What’s New on STN?
Update yourself on the latest from STN. You will learn about

• Updates to STN interfaces
• New features and functionality
• New fields and new STN database reloads

Current-Awareness Searches in Patent Databases on STN
A current-awareness alert (SDI) is a useful tool for the surveillance of specific research topics, competitors, inventors, patents, and legal status information.  In this session, we will review the searching skills needed to identify relevant information in a consistent and periodic manner and how to receive this information in the most efficient and useful format.

We will also discuss how certain SDI features and options available in CAplus, Derwent World Patents Index (DWPI), and DWPI First View can be used to retrieve comprehensive results, including:

• Automatic and manual alerts
• Multifile alerts and package alerts
• Choosing the right update code
• Multifile patent family and legal status alerts

Understanding the First-Level and Value-Added Patent Databases on STN
During the last decade, first-level full-text and bibliographic patent databases have become readily available for online searching.  Patent information professionals are often challenged to prove that first-level patent data are not sufficient for a thorough business-critical patent search.  In this session, we will:

Use a case study to explore first-level and value-added patent databases on STN, including Derwent World Patents Index (DWPI), CAplus, MARPAT, INPAFAMDB, USPATFULL, and others

Provide tips and advice on how to conduct all-inclusive searches using multiple databases on STN

Increasing Your Confidence in STN Patent Search Results
Improve confidence in your patent search results by reviewing STN commands and tools.  Tips will include:

• Using appropriate truncation and proximity in bibliographic and full-text patent databases
• Utilizing online thesauri to increase relevant retrieval
• Extending searches effectively across other databases
• Identifying terminology changes across databases
• Extracting terms for duplicate identification and analysis

Patent Citation Analysis on STN
Patent citation analysis is a valuable technique when extending prior art searches to include information on validity, competitive intelligence, and patent infringement.  However, citation searching may also lead to irrelevant materials.  In this session, we will discuss effective approaches to patent citation analysis in patent citation databases on STN, including the new INPAFAMDB and the recently reloaded Patents Citation Index (PCI).