Direct patents

If a scientific library does not provide an online patent and literature service, the patent office library may be approached directly. Patent attorneys may also offer a patent search service. Furthermore, contacts with companies which are interested in the field may be established in order to use their patent information network. 

ESA assigns only few document types, Book (B), Conference (C), Dissertation (D) and Technical Report (T). Journals cannot be searched directly. Patents or other documents are searchable through a field qualification. 

The reinaining five search topics (Research Topic, Author Name, Document Identifier, Company Namc/Organii ation, and Browse Table of Contents arc conducted in a similar fashion, with the input being the only difference between the criteria. Thus, in Research Topic" the entry can be any, or even several, keywords or phrases. In "Author Name", literature written by a specific author will be Found, including alternative spelling, Document Identifier" can also be entered directly in the query. Document identifiers arc CA abstract numbers, patent numbers, patent application numbers, or priority application numbers. The last two search topics (Company Name/Organi2ation, and Browse Table ofContents) allow one to search for literature from specific companies or to view the list of journals which are available in the database. 

Styryl derivatives have been patented as sensitizers (76) and other methine dyes for sensitization in direct photothermoGraphic material (134). 

Numerous patents have been issued disclosing catalysts and process schemes for manufacture of acrylonitrile from propane. These include the direct heterogeneously cataly2ed ammoxidation of propane to acrylonitrile using mixed metal oxide catalysts (61—64). 

The second ceUulosic fiber process to be commercialized was invented by L. H. Despeissis (4) in 1890 and involved the direct dissolution of cotton fiber in ammoniacal copper oxide Uquor. This solvent had been developed by M. E. Schweizer in 1857 (5). The cuprammonium solution of ceUulose was spun into water, with dilute sulfuric acid being used to neutralize the ammonia and precipitate the ceUulose fibers. H. Pauly and co-workers (6) improved on the Despeissis patent, and a German company, Vereinigte Glanstoff Eabriken, was formed to exploit the technology. In 1901, Dr. Thiele at J. P. Bemberg developed an improved stretch-spinning system, the descendants of which survive today. 

In some cases, particularly with iaactive metals, electrolytic cells are the primary method of manufacture of the fluoroborate solution. The manufacture of Sn, Pb, Cu, and Ni fluoroborates by electrolytic dissolution (87,88) is patented. A typical cell for continous production consists of a polyethylene-lined tank with tin anodes at the bottom and a mercury pool (ia a porous basket) cathode near the top (88). Pluoroboric acid is added to the cell and electrolysis is begun. As tin fluoroborate is generated, differences ia specific gravity cause the product to layer at the bottom of the cell. When the desired concentration is reached ia this layer, the heavy solution is drawn from the bottom and fresh HBP is added to the top of the cell continuously. The direct reaction of tin with HBP is slow but can be accelerated by passiag air or oxygen through the solution (89). The stannic fluoroborate is reduced by reaction with mossy tin under an iaert atmosphere. In earlier procedures, HBP reacted with hydrated stannous oxide. 

In 1954 the surface fluorination of polyethylene sheets by using a soHd CO2 cooled heat sink was patented (44). Later patents covered the fluorination of PVC (45) and polyethylene bottles (46). Studies of surface fluorination of polymer films have been reported (47). The fluorination of polyethylene powder was described (48) as a fiery intense reaction, which was finally controlled by dilution with an inert gas at reduced pressures. Direct fluorination of polymers was achieved in 1970 (8,49). More recently, surface fluorinations of poly(vinyl fluoride), polycarbonates, polystyrene, and poly(methyl methacrylate), and the surface fluorination of containers have been described (50,51). Partially fluorinated poly(ethylene terephthalate) and polyamides such as nylon have excellent soil release properties as well as high wettabiUty (52,53). The most advanced direct fluorination technology in the area of single-compound synthesis and synthesis of high performance fluids is currently practiced by 3M Co. of St. Paul, Minnesota, and by Exfluor Research Corp. of Austin, Texas. 

Direct Fluorination. This is a more recently developed method for the synthesis of perfluorinated compounds. In this process, fluorine gas is passed through a solution or suspension of the reactant in a nonreactive solvent such as trichlorotrifluoroethane (CFC-113). Sodium fluoride may also be present in the reaction medium to remove the coproduct hydrogen fluoride. There has been enormous interest in this area since the early 1980s resulting in numerous journal pubHcations and patents (7—9) (see Fluorine compounds, organic-direct fluorination). Direct fluorination is especially useful for the preparation of perfluoroethers. 

The direct synthesis in an aromatic hydrocarbon medium is patented, using a triethyl aluminum catalyst (48) in this case, crystallisa tion of the product from a solvent is not needed. 

Original routes involving the direct oxidation of aromatic precursors (14,15) iato quiaols (16,17) followed by a thermal transformation of the latter have been patented for the synthesis of methyLhydroquiaone [95-71-6] (10) andphenyLhydroquiaone [1079-21-6] (11) (80,81). 

Commercial Synthesis ofR,S-Mahc Acid. The commercial synthesis of R%-mahc acid involves hydration of maleic acid [110-16-7] or fumaric acid [110-17-8] at elevated temperature and pressure. A Japanese patent (33) describing a manufacturing procedure for malic acid claims the direct hydration of maleic acid at 180°C and 1.03—1.21 MPa (150—175 psi). 

U.S. Patents. This file, produced by Derwent, Inc., covers U.S. patents from 1971 to the present. The database iacludes all bibliographic and front page information and the text of all claims. (Prom 1971 to 1974 the claims from many patents were not available from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) source tapes, and therefore are not iacluded.) The complete cl aim text can be searched from 1971 but can be ptinted only from 1982. Tides and patentee names are present ia their original form, aeither expanded nor standardized. There is no enhanced iadexiag. Examiner citations are directly searchable, and USPTO classification is updated when the tapes are received from the Patent Office. 

Survey of the patent Hterature reveals companies with processes for 1,4-butanediol from maleic anhydride include BASF (94), British Petroleum (95,96), Davy McKee (93,97), Hoechst (98), Huels (99), and Tonen (100,101). Processes for the production of y-butyrolactone have been described for operation in both the gas (102—104) and Hquid (105—108) phases. In the gas phase, direct hydrogenation of maleic anhydride in hydrogen at 245°C and 1.03 MPa gives an 88% yield of y-butyrolactone (104). Du Pont has developed a process for the production of tetrahydrofuran back-integrated to a butane feedstock (109). Slurry reactor catalysts containing palladium and rhenium are used to hydrogenate aqueous maleic acid to tetrahydrofuran (110,111). 

A direct descendant of these matches is the nontoxic modem double-tipped strike-anywhere (SAW), the large "kitchen" match version, or the smaller "peimy box" variety. It is based on the invention of two Frenchmen, Henri SAvnne and Fmile David Cahen, who used the nonpoisonous compound tetraphosphoms trisulfide, P4S3, as a phosphoms substitute and acquired a U.S. patent in 1898. 

Considerable research is currendy directed toward development of novel technologies that may present economic advantages with respect to the conventional acetone cyanohydrin (ACH) route. Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Co. has developed and patented a modified acetone cyanohydrin-based route... 

The resulting discoveries may provide a broad range of solutions or products. For example, invention may result from basic research and development efforts directed toward products which ate essential to basic commercial efforts. Alternatively, invention may result in products or appHcations which add value to basic commercial products that ate already in existence. Inventions may also be used to assist an individual or company in commercial efforts toward developing a defensive posture in any given marketplace. When patented, appHcations may also provide an extended opportunity to Hcense or market the patent without the actual production of a product by the inventor. 

A fundamental requirement for obtaining a patent is defining an advance, development, or invention which is within those classes of "subject matter" which the law of the United States regards as patentable. Two classes of patentable subject matter, ie, computer software and biotechnology, are the subject of relatively new and evolving law. However, other types of subject matter rest on fairly certain ground as to patentabiUty. Examples of patents directed to various types of subject matter are described in the following. 

A reissue may be ordered to correct any minor or major mistake which occurred during prosecution of a patent, but the mistake must be one that makes the patent partially or whoUy inoperable. Inoperable essentially means that the patent caimot be enforced. For instance, a reissue proceeding can be used to correct inventorship or even broaden claims if the patent is less than two years old. However, such a request to broaden claims in the context of reissue may not be undertaken to recover subject matter canceled during examination. Further, a reissue proceeding may be undertaken to correct formal problems or address newly discovered prior art which affects the scope of the claims. The nature of a reissue proceeding directs that this mechanism should be used only when the vaUdity of the patent is in question owing to the error or problem in question. 

An often forgotten source for some patent family information is the CLAIMS database. Although its direct coverage is limited to U.S. patents, it includes limited patent family information up to 1979, for Belgium, Prance, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. Some of this information from the pre-1970 era is found in no other on-line database. An earHer discussion of patent family databases has recentiy been updated (18). 

A distinct difference between examiners citations on granted U.S. patents and those on pubHshed patent appHcations is that the latter can indeed represent direct anticipation. Thus they represent a close subject relationship to the document in question. An important factor in the citations on EPO and PCT appHcations is that they are categorized by the examiner with regard to their relevance documents of particular relevance in themselves, documents of particular relevance in combination with some other document(s), and documents defining the general state of the art but of no particular relevance in themselves. Clearly not aH citations have the same value. 

Synthesis. Exploratory research has produced a wide variety of odorants based on natural stmctures, chemicals analogous to naturals, and synthetic materials derived from available raw materials and economical processing. As in most areas of the chemical industry, the search for new and useful substances is made difficult by the many materials that have been patented and successfully commercialized (4). In the search for new aroma chemicals, many new materials are prepared for screening each year. Chemists who perform this work are involved in a creative exercise that takes its direction from the commercial sector in terms of desirable odor types and specific performance needs. Because of economic limitations, considerations of raw material costs and available processing methods may play a role eady in the exploratory work. 

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