[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 174 (Tuesday, September 9, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53142-53143]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-22880]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

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: Post Allowance and Refiling.
    Form Number(s): PTO/SB/44/50/51/51S/52/53/56/57/58 and PTOL-85B.
    Agency Approval Number: 0651-0033.
    Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Burden: 63,635 hours annually.
    Number of Respondents: 205,385 responses per year.
    Avg. Hours Per Response: The USPTO estimates that it will take the 
public approximately 1.8 minutes (0.03 hours) to 2 hours to gather the 
necessary information, prepare the forms, and submit the completed 
request.
    Needs and Uses: The USPTO is required by 35 U.S.C. 131 and 151 to 
examine applications and, when appropriate, allow applications and 
issue them as patents. The USPTO can also correct errors in patents, 
reissue patents as appropriate, and participate in reexamination 
proceedings initiated by the patent owner or by third parties. The 
public uses the information in this collection to request corrections 
in issued patents, to request reissue patents, to request reexamination 
proceedings, and to ensure that the necessary information and fees are 
submitted to the USPTO. The USPTO in turn reissues patents, determines 
whether the requested corrections can be made, and approves 
reexaminations. The USPTO is submitting this collection in support of a 
proposed rulemaking, ``Changes to Support Implementation of the USPTO 
21st Century Strategic Plan'' (RIN 0651-AB64), which would allow the 
use of electronic signatures on documents and also eliminate the 
requirement to surrender a copy of the original patent in a reissue 
application. With the elimination of this requirement, the associated 
Form PTO/SB/55 is also being deleted.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households, businesses or other 
for-profits, not-for-profit institutions, farms, the Federal 
Government, and state, local or tribal governments.

[[Page 53143]]

    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 Susan K. Brown, Records Officer, Office of the 
Chief Information Officer, Office of Data Architecture and Services, 
Data Administration Division, 703-308-7400, U.S. Patent and Trademark 
Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313, Attn: CPK 3 Suite 310; or 
by e-mail at [email protected].
    Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information 
collection should be sent on or before October 9, 2003 to David 
Rostker, OMB Desk Officer, Room 10202, New Executive Office Building, 
725 17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20503.

    Dated: September 2, 2003.
Susan K. Brown,
Records Officer, USPTO, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Office 
of Data Architecture and Services, Data Administration Division.
[FR Doc. 03-22880 Filed 9-8-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-16-P