1. Trademark Searching Donna Hopkins Engineering Librarian Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

2. Trademark Definition “any word, name, symbol or device which is used in trade with goods to indicate the source or origin of the goods and to distinguish them from the goods of others.” Used with services = servicemark Company name is not necessarily TM

3. Why Trademarks? Image Brand Recognition Consumer Loyalty Value in Marketplace Competitive Intelligence –Acquisition –New product release

4. Can You Name the Mark?

5. Types of US Trademarks ® Federal State Common Law

6. Federal Trademarks Interstate and/or International Commerce Statutory Grounds for refusal also include – –Does not function as a trademark –Flag/Coat of Arms/Insignia of state, country or municipality –Merely descriptive or deceptively misdescriptive –Confusingly similar to another mark

7. Trademark Search Tools CASSIS DVD (Trademarks BIB) TESS (USPTO Website) Trademark Assignment Disk (CASSIS) Trademark Home Page (http://www.uspto.gov/ma in/trademarks.htm)http://www.uspto.gov/ma in/trademarks.htm Design Search Code Manual http://tess2.uspto.gov/tmd b/dscm/index.htm ) http://tess2.uspto.gov/tmd b/dscm/index.htm Madrid Express (WIPO) Trademarkscan (Dialog) Both use the “International Classification of the Figurative Elements of Marks under the Vienna Agreement” AKA Vienna classification in place of the Design Search Code

8. Trademark Search - Words Search for “unique” words Leave out the words that are descriptive of the product If necessary use IC (International Classification of Goods and Services) –Although US Class is listed, IC has been used since 1973

9. Trademark Search Screen

10. Results Screen

11. IC (Goods and Services) Registrant can describe G&S in their own words IC is used as the “subject heading” When searching use any IC that contains “confusingly similar” G&S AKA “Nice Classification” - complete information can be found at http://www.wipo.int/classifications/nice/en/ http://www.wipo.int/classifications/nice/en/

12. Trademark Search Use “Design Search Code” for non-word marks –Example: 26.05.09 Triangles made of geometric figures, objects, humans, plants or animals 24.15.02 Arrows forming geometric figure (other than circle) 24.15.10 More than one arrow Truncation ($) will result in a broader search –Example, Any type of bird (03.15) and any child (02.05), the search would be entered as 0315$[dc] and 0205$[dc] an eagle (03.15.01) and a boy (02.05.05). a swan (03.15.06) and a baby (02.05.06).

13. Design Search Code Manual

15. Vienna Classification

16. Searching Madrid Express

17. Merci! Any Questions? All slides available at http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/library_talks/15/