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indexSearching the Inventor FieldSearches the Inventor Name(s) field within a patent record. Enter one or more inventor names (in the format last name, first initial, middle initial) connected with search operators. indexAbout InventorsIn many records, inventors whose names contain non-alphanumeric characters are listed twice within the Inventor field. One listing contains the non-alphanumeric character, the other does not (no space is included for apostrophes, but a space is included for hyphens). When searching for these inventors, only the occurrences of the name that match the search term are highlighted in the results. indexInventor Search Examples
indexHyphens and ApostrophesInclude hyphens (-) and apostrophes ( ' ) when searching for names containing those marks or replace them with spaces. You will also retrieve variants. For example:
In most name searches, the product returns the same number of records whether you enter a space, a hyphen ( - ), or an apostrophe ( ' ). A search on the name OBrien may return a different set of results than O'Brien and O Brien. It is advisable that you do not remove the hyphen, the apostrophe, or the space in names that contain these marks. Note: Beginning with 1998 data, non-alphanumeric characters (for example, the apostrophe in O'Brian) and spaces in surnames (for example, de la Rosa) are preserved in surnames. To effectively search across multiple years, enter surnames that take into account all possible variations of the name. |
indexSearch Tips
indexAnonymous InventorsTo search for anonymous inventors, enter anonymous in the Inventor field. The term Anonymous will appear in the Inventors(s) field on the Results and Full Record pages. |