Information Disclosure Statement - Contents

Contents

The prior art or background information submitted in an IDS typically includes other issued patents, published patent applications, scientific journal articles, books, magazine articles, or any other published material that is relevant to the invention disclosed in the applicant's own patent application, irrespective of the country or language in which the published material was made.

Prior art on an IDS is typically broken up into three categories: US patent literature, foreign patent literature, and non-patent literature (NPL). US patent literature consists of issued US patents and US patent application publications. Copies of listed US patent literature do not need to be submitted along with the IDS as USPTO examiners have access to all US patent literature. Foreign patent literature consists of patents issued in foreign countries, foreign application publications if they exist, and PCT international application publications. Non-patent literature consists of any publication that is not a US or foreign patent publication, such as magazine articles or research journals. Copies of listed non-patent literature (NPL) and foreign patent publications need to be submitted along with the IDS or they will not be considered by USPTO examiners. If the copies of NPL or foreign patent publications are not in the English language, the applicant must also submit an English translation or a summary of relevancy in the English language in order for the piece of art to be considered by the examiner.

The content requirements of an IDS are defined in 37 CFR 1.98, which can be found in the MPEP.