Applications: Patent Retrieval System

Applications: The Patent Retrieval System

A system to search, filter and retrieve
patent documents from the USPTO.

The Problem

A client for whom we had developed several knowledge-based applications routinely searched the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's (USPTO) website for published patent documents. The client used combinations of ideas found in retrieved patents to suggest new product ideas within its own industry. This task was extremely important for the client to retain a competitive edge in its industry, but it was very tedious. The contractors that the client used for developing standard software applications were unable to solve this problem; so, they turned to us.

The Solution

Acquired Intelligence developed the Patent Retrieval System (PRS) in which the client could specify search terms to use for retrieving interesting patents. The PRS logged onto the USPTO, retrieved matching documents, allowed search modifications, let the user select documents to download, and modified the documents for further processing in another software application. The system retrieved all matching documents without duplication, and could automatically restart itself if it was terminated for any reason and continue from where it stopped. The PRS saves many hours of work by a highly trained person (the search terms couldn't be entered and modified by a person without specialized knowledge).

Technologies Used

Visual C++ using MFC