MPEP Section 608.02(m), Drawing Prints

Executive summary:

This document contains Section 608.02(m) ("Drawing Prints") of the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (the "M.P.E.P."), Eighth Edition, Eighth Revision (July 2010). This page was last updated in January 2011. You may return to the section index to find a particular section. Alternatively, you may search the MPEP using the search box that appears on the left side of every page of BitLaw--you may restrict your search to the MPEP on the search results page.

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608.02(m) Drawing Prints [R-3]

Preparation and distribution of drawing prints is discussed in MPEP § 508.

Prints are made of acceptable drawings of an application maintained in paper. These prints are kept on top of the papers on the right side of the file wrapper under any bibliographic data sheet. See MPEP § 719.01(b). No drawing prints are made for an image file wrapper (IFW) application.

The original drawing, of course, should not be marked up by the examiner. Where, as in an electrical wiring application, it is desirable to identify the various circuits by different colors, or in any more or less complex application, it is advantageous to apply legends, arrows, or other indicia, the drawing prints may be used and retained unofficially in the file since the drawing prints are no longer needed for a record of the drawings as originally filed. If the application is maintained in paper, the drawing prints, as colored by the examiner, may be retained in the paper application file. If the application is an IFW application, the drawing prints may be retained by the examiner.

Prints remain in the paper application file at all times except as provided in MPEP § 608.02(c).

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