Report:TotalPatent/Data Coverage/Non Patent Coverage/Introduction

Non-Patent Coverage: Introduction

Currently, TotalPatent does not contain any non-patent searchable files. However, there are three instances where non-patent data content can enhance searching. First, many non-patent citations are linked to their abstract on an Elseiver-owned literature search tool, Scopus.^[1] Second, the system links to US court dockets available through the LexisNexis CourtLink service.^[2] Finally, the system hosts a corporate tree data tool that can be helpful to users wishing to investigate the patent holdings of a known company and its subsidiaries.

The data used in this corporate tree tool is produced by LexisNexis’s own corporate database, The Directory of Corporate Affiliations™ (DCA), which is also marketed as a standalone tool, Corporate Affiliations.com.^[3] Detailed information about the content of this database can be found at the CorporateAffiliations.com website. The database is updated daily,^[4] and editorial policy calls for every corporate record to be reviewed for accuracy at least once per year.

The search interface for this corporate tree data is provided in a sidemenu beside the Guided, Advanced, and Semantic Search Forms.

Editor's Note:

The inclusion of DCA corporate data, the links to CourtLink docket records, and the link between TotalPatent and Scopus non-patent abstracts are three examples of the benefit TotalPatent receives as a product offering from parent company Reed Elsevier. Competitor Thomson Reuters offers similar benefits: its Thomson Innovation patent search tool offers corporate tree data from subsidiary company 1790 Analytics, and non-patent literature records are available on the platform through Web of Science, Current Contents Connect, ISI Proceedings, and Inspec. In many ways, there are parallels between TotalPatent and Thomson Innovation, and one can be seen here in the links to analogous information products offered by the two parent companies.