[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 143 (Tuesday, July 27, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44644-44645]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-17039]


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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: Patent Processing (Updating).
    Form Number(s): PTO/SB/08a, PTO/SB/08b, PTO/SB/17i, PTO/SB/17P, 
PTO/SB/21-27, PTO/SB/30-37, PTO/SB/42-43, PTO/SB/61-64, PTO/SB/64a, 
PTO/SB/67-68, PTO/SB/91-92, PTO/SB/96-97, PTO-2053-A/B, PTO-2054-A/B, 
PTO-2055-A/B, PTOL/413A.
    Agency Approval Number: 0651-0031.
    Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Burden: 2,731,841 hours.
    Number of Respondents: 2,281,439 responses.
    Avg. Hours Per Response: 1 minute 48 seconds to 8 hours. The USPTO 
estimates that it will take 8 minutes (0.13) to complete the request to 
retrieve electronic priority application(s) and 6

[[Page 44645]]

minutes (0.10) to complete the authorization to permit access to 
application by priority offices. This includes time to gather the 
necessary information, create the documents, and submit the completed 
request.
    Needs and Uses: This proposed new electronic exchange of copies of 
priority applications will benefit applicants by reducing the cost of 
ordering paper certified copies of priority applications for filing in 
other participating intellectual property offices, and will benefit 
participating intellectual property offices by reducing the 
administrative costs associated with transferring paper copies of 
priority applications and scanning them into the electronic image 
record management systems. The USPTO is submitting this collection in 
support of a final rulemaking, ``Changes to Implement Priority Document 
Exchange between Intellectual Property Offices'' (RIN 0651-AB75). There 
are two forms associated with this final rulemaking, PTO/SB 33, Request 
to Retrieve Electronic Priority Application(s) Under 37 CFR 1.55(d), 
which will allow the applicant to request that the USPTO retrieve such 
documents from other participating intellectual property offices; and 
PTO/SB/34, Authorization to Permit Access to Application by 
Participating Offices Under 37 CFR 1.14(h), which will allow the 
applicant to authorize the USPTO to release confidential documents to 
other participating intellectual property offices that are important to 
the prosecution of the patent application.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households; business or other for-
profit; not-for-profit institutions; farms, the 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 any of the following methods:
     E-mail: [email protected]. Include ``0651-0031 copy 
request'' in the subject line of the message.
     Fax: 703-308-7407, marked to the attention of Susan Brown.
     Mail: Susan K. Brown, Records Officer, Office of the Chief 
Information Officer, Office of Data Architecture and Services, Data 
Administration Division, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 
1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450.
    Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information 
collection should be sent on or before August 26, 2004, to David 
Rostker, OMB Desk Officer, Room 10202, New Executive Office Building, 
725 17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20503.

    Dated: July 21, 2004.
Susan K. Brown,
Records Officer, USPTO, Office of Data Architecture and Services, Data 
Administration Division.
[FR Doc. 04-17039 Filed 7-26-04; 8:45 am]
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