Variable Index Structure for Patent Fee Payment Automation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current systems lack a user-friendly and automated method for timely payment of maintenance fees for industrial property rights, requiring close coordination with official databases and typically relying on intellectual property department representatives, which is inefficient and inaccessible to inexperienced users.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method using a variable index structure to query register data from patent and trademark offices, providing users with payment options and enabling 1-click digital consent for timely fee payments, including calculation of deadlines and grace periods, and automatic payment processing through a payment service provider.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a simple payment system like online shopping is implemented for maintenance fees, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability of deadline monitoring deteriorates due to lack of coordination with official databases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary system that connects users to official patent and trademark databases. This intermediary automatically queries official databases for maintenance fee deadlines, retrieves register data using variable index structures, and coordinates payments between users and official authorities, thereby maintaining both ease of operation and reliability of deadline monitoring
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms by continuously monitoring official databases for deadline information, notifying users of upcoming maintenance fee due dates, and confirming payment status. This feedback loop ensures users receive timely information while the system maintains accurate tracking of deadlines through automated database queries
2Reliability
If professional representatives handle maintenance fee payments, then reliability of payment is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to requirement of expert advice
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables users to independently manage and pay maintenance fees through an automated system. Users can query their own maintenance fee status, view deadlines, and complete payments without requiring professional representatives. The system provides all necessary information and functionality for users to self-manage their intellectual property maintenance obligations
Solution Approach 2:
The automated system acts as an intermediary that guides users through the payment process, providing clear information about deadlines and requirements. This intermediary function replaces the need for human professional representatives while maintaining payment accuracy through automated database queries and structured payment workflows
3Device complexity
If database structures are standardized across all patent and trademark offices, then device complexity is reduced, but adaptability deteriorates due to different organizational structures worldwide
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a dynamic variable index structure that automatically adapts to different database organizations across various patent and trademark offices. The system can query and interpret register data from different official databases using adaptable index structures, allowing the same system to work with diverse database formats without requiring standardization of the underlying database structures
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes its query parameters and index structures based on the specific database being accessed. By dynamically adjusting the variable index structure according to the target database's organization, the system maintains compatibility with different database structures worldwide while keeping its own internal complexity manageable
4Productivity
If automated payment processing is implemented, then productivity is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to technical complexity for inexperienced users
Solution Approach 1:
The system serves as an intermediary that handles all technical complexity of automated payment processing in the background. It automatically queries official databases, calculates deadlines, manages payment transactions, and communicates with payment service providers. Users interact only with simplified interfaces that present clear information and simple actions, making the complex automated process accessible to inexperienced users
Data Source
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AI summary
A computer-implemented method for the timely payment of maintenance fees for industrial property rights for a user, in which register data for at least one industrial property right is queried from at least one official database using a variable index structure and information concerning the maintenance of the at least one industrial property right is extracted from this database, as well as a system and a computer program product for executing the steps of the method.