When you want to protect your intellectual property , you have to get a patent application from a government agency called the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Here's your chance to learn something about the USPTO as well as getting another piece of evidence to solve the mystery.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office is a part of the United States Department of Commerce established in 1903 as one of 15 executive departments of the U.S. government.  It is headed by the Secretary of Commerce who is a part of the President’s Cabinet, and is appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. He/She acts as an advisor to the President.

The Commerce Secretary’s responsibility is to make sure that American companies and factories do well so people have jobs and are able to support their families. The Secretary makes sure that the United States’ economic growth continues to increase. Another responsibility is to encourage trade with other countries while protecting businesses here in America. Additionally, the Secretary of Commerce provides advice to businesses and other government agencies.

In 1913, Congress split the Department of Commerce and Labor into two separate departments. Then in 1925, Congress switched the United States Patent Office (USPO) from the Department of Interior to the Department of Commerce. This made sense since the USPO deals with protecting companies and individuals and understands the importance of the advancement of new technologies and products. The name was later changed to the United States Patent and Trademark Office in 2000.

The USPTO has a special mission, which is to help support “industrial and technological progress in the United States and strengthen the national economy”.  It accomplishes this by making sure patent and trademark protection is granted to inventors and corporations for their inventions and then makes sure patent laws are obeyed. 

The USPTO is presently based in Alexandria, Virginia. About 7,300 people work there with about 3,000 working as patent inspectors and about 400 working as trademark attorneys.  The rest are support staff. However, even with so many examiners, there are huge delays and more examiners are needed. A Patent Examiner Training Academy has been set up to address this problem.

Since 1991, this office has been fully funded by application fees of $160 - $770 and maintenance fees that patent holders must pay after 3.5, 7.5, and 11.5 years from the date of the patent. As of 2006, the USPTO has issued over seven million patents with the first patent being issued in 1790 to Samuel Hopkins for a device for “the making of Pot ash and Pearl ash”.  This very first patent was signed by President George Washington!

Currently, the head of the USPTO is Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property Jon W. Dudas, a position to which he was nominated by President George W. Bush in March 2004 and appointed in July 30th, 2004. Director Dudas advises the President and the Secretary of Commerce on how to strengthen patent protection and prevent piracy. You will read all about our trip to Washington D.C.to interview Director Dudas later on.

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