Kicking the Peer-to-Patent Tires

On June 15, the USPTO launched the Peer-to-Patent project (see OG Notice here), where the public was invited to participate in the examination of patent applications (for a Project Summary, click here).

Now that a week has passed, it appears that the project is off to a decent start. So far, the USPTO has listed 5 patent applications (link), and the boards appear to be quite lively with discussion. Participants range from engineers and computer professionals, to students, writers and even other lawyers. So far, participants have contributed 5.6 prior art submissions, and 18.8 discussion threads, per application. Also, the comments are often detailed and are mostly well-reasoned.

To get an idea of the process, click on any of the listed applications (link) and feel free to browse through the prior art, discussion and research links to see how participants have been interacting with the system. If you feel inclined to sign up with the project, click here (link).

• Listen to interview with Jon Doll on the Peer-to-Patent Project (link)
• Read recent interview with Beth Noveck, co-creator of the project (link)
• Article from the Washington Post (link)