[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 221 (Monday, November 17, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68413-68414]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-27139]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Patent and Trademark Office
Patent and Trademark Resource Centers Metrics
ACTION: Proposed collection; comment request.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), as part
of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden,
invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this
opportunity to comment on this 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 January 16,
2015.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
Email: [email protected]. Include ``Patent
and Trademark Resource Centers Metrics comment'' in the subject line of
the message.
Mail: Marcie Lovett, Records Management Division Director,
Office of the Chief Information Officer, United States Patent and
Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450.
Federal Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information
should be directed to the attention of Chris Kitchens, Manager, Patent
and Trademark Resource Center Program, Office of the Chief Information
Officer, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1451,
Alexandria, VA 22313-1451, by telephone at 571-272-5750, or by email to
[email protected]. Additional information about this
collection is also available at http://www.reginfo.gov under
``Information Collection Review.''
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Abstract
Patent and Trademark Resource Centers (PTRCs) are a nationwide
network of public, state and academic libraries that are designated by
the USPTO to disseminate patent and trademark information and to
support the diverse intellectual property needs of the public.
Accessing the patent and trademark information at a PTRC with the help
of a trained specialist, allows the public to determine if someone else
has already patented an invention or obtained a federal registration
for a trademark on goods or services.
Recognition as a PTRC is authorized under the provisions of 35
U.S.C. 2(a)(2), which provides that the USPTO shall be responsible for
disseminating to the public information with respect to patents and
trademarks. In order to be designated as a PTRC, libraries must fulfill
the following requirements: (1) Assist the public in the efficient use
of patent and trademark information resources; (2) provide free access
to patent and trademark resources provided by the USPTO; (3) provide
metrics on the use of patent and trademark services provided by the
member library as stipulated by the USPTO; (4) provide metrics on
outreach efforts conducted by the member library as stipulated by the
USPTO; and (5) send representatives to attend the USPTO-hosted PTRC
training seminars.
Since the PTRC requirements stipulate that the participating
libraries must submit metrics in order to be designated as a PTRC, the
USPTO is submitting this information collection for review under the
PRA. The information collected enables the USPTO to more effectively
train the
[[Page 68414]]
PTRC staff who, in turn, provide assistance and training to public
customers in the areas of patent and trademarks. As the PTRCs continue
to move away from the physical distribution of hard copy information,
the USPTO is interested in what types of electronic services the PTRC
of the future should offer its customers. Collection of this
information enables the USPTO to more effectively service its current
customers while planning for the future.
The USPTO has developed a worksheet to collect the metrics
concerning the use of the patent and trademark services and the public
outreach efforts from the libraries. On the USPTO's behalf, the metrics
are collected on a quarterly basis through a third-party vendor. The
information is only collected electronically. The PTRCs are given a
password to input their information.
II. Method of Collection
The metrics are submitted electronically to the USPTO.
III. Data
OMB Number: 0651-0068.
Form Number(s): N/A.
Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
Affected Public: Non-profit organizations.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 84 libraries, for 336 responses
per year. The USPTO estimates that there will be 84 libraries reporting
their metrics once per quarter, for a total of 336 responses per year.
Estimated Time per Response: The USPTO estimates that it will take
the responding organizations approximately 30 minutes (0.50 hours) to
gather the necessary information, prepare the worksheet, and submit it
to the USPTO.
Estimated Total Annual Respondent Burden Hours: 168 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Respondent Cost Burden: $5,008.08. The USPTO
expects that the information in this collection will be prepared by
librarians, at an estimated hourly rate of $29.81. This is the mean
hourly wage for librarians for colleges, universities, and professional
schools as reported in the 2013 Bureau of Labor Statistics. Therefore,
the USPTO estimates that the respondent cost burden for this collection
will be approximately $5,008.08 per year.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Estimated
time for Estimated Estimated
Item response annual annual burden
(minutes) responses hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PTRC Metric Worksheet........................................... 30 336 168
-----------------------------------------------
Totals...................................................... .............. 336 168
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Estimated Total Annual Non-hour Respondent Cost Burden: $0. There
are no fees or capital start-up, maintenance, operation, or postage
costs for this collection.
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 also will become a matter of public record.
Dated: November 7, 2014.
Marcie Lovett,
Records Management Division Director, USPTO, Office of the Chief
Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2014-27139 Filed 11-14-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-16-P