Common Upload Errors

The IPwe Docket team has uploaded a lot of assets onto the platform and as such has found a number of common user errors and other issues. Here are some of the most common.

Adding “US” at the Beginning of a US Application Number

The most common user error we see in uploads is where users add US to the beginning of an application number of a US asset. While the country code is required for international filings, it is not required and is not supported in US asset uploads. For example, “US15399980” will be rejected. Drop the “US” and import “15399980”.

Issues Uploading National Stage Filings for European Countries.

IPwe Docket obtains patent file histories for European filings directly from the European Patent Office. Unfortunately, data quality issues sometimes prevent some European national stage filings from being accessible through their API. This seems to be most common, but is not limited to French and German filings that have EP equivalents. IPwe Docket is in process of resolution. In the meantime, we suggest that users upload only the EP filing.

International Filings that Require Unique Prefixes

International patent uploads require a precise numbering schema because different countries store application numbers in different ways. While most require just a country code, year and application number, some have unique prefixes. In our schema guide, application number formats designate years with “Y”, and Application numbers with “X”. We designate these unique prefixes with a “Z”. Some examples with their formats:

• Brazilian patents require "11" for national applications, "PI" for inventions and "MU" for utility patents. (BRZZYYYYXXXXXX)
• German patents require "10" for national applications and "20" for utility patents. (DEZZYYYYXXXXXX)
• Malaysian patents require "PI" for national applications and "UI" for utility patents. (MYYYYYZZXXXXX)
• Philippine patents require "1" for national applications and "2" for utility patents. (PHZYYYYXXXXXX)
• Chinese-Taipei patents require the Republican year in 3-digit format by subtracting 1911 to the current year (e.g. 2011 - 1911 = 100). (CNYYYYXXXXXXX)
• Indian patents require the issuing office code. (IN (four-digit year + issuing office code + unique number)). (INYYYYCHEXXXX)

International Actions Failing to find Issued Dates

Espacenet patent data is inconsistent, a common one being missing issuance documents. The platform cannot know whether a patent has been issued without this document, so to do it by hand, users should go to the patent itself,  type “Issued” under the Status column, and the record will move to the issued patents tab.