Method and system for providing search information via a communications network

• US 20050289473A1
• Filed: 01/21/2005
• Published: 12/29/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Wolters Kluwer Nv
• Original Assignee: Wolters Kluwer Nv
• Inventors: Gustafson, Carl, Abramson, Karen, Braunstein, Joshua, Rakhman, Izabella, Drummond, Wayne, Curtin, Carol, Ronaghan, Jerry, Jaggers, Jonathan, Currie, Jim, Petrulis, Denise, Sluzhevsky, Peter
• Application Number:
  US11/040,821
• Publication Number:
  US 20050289473A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/764
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/904 Browsing; Visualisation therefor for navigating the web G06F16/954; browsing optimisation for the web G06F16/957
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/117 Tagging; Marking up details of markup languages G06F40/143; Designating a block; Setting of attributes style sheets, e.g. eXtensible Stylesheet Language Transformation [XSLT], G06F40/154
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/169 Annotation, e.g. comment data or footnotes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

A system and method for electronically reviewing and utilizing a trademark search report containing a plurality of records. Users of the system can place virtual color coded tags on selected records and sort the tagged records for creating a modified report. The users can select various colors for the tags wherein each color can have a particular significance to the user reviewing the report. The user can utilize information in the report to create another document such as a trademark clearance opinion.

Claims

1. A system for reviewing and manipulating an electronic trademark search report comprising:

a trademark search report database having at least a first trademark search report containing a plurality of trademark records;

an interface configured to allow a first user of the system to view and navigate the first trademark search report and to place a first tag on at least a first one of the plurality of trademark records in the first trademark search report.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the interface is further configured to allow the first user to place a second tag on a second one of the plurality of trademark records in the first trademark search report.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the first user can select a first color from a plurality of available colors for the first tag placed on the first one of the plurality of trademark records.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein each color of the plurality of colors has a unique significance.

5. The system of claim 3 wherein the first user can change the first tag to a second color of the plurality of available colors.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the first one of the plurality of trademark records in the first trademark search report comprises a link to additional information relating to the first one of the plurality of trademark records in the first trademark search report.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein the additional information includes a design of a mark identified in the first one of the plurality of trademark records.

8. The system of claim 6 wherein the additional information includes registration information of a mark identified in the first one of the plurality of trademark records.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein each trademark record comprises a plurality of record sections and wherein the interface is configured to allow the first user to one of expand and collapse each of the plurality of record sections.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein the interface is further configured to allow a second user of the system to view and navigate the first trademark search report and to place a second tag on the first one of the plurality of trademark records in the first trademark report.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein the second user can select a first color from a plurality of available colors for the second tag placed on the first one of the plurality of trademark records.

12. The system of claim 1 wherein initials of the first user are placed on the first tag.

13. The system of claim 10 wherein initials of the second user are placed on the second tag.

14. The system of claim 1 wherein the interface is further configured to allow the first user to place a note on the first one of the plurality of trademark records.

15. The system of claim 1 wherein the first user accesses the first trademark search report and interface over a network through a browser application.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein the network is the Internet.

17. The system of claim 1 wherein the interface is further configured to allow the first user to filter for display a subset of trademark records of the plurality of trademark records wherein each of the trademark records in the subset includes a tag.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein the tag for each trademark record in the subset of trademark records is the same color.

19. The system of claim 16 wherein the trademark search report database includes a plurality of trademark search reports, and the interface allows the first user to select a trademark search report from the plurality of trademark search reports as the first trademark search report.

20. A system including a database accessible by a user'"'"'s computer over a network for reviewing and manipulating trademark search reports comprising:

a host computer accessible to a plurality of devices over a network, the host computer coupled to a database storing a plurality of trademark search reports wherein each trademark search report includes a plurality of trademark records, the host computer including an application for generating a user interface to allow a user of the system on a remote device to select, display and navigate through the plurality of trademark search reports and the plurality of trademark records associated with each trademark search report, the user interface allowing a user to place a first color coded tag on a first trademark record of the plurality of trademark records in a first trademark search report of the plurality of trademark search reports.

21. The system of claim 20 wherein the user interface allows the first user to place a second color coded tag on a second trademark record of the plurality of trademark records in a first trademark search report of the plurality of trademark search reports.

22. The system of claim 20 wherein the first user can generate a first note associated with the first record.

23. The system of claim 22 wherein the first user can generate a second note associated with a second record of the plurality of records of the first trademark search report.

24. An online electronic system for reviewing a trademark report, the system and trademark report being accessible to multiple users, the system comprising:

a server computer having a processor coupled to a database containing a first trademark report having a plurality of records, the server computer connected to the Internet and accessible to a plurality of user computers connected to the Internet; and

,

a user interface application supported by the server computer that allows a first user through a first user computer to review the first trademark report and to place a virtual tag on a first record of the plurality of records in the first trademark report.

25. The system of claim 24 wherein the interface application allows the first user to place a second tag on a second record of the plurality of records.

26. The system of claim 25 wherein the interface application allows the first user to place a plurality of additional tags on a respective plurality of additional records in the report.

27. The system of claim 25 wherein the interface application allows the first user to select a first color for the first tag.

28. The system of claim 27 wherein the interface application allows the first user to select a second color for the second tag.

29. The system of claim 24 wherein the interface application allows a second user to review the first trademark report and to place a first virtual tag on the first record of the plurality of records in the first trademark report.

30. The system of claim 29 wherein the interface application allows the second user to place a second tag on a second record in the report.

31. The system of claim 24 wherein the interface application allows the first user to place a first note associated with the first record in the report.

32. A method of electronically reviewing a trademark search report stored in a database comprising:

supporting a website accessible to a plurality of users over a network;

maintaining a plurality of trademark search reports;

receiving input from a first user computer of a first user of the system selecting a first trademark search report containing a plurality of records;

generating an electronic signal for displaying the first trademark search report on the first user computer;

receiving input from the first user computer identifying a first record of the plurality of records in the first trademark report for placement of a first tag; and

,

generating a first tag for displaying in connection with the first record.

33. The method of claim 32 further comprising the step of:

receiving input from the first user computer selecting a color of the first tag.

34. The method of claim 32 further comprising the step of:

receiving input from a second user computer of a second user of the system selecting the first trademark search report;

generating an electronic signal for displaying the first trademark search report on the second user computer;

receiving input from the second user computer identifying the first record of the plurality of records in the first trademark report for placement of a second tag; and

,

generating a second tag for displaying in connection with the first record.

35. The method of claim 32 further comprising the steps of:

receiving input from the first user computer identifying a plurality of additional records from the plurality of records in the first trademark report for placement of a respective plurality of tags;

filtering the plurality of records for records having tags; and

,

creating a chart of the filtered records.