Espacenet section of the EPO, to be used to search patent publications but also machine-translate patent documents or simply what competitors are doing over more than 120 millions of worldwide patents.
The Espacenet CPC Browser is a specialized technical interface designed for navigating the Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) system, a granular hierarchical taxonomy jointly managed by the European Patent Office and the United States Patent and Trademark Office. It provides a searchable index of over 250,000 technical categories, allowing users to drill down from broad sections like Electricity or Performing Operations to highly specific subgroups. The tool provides comprehensive classification definitions, illustrative images, and administrative notes that define the scope of each code, ensuring that users can accurately categorize inventions.
Innovation and engineering professionals apply the CPC Browser to conduct rigorous freedom-to-operate (FTO) analyses and state-of-the-art searches during the research and development phase. By identifying the precise classification codes for a specific technology, engineers can monitor competitor filings and technological trends with high specificity, reducing the risk of patent infringement.
