The PatAnalyse methodology

Our approach has been tested by more than a dozen large Patent Landscaping studies delivered to corporate clients

The generic IP landscaping method consists of three major steps:

Mobilisation phase:

• Activities
• Build a thorough understanding of client marketing and technical plans
• Together with the client team translate this understanding into a set of bespoke categories (multiple taxonomies) for the classification scheme
• Identify the initial search strategy and the boundaries of the project study
• Test the classification scheme by applying it to a set of more than 100 patents from the initial search
• Review required changes to the classification system with the client
• Instruct the project team and provide example patents from the initial set
• Call for all project team experts to classify substantial number of test patents from the initial set
• Organise ongoing support to ensure a thorough understanding of instructions
• Output
• Initial classification scheme
• Detailed set of instructions for the rest of the team

Portfolio building and classification phase:

• Activities
• Continuously iterate the self-learning patent search strategy and add new patent families to the project portfolio
• Classify the most relevant patents
• Improve the classification scheme at the very early stages of classification using feedback from the project team
• Continuously add substantial fraction of test and example patents to the patent review list in order to ensure a full understanding of classification instructions
• Further screen and classify the less relevant patents
•  remove items which are found to be outside of the project scope
• Using the self-learning error correction algorithm, identify records with the most probable inconsistencies in the judgement of the subject area experts
• Re-classify such patents
• Output
• Final classification scheme
• Set of differentiated patent documents (the portfolio) with applied classification scheme

Patent Mapping and documentation phase:

• Activities
• Control  a semi-automatic process of cleaning bibliographic records
• Prepare a set of Patent Maps showing different views of the Patent Landscape
• Identify documents likely to create interest within the clients' team
• Analyse trends and supplement patent data with marketing intelligence
• Identify the most striking discrepancy between patent activities and market intelligence
• Summarise strategic recommendations based on analysis of Patent Maps and individual patents
• Provide technical support to the client team for using the on-line portal with the results of the study
• Output
• Graphical presentation of the patent landscape
• A client meeting with a presentation of the PowerPoint report
• Access to the on-line portal containing the portfolio of documents classified
• Patent database back-up