[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 123 (Monday, June 26, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39369-39370]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-16022]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

United States Patent and Trademark Office


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

    The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has submitted 
to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for clearance the 
following proposal for collection of information under the provisions 
of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35).
    Agency:United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
    Title: Patent Processing (Updating) (Proposed Additions of Request 
for Continued Examination and Reconstruction of Unlocatable Application 
and Patent Files).
    Form Numbers: PTO/SB/30.
    Agency Approval Number: 0651-0031.
    Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Burden: 1,018,736 hours.
    Number of Respondents: 2,231,365 respondents.
    Avg. Hours Per Response: The USPTO estimates that it will take the 
public 12 minutes to gather, prepare, and submit a request for 
continued examination. The USPTO estimates that it will take the public 
one hour to gather, prepare, and submit a copy of the applicant's 
record of the application or patent file.
    Needs and Uses: This collection of information is required by 35 
U.S.C. 132, which has been amended by the ``American Inventors 
Protection Act of 1999.'' Specifically, the ``American Inventors 
Protection Act of 1999'' amends U.S.C. 132 to provide that the USPTO 
may prescribe regulations for the continued examination of applications 
(for a fee) at the request of the applicant. The USPTO has created a 
form for these requests which applicants can submit instead of filing a 
continued prosecution application. The USPTO uses these forms to 
process and initiate continued examination of a previously submitted 
application. In addition, the USPTO is publishing an interim rule 
associated with this information collection that allows the USPTO to 
request a copy of the record of the correspondence between the USPTO 
and the applicant or patentee in order to reconstruct application or 
patent files that are misplaced and cannot be found after a diligent 
search. Reconstructing the misplaced application or patent file allows 
the USPTO to continue prosecuting a patent application. If applicants 
do not respond to the USPTO

[[Page 39370]]

in a timely manner with either the correspondence or copies of the 
correspondence, the USPTO will abandon the patent application.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households, businesses or other 
for-profit, not-for-profit institutions, farms, Federal Government, and 
State, local or tribal governments.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain benefits.
    OMB Desk Officer: David Rostker (202) 395-3897.
    Copies of the above information collection proposal can be obtained 
by calling or writing Thao Nguyen, Manager, Data Administration 
Division (Acting Records Officer), (703) 308-7397, Data Administration 
Division, Office of Data Management, United States Patent and Trademark 
Office, Crystal Park 3, 3rd Floor, Suite 310, Washington, D.C. 20231 or 
via the Internet at ([email protected]).
    Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information 
collection should be sent within 30 days of publication to David 
Rostker, OMB Desk Officer, Room 10236, New Executive Office Building, 
725 17th Street, NW., Washington, D.C. 20503.

    Dated: June 16, 2000.
Thao Nguyen,
Manager, Data Administration Division (Acting Records Officer), Office 
of Data Management.
[FR Doc. 00-16022 Filed 6-22-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-16-P