An easy way to conduct a quick search of European patents online is available.
Searches of past patent documents are often essential in the process of applying for a new patent. It's important to ensure that the new invention doesn't have excessive similarities with one already patented.The easiest way to conduct a search of European patents is through an organization called the European Patent Organisation, which has jurisdiction in over 40 European countries. The EPO provides a free service called esp@cenet, which is a searchable database of over 60 million patent documents from both EPO member states and other countries which have agreed to contribute.
Instructions
1. Look up the year of publication, two-letter country code for the country in which the patent was granted, and applicant company for the patent you are looking for. The esp@cenet database only lists 500 results, so the more specific information you have, the more likely you are to find the patent you are looking for.
2. Go to ep.espacenet.com.
3. In the "SmartSearch" box, enter the patent you're looking for by typing the name of applicant, then the two-letter country code for the country in which the patent was filed (for Europe, use EP), and finally the year in which the patent was published. For example, for a patent filed by IBM in Germany that was published in 2006, you would type: "DE IBM 2006."
4. Select the patent you are looking for.
