Page 81 - TI Journal 18-1

Technology and Innovation, Vol. 18, pp. 75-77, 2016 ISSN 1949-8241 • E-ISSN 1949-825X
Printed in the USA. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.21300/18.1.2016.75
Copyright © 2016 National Academy of Inventors. www.technologyandinnovation.org

THE PILLARS OF PATENT QUALITY

Alex Camarota

Office of Innovation Development, United States Patent and Trademark Office, Alexandria, VA, USA

The Enhanced Patent Quality Initiative at the USPTO is an ongoing, comprehensive initiative
to strengthen the quality of patents issued by the USPTO. Programs in the initiative focus the
agency’s efforts on improving work products, measuring patent quality, and increasing cus-
tomer service. In addition to the initiative, the USPTO is also working toward incorporating
artificial intelligence and big data in its efforts to improve the quality of patent examination.

Key words: Patent quality; Innovation; USPTO; Patents; Enhanced Patent Quality Initiative

It wasn’t so long ago that the most valuable assets of of knowledge to the public in exchange for limited
companies were tangible: inventories, technical infra- monopolies hinges on the integrity of the system—
structure, warehouses, and so on. Today, however, on its ability to discern which inventions are legally
and particularly in the United States, the valuable entitled to protection in the marketplace while also
assets of many of the most innovative companies protecting the ability of others to invent around and
are all intangible: inventions, algorithms, processes, improve upon them.
designs, and brands—their intellectual property (IP). “Patent quality” does not have a standard defini-
But unlike their tangible counterparts, IP assets are tion. At a fundamental level, it describes the degree to
far more vulnerable to theft and misappropriation. which an issued patent fulfills statutory requirements
Not only is this a threat to the livelihood of compa- to be granted, which are to be “novel” and “nonobvi-
nies that operate on the basis of commercializing ous.” Beyond that point, however, it can mean differ-
their IP assets, but it is also a threat to scientific and ent things to different viewpoints based on different
technological development in general. contexts. For example, an overly broad patent being
IP rights, and specifically those embedded in used by a non-practicing entity to threaten lawsuits
patents—the ability to exclude others from making, of dubious merit might be described as poor quality.
using, selling, importing, or offering to sell an inven- But a patent with claims that do not embody strong
tion for a limited time—are not merely incentives legal protection and thus places the holder at risk
for companies to increase their earnings potential. for infringement could also be categorized as poor
On the contrary, patents in the United States have quality.
always existed, as the Constitution directs in Article The United States Patent and Trademark Office
1, Section 8, “To promote the Progress of Science (USPTO) takes a holistic approach to addressing
and Useful Arts.” Successfully balancing the transfer patent quality. Ultimately, every employee, function,

_____________________
Accepted December 10, 2015.
Address correspondence to Alex Camarota, Office of Innovation Development, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, 600 Dulany Street, Alexandria, VA 22314;
E-mail: Alexander.Camarota@uspto.gov

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