Accessed via the Patents search type > Bulk tab, this feature allows the user to search a bulk set of publication numbers or application numbers to retrieve patents.
Users can copy multiple patent numbers (up to 5000) from a variety of sources (e.g., Microsoft Word or Excel) and paste them in the search field. Patent numbers may be publication numbers, application numbers, or a combination of both separated by spaces, commas, or line breaks (which do not count toward the 5000-number limit).
Note: The Application No. and Publication No. boxes are selected by default. If a number type is entered, but its box is unselected, numbers of that type are not searched.
After clicking the Begin Matching button, matching results of the user's search are displayed, enabling them to edit their query if needed. Users may also download a matching log, which gives further details related to successful/unsuccessful matches.
When the user clicks Search, the publication or application numbers are queried and OR’d together for the applicable field returning the patent matches on the patent results page.
Bulk search result displays are sorted in the same order as the user-entered numbers.
Bulk patent searches may be saved the Saved & Alerts page and they also appear on the search History page. Note: Alert functionality is not available when saving bulk patent searches.
