Filter Elements for Citation Analysis

This article explains how to search for prior and subsequent art of a patent family or a patent portfolio, e.g. by X or Y citation.

Target group: Enterprise, Essentials
Last updated: January 2021

CONTENTS

Introduction

Citation Analysis Settings of the Filter Element "Patent Number"

Citation Analysis Settings of the Filter Element "Owner"

Citation Analysis Settings of the Filter Element "Tag"

Introduction

The filter elements "Patent Number", "Owner" and "Tag" allow you to filter for the prior art or subsequent art of the patent families defined in each of them.

These settings are particularly useful when trying to spot upcoming trends early on, to look for related technologies or to find out who is building on a certain patent portfolio or existing technology.

One example is the subsequent citation analysis of the Swatch portfolio (Apple Swatch Use Case), where PatentSight indicators showed that Apple was working on a watch-related product years before the Apple Watch was launched or even rumored about.

Citation Analysis Settings of the Filter Element "Patent Number"

To add the filter element "Patent Number" to your search, click on "Number" in the filter element tool bar. Once you have added this filter element, you can limit your result set to the patent numbers you add to it.

To alter the settings of the filter element, click on the drop down arrow ( ∨ ) to open the drop down menu. Select the setting option of your choice by clicking on it.

The meaning of each of these options is explained below.

Setting of filter element:	Search result:
Patent Number	Patent family(ies) you have selected.
Citing patent number	Patent families cited by (= the prior art of) the patent family(ies) you have selected.
Cited patent number	Patent families citing (= the subsequent art of) the patent family(ies) you have selected.

By using the options "Citing patent number" or "Cited Patent Number", you can filter for the prior or subsequent art of the patent family(ies) of your choice.

Citation Analysis Settings of the Filter Element "Owner"

To add the filter element "Owner" to your search, click on "Owner" in the filter element tool bar. Once you have added this filter element, you can limit your result set to the patent portfolio(s) of the owner(s) you add to it.

To alter the settings of the filter element, click on the drop down arrow ( ∨ ) to open the drop down menu. Select the setting option of your choice by clicking on it.

The meaning of each of these options is explained below.

Setting of filter element:	Search result:
Owner	Patent families owned by the owner(s) you have selected.
Owner of citing active patents	Patent families cited by ( = prior art of) active patent families that belong to the owner portfolio(s) you have selected.
Owner of citing patents (incl. inactive)	Patent families cited by ( = prior art of) both active and inactive patent families that belong to the owner portfolio(s) you have selected.
Owner of citing patents active today	Patent families cited by ( = prior art of) patent families that belong to the owner portfolio(s) you have selected and are active at the most recent Reporting Date.
Owner of cited active patents	Patent families citing ( = subsequent art of) active patent families that belong to the owner portfolio(s) you have selected.
Owner of cited patents (incl. inactive)	Patent families citing ( = subsequent art of) both active and inactive patent families that belong to the owner portfolio(s) you have selected.
Owner of cited patents active today	Patent families citing ( = subsequent art of) patent families that belong to the owner portfolio(s) you have selected and are active at the most recent Reporting Date.

By using the options "Owner of citing patents" or "Owner of cited patents", you can filter for the prior or subsequent art of the patent families owned by one or more owners of your choice.

Citation Analysis Settings of the Filter Element "Tag"

To add the filter element "Tag" to your search, click on "Tag" in the filter element tool bar. Once you have added this filter element, you can limit your result set to the patent families of the tag(s) you add to it.

To alter the settings of the filter element, click on the drop down arrow ( ∨ ) to open the drop down menu. Select the setting option of your choice by clicking on it.

E.g., by filtering for X or Y citations, you can limit your result set to these specific examiner citations.

The meaning of each of these options is explained below.

Setting of filter element:	Search results:
Tag	Patent families that belong to the tag(s) you have selected.
Tags of active subsequent art	Patent families cited by ( = prior art of) active patent families that belong to the tag(s) you have selected.
Tags of active subsequent art by X citations	Patent families cited by ( = prior art of) active patent families that belong to the tag(s) you have selected under category X.
Tags of active subsequent art by X, Y citations	Patent families cited by ( = prior art of) active patent families that belong to the tag(s) you have selected under category X or Y.
Tags of subsequent art	Patent families cited by ( = prior art of) both active and inactive patent families that belong to the tag(s) you have selected.
Tags of subsequent art by X citations	Patent families cited by ( = prior art of) both active and inactive patent families that belong to the tag(s) you have selected under category X.
Tags of subsequent art by X,Y citations	Patent families cited by ( = prior art of) both active and inactive patent families that belong to the tag(s) you have selected under category X or Y.
Tags of active prior art	Patent families citing ( = subsequent art of) active patent families that belong to the tag(s) you have selected.
Tags of active prior art by X citations	Patent families citing ( = subsequent art of) active patent families that belong to the tag(s) you have selected under category X.
Tags of active prior art by X, Y citations	Patent families citing ( = subsequent art of) active patent families that belong to the tag(s) you have selected under category X or Y.
Tags of prior art	Patent families citing ( = subsequent art of) both active and inactive patent families that belong to the tag(s) you have selected.
Tags of prior art by X citations	Patent families citing ( = subsequent art of) both active and inactive patent families that belong to the tag(s) you have selected under category X.
Tags of prior art by X, Y citations	Patent families citing ( = subsequent art of) both active and inactive patent families that belong to the tag(s) you have selected under category X or Y.

By using the options "Tag of subsequent art" or "Tag of prior art", you can filter for the prior or subsequent art of the patent families that belong to one or more tags of your choice.