Reference
Patent Acronyms, Decoded
Patent law runs on abbreviations. Here is every acronym you will encounter — what it stands for, and what it actually means — grouped so you can find it fast.
Application types
PPA
Provisional Patent Application
A placeholder filing that establishes a priority date and gives 12 months of "patent pending" status. Never examined; expires if you do not file a non-provisional within 12 months.
NPA
Non-Provisional Application
The "real" utility patent application that the USPTO actually examines. Requires claims, and can mature into an issued patent.
CON
Continuation
A new application with the same specification as a parent but different claims. Must be filed while the parent is pending; inherits the parent's priority date.
CIP
Continuation-in-Part
Like a continuation but adds new matter. Claims based on the new matter only get the CIP's later filing date; claims based on original matter keep the parent's date.
DIV
Divisional
An application filed to pursue an invention that was "restricted out" of the parent when the examiner found it claimed multiple distinct inventions.
PCT
Patent Cooperation Treaty
An international filing system: one application preserves your rights in 150+ countries for up to 30 months, after which you enter each country's national phase.
USPTO & examination
USPTO
United States Patent and Trademark Office
The federal agency that examines and grants US patents and registers trademarks.
MPEP
Manual of Patent Examining Procedure
The examiner's rulebook. The comprehensive guide examiners follow when reviewing applications — and a key reference for practitioners.
OA
Office Action
An official letter from the examiner explaining why claims are rejected or objected to. Most applications get at least one.
IDS
Information Disclosure Statement
The document through which an applicant discloses known prior art to the USPTO, satisfying the duty of candor.
RCE
Request for Continued Examination
A paid request that reopens prosecution after a final rejection, returning the application to a non-final posture for another round.
ADS
Application Data Sheet
A form listing bibliographic data: inventors, priority claims, applicant info. Controls how the USPTO records key application details.
PTA
Patent Term Adjustment
Extra days added to a patent's term to compensate for USPTO delays during prosecution. Shown on the patent's cover page.
PTE
Patent Term Extension
Up to 5 extra years added to a patent term to compensate for FDA regulatory review delays on drugs and medical devices.
Post-grant & disputes
PTAB
Patent Trial and Appeal Board
The administrative tribunal inside the USPTO that hears appeals of examiner rejections and conducts post-grant validity challenges (IPR, PGR).
IPR
Inter Partes Review
A PTAB proceeding to challenge an issued patent's validity based on prior-art patents and printed publications. Much cheaper than litigation.
PGR
Post-Grant Review
A broader PTAB challenge available within 9 months of grant, allowing nearly any ground of invalidity (not just prior-art documents).
ODP
Obviousness-type Double Patenting
A rejection or invalidity ground preventing an inventor from getting two patents on obvious variations of the same invention, extending the monopoly.
DJ
Declaratory Judgment
A lawsuit an accused infringer can file to ask a court to declare a patent invalid or not infringed — flipping the litigation initiative.
DOE
Doctrine of Equivalents
A rule letting a patent cover things not literally claimed but that perform substantially the same function in the same way to reach the same result.
Players & licensing
NPE
Non-Practicing Entity
A patent owner that does not make products — it licenses or asserts patents. Includes universities and research labs, not just "trolls."
PAE
Patent Assertion Entity
A specific kind of NPE whose business is acquiring patents to assert them for licensing revenue or settlements. The pejorative term is "patent troll."
SEP
Standard-Essential Patent
A patent that must be infringed to comply with a technical standard (Wi-Fi, 5G, H.264). Typically licensed on FRAND terms.
FRAND
Fair, Reasonable, and Non-Discriminatory
The licensing commitment SEP holders make to standards bodies: they must license to anyone on fair, reasonable, non-discriminatory terms.
FTO
Freedom to Operate
An analysis confirming that making or selling a product does not infringe anyone else's in-force patents. Done before launch.
NDA
Non-Disclosure Agreement
A confidentiality contract. Critical before disclosing an unfiled invention, since public disclosure can destroy patent rights abroad.
International bodies
EPO
European Patent Office
Grants European patents that can be validated in member states. A primary route to protection across Europe.
WIPO
World Intellectual Property Organization
The UN agency that administers the PCT and global IP treaties. Runs PATENTSCOPE, the international patent search database.
JPO
Japan Patent Office
Japan's national patent office — one of the "IP5" largest patent offices worldwide.
CNIPA
China National Intellectual Property Administration
China's patent office (formerly SIPO). Now the world's largest by application volume.
Classification & concepts
CPC
Cooperative Patent Classification
The joint EPO/USPTO classification system that sorts patents into technical categories. The modern way to search by subject matter.
IPC
International Patent Classification
The WIPO-administered global classification system. Broader than CPC, used worldwide for organizing patent documents.
PHOSITA
Person Having Ordinary Skill In The Art
The legal yardstick for obviousness and enablement: a hypothetical, ordinarily-skilled practitioner in the relevant field. Claims are judged through this person's eyes.
POSITA
Person Of Ordinary Skill In The Art
Same concept as PHOSITA — the hypothetical skilled person used to assess non-obviousness (Section 103) and whether a disclosure is enabling (Section 112).