e-learning centre of the European Patent Academy

Patents play an important role in the food technology. This advanced lecture series provides participants with insights into the innovations shaping the food industry of the future, and reveal how IP strategy can lead to success.

Medtech refers to the innovative field results from the application of technology to the medical industry and has contributed to the development of products, services and solutions that can save and improve people's lives. In this advanced lecture series a wide range of IP professionals, from inventors and IP specialists to examiners, explain how patents can be used to protect medtech inventions.

Registration

Do you want to learn how to apply the criteria for clarity as well as the methodology for determining unity of invention in line with EPO practice (Guidelines and case law)?

This course provides you with the information you need on these topics, while giving examples of relevant Boards of Appeal decisions related to clarity and unity of invention.

This distance learning course is offered to patent examiners at national IP offices. Participants will learn to assess novelty and inventive step in line with the EPO practice (Guidelines and Case Law). Virtual classroom sessions allow for direct interaction with expert tutors from the European Patent Office.

This self-paced course will give you an overview of how patentability requirements are assessed at the EPO and what objections might be raised during the process. It includes a number of examples of different situations.

In this course you find recordings of two webinars on (1) the business use of patent information and (2) PATSTAT online.

This tutored e-learning course is intended for examiners of national industrial property offices participating in the pilot for the Common Search Tool.

Registration

This course offers CPC field-specific training for examiners in these technical fields:  

H04R, G10L13-17/26 G10L25-99, A61L15-33/18, A45B, B65B, C12N9/C07K14.

This course comprises recorded lectures in which expert examiners present their CPC technical fields.

The lectures are based on the presentations delivered during the CPC field-specific trainings that took place from 2018 onwards. The events were aimed at staff who use the CPC in classification at national offices in both member states and non-member states.

The EPO has designed the European patent administration certification (EPAC) targeting paralegals, patent administrators and formalities officers. Enrolment for the EPAC will run in September.

In this course, potential candidates find informative material to help them prepare for the first edition of the EPAC.

This course includes presentations by EPO lawyers and examiners on recent changes in EPO substantive and procedural matters. Topics addressed are: assessing evidence and plausibility in sufficiency; essential features and their impact on compliance with EPC requirements; latest developments in the Guidelines referred to computer implemented inventions (CII); and procedural aspects at the final stages of the grant procedure towards the best possible protection.

This distance learning course is offered to patent examiners at national IP offices and comprises a series of ten live virtual classroom (VC) sessions on the use of EPOQUE Net. They will help to broaden skills of EPOQUE Net users at national offices. Practical cases will be provided as short assignments prior to each VC. Solution(s) proposed by participants and the tutor(s) will be therein discussed. Tips and tricks on efficient use of the EPO's professional patent search tool will be brought to participants. Features of possible new roll-outs will also be included in the course.

During the VC sessions, participants have the possibility to communicate live with the experts and ask questions. 

This blended e-learning course addresses the preparation for the EQE pre-examination. The on-line training material contains in-depth articles, case studies, quizzes to test your knowledge and previous examinations. Experienced epi tutors support you in a discussion forum as well as in live virtual classroom sessions.

The fee of EUR 350,- covers the participation in the course.

Registration

How much do you know about time limits? Why not test your knowledge of the various topics in our question groups?

The European Patent Office addressed the challenges and opportunities of patenting Artificial Intelligence at a one-day conference on 30 May 2018, which connected people from business, academia, the judiciary, policy making and patent offices. This course room offers access to the recordings of the lectures and panel discussions.

"Search Matters" is an annual event that showcases the EPO's patent search strategies and techniques, focusing on efficient search strategies, search practice in specific technical fields, as well as recent developments.

Examination Matters has become the go-to event for patent attorneys interested in finding out more about the patent granting procedure at the EPO. This year's event focused on several procedural and substantive aspects of examination proceedings, such as parameter features in claims, adaptation of the description, artificial intelligence in additive manufacturing and many other examination related topics.

Moreover, sustainability and digital transformation in the patent world were discussed.

This year’s event was once again organised in close co-operation with the epi.

The conference Examination Matters has become the meeting place for patent attorneys dealing with the EPO in the patent granting procedure. This course room offers access to the recordings of ten public lectures covering some of the most popular topics of the event.

The conference Examination Matters has become the meeting place for patent attorneys dealing with the EPO in the patent granting procedure. This course room offers access to the recordings of ten public lectures covering some of the most popular topics of the event.

This course offers CPC field-specific training for CNIPA examiners for selected sub-classes:

• G06F16
• G01N21
• B01D1-8/17-19

This course offers CPC field-specific training for INPI examiners for selected sub-classes:

This self-paced course provides an overview of the benefits of the intellectual property system, and of patents in particular. You will discover the importance of patents from two perspectives: as a valuable source of information when it comes to researching whether an idea or a product has already been patented, and as a means of protecting inventions.

This course room offers access to videos giving an overview of the new Guidelines (in force as of March 2022) and the updates relevant for examiner procedures.

Applying for a patent can be a complex undertaking, with many different aspects to consider. The two modules that take you through the Guide for Applicants give an insight into the procedure to be followed when examining European applications and patents in accordance with the European Patent Convention. The module on oral proceedings also shows you what happens in such proceedings relating to the examination procedure before the EPO.

This self-paced course offers a basic introduction to the most important legal and procedural aspects of patents and the European patent system.

Pan-European Seal: this on-line course is mandatory for all candidates.

The set of recorded lectures around IP management tackle issues on IP strategy, valuation, evaluation and commercialisation. Experts from different areas provide an insight on those topics with many practical examples.

This series explores ways in which value can be extracted from IP via different models, ranging from securing markets to actively harvesting royalties. It covers the basic IP value-extraction mechanisms and how they can be implemented through licensing and enforcement.

In diesem Kurs finden Sie die Videos einer Vortragsreihe für Formalsachbearbeiter, welche im Februar und März 2017 stattfand. Juristen und erfahrene Formalsachbearbeiter des EPA behandelten Verfahrensfragen, Beispiele und aktuelle Entwicklungen aus speziellen Bereichen der Formalsachbearbeitung.

This course keeps you up to date with some of the most recent changes in patent law.

The rise of innovative solutions in cinema, video games, human-machine interfaces and the food industry has made it all the more important to protect these fields through IP rights.

Watch the recordings of public lectures organised by the EPO and the EUIPO to find out how IP rights can be integrated and combined to support and protect innovation in these rapidly evolving industries.

Following in the footsteps of Search Matters and Examination Matters, Opposition Matters is fast becoming a key event for patent searchers and attorneys alike, offering participants direct access to EPO examiners and lawyers and European patent attorneys with years of opposition experience.

This high-level event was once again organised in close co-operation with the epi.

This self-paced training course gives an in-depth overview on the opposition procedure at the EPO.

Pan-European Seal: this on-line course is mandatory for candidates in international & legal affairs (DG5).

The EPO is conducting oral proceedings by videoconference before examination divisions, and since 4 May 2020 also before opposition divisions.

Get a feel for this way of conducting oral proceedings by watching a recording of mock proceedings featuring a real EPO opposition division and experienced European patent attorneys.

This course is restricted to the participants of the BIT Knowledge eXchange (BKX). For inquiries on access please contact Ms Rogier at BKX@epo.org

The European Patent Convention (EPC) sets out the legal framework for a single, harmonised patent granting procedure for the European patent, which exists in parallel with national patents subject to national prosecution procedures.

Post-grant litigation and enforcement procedures differ quite substantially across the EPC contracting states, as do the courts adjudicating on patent matters. This online course provides a country-by-country overview.

This course room offers access to material covering a range of topics related to computer-implemented inventions, patentability requirements to new technologies, artificial intelligence and specific uses of CII in fields like biotech and healthcare.

This self-paced course explains the criteria for patentability, relating to both the invention and the patent application, according to the EPC.

Pan-European Seal: this on-line course is mandatory for candidates in international & legal affairs (DG5).

This seminar series focuses on patenting in the medical field and includes three complementary seminars, each of which comprises two online sessions: theoretical session (also open to patent attorneys) and practical session for examiners only. Topics covered are diagnostics, clarity in chemical inventions and novelty for pharmaceutical cases. Participants may register for one or more seminars within the series.

Registration

This seminar series focuses on aspects of inventive step and includes three complementary seminars, each of which comprises two online sessions: theoretical session (also open to patent attorneys) and practical session for examiners only. Topics covered are the person skilled in the art, Hurdle 2 for CII, and general and field specific indicators. Participants may register for one or more seminars within the series. 

This online course has been designed for staff of Patlib centres. Here they can expand their knowledge on the European patent system, patent information and IP rights with the help of self-paced courses and interactive VCs organised on these topics.

This online course has been designed for staff of Patlib centres. Here they can expand their knowledge on the European patent system, patent information and IP rights with the help of self-paced courses and interactive VCs organized on these topics.

This online course has been designed for staff of Patlib centres. Here they can expand their knowledge on the European patent system, patent information and IP rights with the help of self-paced courses and interactive VCs organized on these topics.

This course has been designed for patent attorneys and IP professionals with experience in filing PCT applications with the EPO. It offers access to four online sessions which provide an opportunity to find out more about updates on the services provided by the EPO, the latest developments in the PCT system and many practical aspects of the PCT procedure.

The fee of EUR 100,- covers the participation in the course.

Registration

This second course of the CPC series gives you a short overview of the CPC and how it differs from the IPC. It also looks at some practical aspects and useful strategies. 

This course provides you with an overview and practical exercises about the problem-solution approach, which was developed to assess the inventiveness requirement of a European patent application.

This self-paced training course is all about understanding and interpreting the information contained in search reports and written opinions. The emphasis is on practical examples and exercises.

Pan-European Seal: this on-line course is mandatory for candidates in science and technology fields (DG1) and in international & legal affairs (DG5).

This self-paced course offers a practical guide towards systematic patent search, from the process of analysing the patent application to carrying out a sufficiently complete and efficient search and deciding when to stop the search.

Pan-European Seal: this on-line course is mandatory for candidates in science and technology fields (DG1).

This course gives an insight into the various aspects of the taking of evidence in proceedings before the EPO, ranging from the hearing of witnesses to inspecting products. The course provides an overview of the relevant legal background and related case law, supplemented by practical examples. Final mock oral proceedings conclude the course.  

The fee of EUR 320,- covers the participation in the course. 

This self-paced course explains the role of the EPO as appointed international searching authority and international preliminary examining authority in the process of search and examination of patent applications.

Pan-European Seal: this on-line course is mandatory for candidates in international & legal affairs (DG5).