Search to decide, knowing you cannot see everything
A search helps you make better decisions, but it cannot prove novelty, because recent filings are still unpublished.
Lesson 6 of 8 · 5 min
Why search at all
Prior art is the earlier material that can block a patent. In our judgment, searching for it helps you decide whether to file, what to claim and what to change. It does not prove your invention is new.
Four searches, four questions
Different searches answer different questions.
- Patentability search. This looks for anything that may affect whether you can get a patent (WIPO glossary).
- Freedom-to-operate (FTO) search. This looks for in-force rights that may cover a product. It asks whether you can sell, not whether you can patent (WIPO glossary).
- Validity search. This attacks a specific patent (WIPO IP Panorama).
- Technical FTO analysis. This differs from a legal FTO opinion, so a search result alone is not that opinion (WIPO Q&A).
The blind spot
Applications generally publish about 18 months after the earliest filing (35 U.S.C. § 122). Yet once published, they can be prior art as of their filing date (35 U.S.C. § 102). So a competitor's application filed last year may be invisible today and still block you later. A clean search is never conclusive.
A workable method
This method is our judgment, not a legal standard.
- Write a short invention statement that says what your invention does and how.
- Run keywords in a free database.
- Note the Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) codes on close hits. These codes group patents by technology, so they find documents that use different words.
- Run classification searches across several databases.
- Chase citations, both the documents a close hit cites and those that cite it.
- Search non-patent literature, such as papers, product manuals and websites.
- Keep a dated log of what you searched and found, for your patent attorney.
Use the results
In our judgment, close results are useful. They can show you what to claim differently, or that the money is better spent elsewhere. What you find also has consequences for what you must tell the Office, which the next lesson covers.
Timeless wisdom
A search can only show what has already become visible. Applications generally publish about 18 months after the earliest filing (35 U.S.C. § 122), and they can be prior art as of filing (35 U.S.C. § 102). So a clean search is never conclusive. The search type must also fit the question: a patentability search and a freedom-to-operate search look for different things (WIPO glossary). In our judgment, search to make better decisions, not to prove novelty.
What's current
As of November 6, 2026
The USPTO's search hub lists Patent Public Search, Assignment Center, Open Data Portal, Global Dossier, Common Citation Document, PATENTSCOPE and Espacenet (USPTO, updated July 7, 2026). The USPTO says Patent Public Search will "soon require users to sign in with a USPTO account", and it has not published a date on that page (USPTO). That tool replaced PatFT and AppFT (USPTO). The Open Data Portal has required sign-in since June 18, 2026 (USPTO).
PATENTSCOPE added AI-assisted natural-language search on July 2, 2026, limited to keywords, dates and country codes and requiring a WIPO account (WIPO). The Lens released a Beta with AI natural-language search on October 12, 2026 (about.lens.org).
Key takeaways
- Search to make better decisions, not to prove novelty.
- Pick the search type that fits your question.
- No search can see applications that have not yet published.
- Keep a dated log of what you searched and found.
Check your understanding
Compare your idea with earlier work
Sources
The Academy is general education, not legal advice, and reading it doesn't create an attorney-client relationship. Patent law and fees change, so check the linked sources and have a registered patent attorney or agent review your situation before you file. Obsidyan sells patent software, including AI drafting tools, so weigh what these lessons say about AI tools with that in mind.