[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 199 (Thursday, October 15, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55367-55368]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-27593]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Patent and Trademark Office
Supplemental Declaration for Reissue Patent Application (37 CFR
1.175) (Proposed Addition to 0651-0033, Post Allowance)
ACTION: Proposed collection; comment request.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (DOC), as part of its continuing
effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general
public and other Federal agencies to comment on the continuing and
proposed information collection, as required by the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)).
DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before December 14,
1998.
ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Linda Engelmeier,
Departmental Forms Clearance Officer, Department of Commerce, Room
5327, 14th and Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20230.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information
should be directed to the attention of Robert J. Spar, Patent and
Trademark Office, Crystal Park 1--Suite 520, 2011 Crystal Drive,
Arlington, VA 22202, by telephone at (703) 308-5107 or by facsimile
transmission to (703) 308-6916.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Abstract
The Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has the authority, under 35
USC Sec. 251, to reissue a patent to correct any errors in the original
patent which occurred ``without any deceptive intention'' on the part
of the patentee. To obtain a reissue patent, the patentee files a
reissue application with the PTO. The PTO reviews the application, and
if it meets the statutory and regulatory requirements for a reissue
patent, the PTO will reissue the patent as long as the patentee
surrenders the original patent. One of these requirements is that a
reissue oath or declaration be included with the application. The PTO
requires the patentee under 37 CFR 1.175 to include an explanation of
why the errors being corrected by the reissue occurred without any
deceptive intent. As a result of this requirement, if any additional
changes are made during the reissue application examination process,
the patentee has to submit a supplemental reissue oath or declaration
stating that the additional errors also occurred without any deceptive
intention. If the patentee does not submit a supplemental reissue oath
or declaration, the examiner must reject the reissue application. See
Changes to Patent Practice and Procedure; Final Rule Notice, 62 FR
53131, 53165-66 (October 10, 1997), 1203 Off. Gaz. Pat. Office 63, 92
(October 21, 1997).
The PTO requires under 37 CFR 1.175 that the patentee submit a
supplemental oath or declaration which asserts only that any error
corrected during examination of the reissue application, which was not
covered by the oath or declaration filed originally, arose without any
deceptive intention on the part of the applicant. Under 37 CFR 1.175 as
recently amended, the patentee no longer has to provide the details of
how those errors occurred without any deceptive intention.
Specifically, when changes are made during the reissue application
examination process, the recently amended 37 CFR 1.175(b) requires only
a supplemental oath or declaration by the applicant stating that,
``every error in the patent which was corrected in the present reissue
application, and which is not covered by the prior oath(s)/
declaration(s) submitted in this application, arose without any
deceptive intention on the part of the applicant''.
The PTO believes that the requirement for the supplemental oath or
declaration is necessary because 35 U.S.C. Sec. 251 does not authorize
the correction of any errors that occurred with deceptive intention. A
supplemental oath or declaration would
[[Page 55368]]
prohibit patentees from trying to correct any errors that occurred with
deceptive intent in a reissue patent application that was originally
filed to correct, with an oath or declaration that covers only those
errors which occurred without any deception. The PTO believes that the
supplemental oath or declaration will prohibit the patentee from
attempting to ``piggyback'' corrections of errors that occurred with
deceptive intent in a reissue originally filed to correct an error that
occurred without deceptive intent. Errors that occurred with deceptive
intent cannot be corrected by a reissue patent.
Originally, the PTO did not provide a form for a supplemental oath
or declaration because 37 CFR 1.175 required application-specific
facts. Now that 37 CFR 1.175(b) has been revised to require only a
general statement, the PTO has designed Form PTO/SB/51S, Supplemental
Declaration for Reissue Patent Application (37 CFR 1.175). This form
does not replace Form PTO/SB/51, Reissue Application Declaration By The
Inventor or Form PTO/SB/52, Reissue Application Declaration By The
Assignee, which are used by the patentee or assignee in the originally
filed reissue patent application. The additional form, PTO/SB/51S, is
used to provide the required statement that ``every error in the patent
which was corrected in the present reissue application, and which is
not covered by the prior oath(s)/declaration(s) submitted in this
application, arose without any deceptive intention on the part of the
applicant''.
II. Method of Collection
By mail, facsimile, and hand-carry when the patentee wishes to file
a reissue patent application.
III. Data
OMB Number: 0651-0033.
Form Number: PTO/SB/51S.
Type of Review: A proposed addition to a previously approved
collection.
Affected Public: Individuals or households, businesses or other
for-profit, not-for-profit institutions, farms, state, local or tribal
governments, and the Federal Government.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 350 responses per year.
Estimated Time Per Response: It is estimated to take approximately
1.8 minutes to complete the supplemental declaration for a reissue
patent application under 37 CFR 1.175.
Estimated Total Annual Respondent Burden Hours: 10.5 hours per year
for the entire application.
Estimated Total Annual Respondent Cost Burden: $1,837.50 per year
for the new requirement. It is estimated that the addition of the
supplemental declaration to this information collection will increase
the total burden cost to $6,129,912.50
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Estimated time Estimated Estimated
Title of form Form Nos. for response annual burden annual
(mins.) hours responses
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Supplemental Declaration For Reissue PTO/SB/51S 1.8 10.5 350
Patent Application (37 CFR 1.175).
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Totals........................... ......................... .............. 10.5 350
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Annual Burden Hours: 43,893 previous +10.5 additional = 43,903.50
total annual burden hours.
IV. Request for Comments
Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden
(including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information;
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the
collection of information on respondents, e.g., the use of automated
collection techniques or other forms of information technology.
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized or
included in the request for OMB approval of this information
collection; they will also become a matter of public record.
Dated: October 8, 1998.
Linda Engelmeier,
Departmental Forms Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information
Officer.
[FR Doc. 98-27593 Filed 10-14-98; 8:45 am]
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