[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 148 (Tuesday, August 4, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Page 38585]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-18574]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

United States Patent and Trademark Office

[Docket No. PTO-P-2009-0028]


Grant of interim extension of the term of U.S. Patent No. 
5,135,759; MicroSort[supreg] Sperm Separation Technology

AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office.

ACTION: Notice of Interim Patent Term Extension.

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SUMMARY: The United States Patent and Trademark Office has issued an 
order granting interim extension under 35 U.S.C. 156(d)(5) for a one-
year interim extension of the term of U.S. Patent No. 5,135,759.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary C. Till by telephone at (571) 
272-7755; by mail marked to her attention and addressed to the 
Commissioner for Patents, Mail Stop Hatch-Waxman PTE, P.O. Box 1450, 
Alexandria, VA 22313-1450; by fax marked to her attention at (571) 273-
7755, or by e-mail to [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 156 of Title 35, United States Code, 
generally provides that the term of a patent may be extended for a 
period of up to five years if the patent claims a product, or a method 
of making or using a product, that has been subject to certain defined 
regulatory review, and that the patent may be extended for interim 
periods of up to a year if the regulatory review is anticipated to 
extend beyond the expiration date of the patent.
    On June 8, 2009, the patent owner, the United States of America, as 
represented by the Secretary of Agriculture, timely filed an 
application under 35 U.S.C. 156(d)(5) for an interim extension of the 
term of U.S. Patent No. 5,135,759. The patent claims the use of the 
medical device, MicroSort[reg] Sperm Separation Technology. The 
application indicates, and the Food and Drug Administration has 
confirmed, that a Premarket Approval application (P090004) for the 
medical device, MicroSort[reg] Sperm Separation Technology, has been 
filed by the licensee of the patent owner, Genetics & IVF Institute, 
and is currently undergoing regulatory review before the Food and Drug 
Administration for permission to market or use the product 
commercially.
    Review of the application indicates that except for permission to 
market or use the product commercially, the subject patent would be 
eligible for an extension of the patent term under 35 U.S.C. 156, and 
that the patent should be extended for an additional one year as 
required by 35 U.S.C. 156(d)(5)(B). Because it is apparent that the 
regulatory review period will continue beyond the original expiration 
date of the patent (August 4, 2009), an interim extension of the patent 
term under 35 U.S.C. 156(d)(5) is appropriate.
    An interim extension under 35 U.S.C. 156(d)(5) of the term of U.S. 
Patent No. 5,135,759 is granted for a period of one year from the 
original expiration date of the patent, i.e., until August 4, 2010.

    Dated: July 28, 2009.
John J. Doll,
Acting Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Acting 
Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
[FR Doc. E9-18574 Filed 8-3-09; 8:45 am]
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