One of the great resources provided by IP Australia is its AusPat online patent data service. AusPat enables users to search for Australian patents and applications using a range of options and search fields, view numerous data items for each application, and access most incoming and outgoing correspondence via eDossier. In my view, it is one of the best available systems for online access of national patent data. For example, in comparison with the USPTO’s services, AusPat effectively combines the functionality of the US Patent Full-Text Databases, the Public Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system, and the Patent Assignment Search system, into a single convenient and powerful interface. And while Australian patent information ultimately finds its way into various other public and proprietary databases, AusPat is the first place that any new filings, changes, or events will be reflected. It is, therefore, the go-to source for the most up-to-date data on all Australian patents and applications. I rely heavily upon AusPat for much of the analysis I present on this blog, including the regular updates I have been providing over the past few months on patent filings during the COVID-19 pandemic.
One thing that other users may be wondering is: exactly how up-to-date is the data available in AusPat? You might think that with almost all filing and other transactions now being conducted electronically, the consequences of any new applicant actions would be reflected immediately in AusPat. However, that is not quite correct.
