The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is submitting this request to update information collection 0651-0027, Recording Assignments. The USPTO is making revisions to two existing approved forms in this collection related to the inventor's oath or declaration: Patent Recordation Form Cover Sheet (PTO-1595) and Electronic Patent Assignment System (EPAS).
Section 4 of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) amends 35 U.S.C. § 115 to streamline the requirements for the inventor's oath or declaration. For example, amended 35 U.S.C. § 115(e) provides for making the statements required under 35 U.S.C. § 115(b) and (c) in an assignment of record and specifically permits an individual who is under an obligation of assignment of an application to include the required statements in the assignment executed by the individual, in lieu of filing the statements separately. The changes to 35 U.S.C. § 115 in the AIA are effective on September 16, 2012, but apply only to patent applications filed on or after September 16, 2012.
In order to accommodate the revised procedure, the USPTO is revising Form PTO-1595 and EPAS to allow the public to indicate that the assignment document serves as an oath or declaration under 37 CFR 1.63. The proposed revisions of these forms will not result in a substantive change in the burden for this collection. The changes will have no effect on the estimated annual responses or estimated time per response for the revised forms.
The administrative adjustments are due to revised estimates for expected annual filings of patent and trademark recordation requests. The program change is due to the removal of costs associated with retaining the acknowledgment receipt for online transactions, which is a suggestion to customers but not a requirement.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.
Form PTO-1595 Patent Recordation Form Cover Sheet
0651-0027-JustChg-Aug2012.pdf
Patent Recordation Form Cover Sheet