Patent Prosecution Highway – Sweden and NPI entering the PPH-network
As I mentioned in my blog entry of 19 september, the number of PPH-agreements has increased, introducing new possibilities for accelerated prosecution.
Sweden’s Patent- och Registreringsverket and Nordic Patent Institute entering the PPH-network
Three new patent offices have entered the PPH-network. The three new offices are PRV (Sweden, PCT-PPH with JPO and USPTO), The Nordic Patent Institute (PCT PPH with USPTO) and ILPO (Israel, national PPH with USPTO). Also, a number of new PPH agreements between existing PPH participators have been launched, particularly relating to the use of PCT work products for requesting accelerated prosecution under the PPH (so called PCT-PPH agreements).
The complete overview of existing and working PPH agreements at the time of writing can be seen on the graphic below, courtesy of the PPH web-page compiled by the Japanese Patent Office, JPO:
Link to the PPH-web page: http://www.jpo.go.jp/ppph-portal/index.htm
Troels Peter Rørdam, European Patent Attorney, Awapatent