Journal of Intellectual Property Rights Vol 21, January 2016, pp 42-56 Patent Database: Their Importance in Prior Art Documentation and Patent Search Vikram Singh †1 , Kajal Chakraborty 2 and Lavina Vincent 2 1 Intellectual Property and Technology Management Unit, ICAR, New Delhi -110 012, India 2 Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Kochi – 682 018, India Received 20 June 2015; accepted 21 December 2015 In knowledge based economies the nation’s economic status depends on the production, distribution and use of knowledge and information. The recent trend in the economic growth of nations is mainly determined by innovative technological know- how of the individuals. Intellectual property has gained attention in this era of knowledge. The vast amount of data generated through the application of intellectual assets is managed with the help of various in- silico tools. In recent days, the patent databases have gained importance due to the detailed information available on the granted patent and other details, such as, legal status of the patent applications, which are not available through any other literature search. This review paper attempts to describe different types of patent databases available, their unique features, strengths, weakness and their major purpose. This paper details the information on how to access a patent database, the relevance of patent information obtained from these databases in prior art search, patent analysis, and the drawbacks present in these patent databases. Keywords: Patent database, prior art search, patent information, patent analysis The beginning of 21 st Century saw the rise of global economy where knowledge was given more importance. The term "knowledge" signifies the application of human creativity and innovation for the upliftment of the economy of the Nation. In this competitive world where creativity and innovations are necessary, it is also important to protect one’s own ideas, products and designs from being copied or utilized without proper authorization. Intellectual property rights (IPR) play a major role in the protection of knowledge, creativity and skill, thereby rewarding the innovation and value creation. The global IP regime maintains a balance between the welfares of the creator of IP, entrepreneurs and the society. Patents are described as a form of IP, which give exclusive rights to an inventor for a specific period of time, generally not exceeding 20 years in exchange for detailed public disclosure of the invention. The disclosure of patents has long been an important part of the intellectual property regime. It gives the public access to information regarding new technologies in order to stimulate innovation and contribute to the economic growth. 1 Patent documents are a rich source of technical, legal and business information and an important resource for researchers and inventors, entrepreneurs, commercial enterprises and patent professionals. 2 It also provides information that has not been published in scientific journals or conference proceedings. About 80 per cent of patent information have known not been published elsewhere. 3,4 Searching patent documents is a part of prior art search. After filing a patent application and formal examination, the patent office carries out a search of the prior art. A prior art search is to search all relevant technological information publicly known at the time of filing of the patent application or when applicable, at the time of the priority filing. This involves collection and compilation of information disclosed to the public about an invention before a given date supported by different National and International Patent Office’s, namely, Indian Patent Office (IPO), Chinese Patent office (SIPO), Japanese Patent Office (JPO), European Patent Office (EPO), Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO), United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) etc. The non-patent literature, such as, newspapers, magazines, books, manuals, conference proceedings, scientific papers, product literature and other public documents are important source of information for prior art search. According to the WIPO, prior art search is done by the patent office after formal examination of the patent. But it is appropriate on the part of the inventor to carry out the prior art search before commencing the work, or before filing patent application. The prior ______________________ † Corresponding author: Email: kmnmvs@gmail.com