Plant patents

[Plantsman]

What is the name of your state? PA
Which is the best free online search of Plant Patents and, in particular, Plant Patent applications? Using the same search terms in different search sites seems to turn up different results, and results from applications not yet granted usually don't turn up at all. Thanks.

 

[divgradcurl]

What is the name of your state? PA
Which is the best free online search of Plant Patents and, in particular, Plant Patent applications? Using the same search terms in different search sites seems to turn up different results, and results from applications not yet granted usually don't turn up at all. Thanks.

The USPTO database allows you to perform advanced searches, maybe that will work for you. Google also now have advanced search functionality to search the USPTO database. I haven't used the Google search, but if it allows you to search by "kind codes," the "old" kind code for a plant patent was "P," the newer (current) kind codes for plant patents are P1, P2, P3, P4 and P9.

Applications for patents are only publicly available if they have been published. Although applications are generally published after 18 months, if the applicant is only seeking U.S. protection, they can (currently, at least) as the PTO to not publish their application at all, which would mean that it would not be searchable until it actually issued.

 

[Plantsman]

Thanks divgradcurl... I've used Google to search the USPTO database but the same search on, for example, freepatentsonline.com, seems to yield slightly different results.

As for patent applications, it must be the request not to publish that keeps some hidden and not others. Google doesn't search published applications, any thoughts on which free site is best at doing this?

Thanks.