The USPTO has introduced two online discussion tools designed to solicit input from the intellectual property community on how the USPTO can update and improve the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP) and Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure (TMEP).
Selected chapters from the MPEP and TMEP were selected to draw commentary from a wide spectrum of users. The USPTO plans to post additional chapters in the coming months. Feedback will be used to consider potential modifications to the tools or the conditions for their use in order to increase meaningful participation. Current chapters open for discussion include:
MPEP Chapter 500 - Receipt and Handling of Mail and Papers and Chapter 600 - Parts, Form, and Content of Application, and
TMEP Section 904.03 - Material Appropriate as Specimens for Trademarks and Chapter 1200 - Substantive Examination of Applications.
Those interested in contributing comments can access the tools on the following websites http://uspto-mpep.ideascale.com/ and http://uspto-tmep.ideascale.com/.
This project is one of several open government initiatives the USPTO is undertaking to collaborate with the public and increase agency transparency. For more information on these initiatives, go to:
http://www.uspto.gov/news/pr/2010/10_22.jsp, www.uspto.gov/dashboards, www.peertopatent.org and www.uspto.gov/blog.This project is one of several open government initiatives the USPTO is undertaking to collaborate with the public and increase agency transparency. For more information on these initiatives, go to:
