a patent, often after invalidation or appeal proceedings and the delivery of a legal status event informing of the revocation. Annulments or renunciations can also trigger a status change to "revoked".

Updated on: 31/05/2023