1. Overview
Intellectual Property system has two, inter alia, significant functions, namely protection of innovative and creative achievements, and provision of technical information.
With regard to information function, the IP system requires applicants to fully disclose, publish and disseminate information contained in applications and granted protection titles. Therefore, the operation of IP system often generates a huge volume of information related to intellectual property's subject matters, such as patent, industrial design, trademark, ect. The number of new technological solutions filed for patents over the world has reached 60 million and number of patents being legally valid in Viet Nam takes a minor amount among them. The huge volume of information is always updated in the course of researching and developing technologies, creating new and advanced technologies that brings great benefits in commercialization process. Total number of patent applications is estimated to be 1.5 million per year over the world.
To be granted a patent in Viet Nam, an applicant is required to file a patent application containing a sufficient and clear description of prior art, technical problems and new technical solutions to solve the problems. The National Office of Intellectual Property (NOIP) receives the patent application and then does formality examination. If accepted, the application shall be published in the Industrial Property Official Gazette and the IP Digital Library (IPDL) (often referred to as the publication of valid applications or the Gazette A). After doing substantive examination and patent applications meet all protection requirements (namely, novelty, inventive step and susceptibility of industrial application), NOIP shall grant a patent and publish it on the Industrial Property Official Gazette and the IP Digital Library (referred to as the publication of Patents or the Gazette B). Patent information is always classified in conformity with the International Patent Classification (IPC) administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
2. Current patent documentations at National Office of Intellectual Property of Vietnam (NOIP)
Patent documentations has been continuously collected and accumulated in the process of establishment and development of NOIP since 1982. The volume of documentations and tools of information exploitation and searching are always provided, updated and improved, such as:
Ø In 1982: more than one million of patent documentations in paper were provided, most among them were patent descriptions of the former Soviet Union.
Ø In 1987: NOIP had 3 million patent documentations in paper and microfilm.
Ø In 1994: the number of documentations reached 13 million in paper, microfilm, CD-ROM.
Ø In 2008: NOIP owned 34 million documentations, mainly stored in DVD-ROM and CD-ROM.
At the time being, NOIP owned more than 6,000 patent optical disks, coming from the United States, Japan, England, France, Canada, ect., and other international IP organizations (such as, EPO, WIPO). These documentations can be accesses to at the IP Information Centre of NOIP or via the NOIP's website at: http://www.noip.gov.vn
Beside the above-mentioned documentations at NOIP, users can also access to following free patent information databases:
Ø PATENTSCOPE® of WIPO: http://www.wipo.int/pctdb/en/index.jsp
Ø European Patent Office: http://ep.espacenet.com
Ø The United States Patent and Trademark Office: http://www.uspto.gov/patft/index.html
Ø Japan Patent Office: www.jpo.go.jp
Ø Singapore Intellectual Property Office: www.surfip.gov.sg
Ø IP Australia: http://www.ipaustralia.gov.au
Ø The United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office: http://www.ipo.gov.uk
3. Patent Information activities at NOIP
Ø Providing services for examination of patent applications
In order to examine patent applications, examiners should conduct searches to find out appropriate information and confronting evidences. At the time being, this is mostly done by searching digital databases on the Internet. However, due the uncertain connection, the IP Information Center is required to provide full-text descriptions of patent contained in optical disks. In 2007, the IP Information Center already provided more than 8000 printed pages for patent examiners, and in 2008, 10,000 pages of patent descriptions were provided for examiners.
Ø Providing services for the public
A Reading Room was also set up by the IP Information Centre to provide a space for the public to search patent information at NOIP's premises. Following is the number of visitors to the Reading Room:
- In 2004: 318 visitors,
- In 2005: 268 visitors,
- In 2006: 175 visitors,
- In 2007: 108 visitors,
- In 2008: 200 visitors,
The number of visitors has decreased recently because most patent databases nowadays have been published on the Internet, therefore the public can access to them without coming the Reading room.
Furthermore, NOIP organized many workshops, seminars, and training courses on the exploitation and utilization of patent information for institutions and agencies over the country, as well as provided lectures directly at R&D institutions, universities and enterprises on patent information. Thank to these activities, number of Vietnamese visitors to those patent databases on the Internet is unceasingly increasing.
Ø On-demand services
In order to obtain technological information suitable to researches or obtain information of technical and legal status of patents, the public can file a request for patent information search with NOIP. The average number of requests received by NOIP is 200 each year.
Ø Developing an IP-conner in libraries
With the aim to expand measures of exploitation and utilization of patent documentation and to meet requirements of users whose demand for technological information is high, over past years, NOIP has carried out a pilot of developing an IP-conner at libraries of some local universities and provincial department of science and technology. Up to now, there are 8 such IP-conners established in those institutions, such as Departments of Science and Technology of Hue Province, Quang Tri Province, Lam Dong Province, Binh Dinh Province, Khanh Hoa Province and at Da Nang University, Phu Yen University, and An Giang University. Thank to the success of the pilot project, more and more institutions such as Departments of Science and Technology of Hoa Binh Province, Hai Phong city, and Hanoi University of Agriculture, Hanoi University of Mining and Geology, Vietnam Marine University, Hanoi University, ect., have taken much interests in establishing IP-conner in their libraries to assist their staff and researchers, lecturer and students to take best use of patent information in their daily jobs.
4. Orientations of exploiting patent information
To take most advantages of the IP system, NOIP will strengthen dissemination of patent information to grassroot levels, provide professional guidance and support in transferring patent documentations and databases as well as searching tools for Patent/Scientific and Technological Information Center under provincial department of science and technology, universities and enterprises, continuously expand and improve the quality of IP-conner in libraries as requested by demanding institutions.
To organize intensive training courses on searching patent information, attach the importance to potential users with high demand for using technological information in research and development of science and technology, such as lecturers and students at universities; provide support for technical universities step-by-step to include patent information searching techniques as optional subject in the academic programs;
To link activities of utilization of patent information over the country to share information resources and experiences on the implementation and development of patent information products subject to user groups.
To invest in the development of searching tools for patent information, provide support for development of translation machine of foreign patent descriptions.
To closely link and cooperate with other agencies, especially those of Ministry of Science and Technology (for instances, management agencies of technological projects, technological assessment, or Tech-mart ect.,) concerning the exploitation and usage of patent information in professional duties.
To select and analyse patent information of typical technologies with a view to define direction for research and innovation in the main sectors of the country.
To continuously implement the compulsory mechanism on concerning patent information search in research and development Projects using the State budget as provided for in Article 31.c of Decree 103/2006/ND-CP.