Step 2: Search Strategy

You should always start your patent search with a search strategy. Therefore you need to bring all you available information in a structure. Assign every information you have already to one of the following aspects:

Keyword search – Words that characterize what you search go here – (e.g. Lithium Ion battery)

• Period search – All the information about time limits go here – (e.g. only the latest technology (last 5 years))

• Name search – Information about Applicants or Inventors (e.g. company names that work in the field)

• Subject search – technical fields (e.g. lithium Ion Battery = secondary cell)

This structure is important to narrow down your patent search – Patent databases use the same structure

In Espacenet you can find this structure within the different search fields.

In the next sections we will learn how to insert the now structured information in the right way!