Annual Technical Report 2010 on Industrial Design Information Activities submitted by Republic of Korea (CWS/ATR/ID/2010/KR)
Where URLs are requested below, it is preferred that either URLs which are likely to remain stable over time (three years or more) are provided, or home (main) page URLs are provided with a short explanation of how to access the corresponding information.
The expression "industrial designs" covers industrial designs and models. Offices which issue design patents should report their design patent information activities in this series of Annual Technical Reports.
I. Evolution of registration activities
Changes experienced in terms of application filings and grants (registrations) with respect to the previous year
In 2010, the number of applications for industrial designs was 59,204, a 0.55% decrease over the number from the previous year (when measured on a multiple class basis), while the number of registered industrial designs was 33,697, representing a 5% increase compared to that of the previous year.
URLs of web pages of the Office’s website that provide statistics related to industrial designs
http://www.kipo.go.kr/kpo/user.tdf?a=user.html.HtmlApp&c=3041&catmenu=m02_06_01
II. Matters concerning the generation, reproduction, and distribution of industrial design documents and of secondary sources of industrial design information, i.e., official gazettes
Publishing, including printing, copying techniques and electronic printing
Gazette publication
Since July 2001, PDF gazettes of industrial designs have been published on a daily basis and made available on the website of the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) (http://www.kipo.go.kr) for three months from the date of publication. In addition, DVD-ROM versions, which include the same publications in XML and PDF formats, are distributed to 29 domestic/foreign organizations twice a month. In 2010, 35,114 industrial design applications and registered industrial designs were published on the website and on DVD-ROMs.
Digitization Center (Data Conversion Center)
In January 2001, KIPO began operating a Digitization Center for digitizing paper-based applications and subordinate documents such as amendments, written opinions, objections, and registration and trial related documents at both its Daejeon headquarters and its Seoul branch office. The Center automatically receives applications, performs formality checks and data conversions on them. Delays and errors during the conversion process are avoided through the use of state-of-the-art technologies, such as, Multi OCR, dual key-inputs, automated verification of electronic data, and color-scanning technology for documents attached to applications. In 2010, the Center digitized 73,719 documents, which were a combination of 777 different kinds of paper-based documents, including 3,006 applications for industrial designs.
Data Management Center
Since May 2002, KIPO has been operating the Data Management Center to provide high-quality data services. The Center is responsible for generating data and processing and fixing any errors found in KIPO’s internal database. In 2010, its main activities are as follows:
• Database building: approximately 385,000 domestic/foreign data of industrial designs
• Publication: 35,114 data of industrial design gazettes on the Internet
• Dissemination: approximately 780,000 data of industrial designs to domestic/foreign organizations
Main types of announcements of the Office in the field of industrial design information
KIPO’s Website (http://www.kipo.go.kr)
KIPO’s main announcements for industrial design information are usually made through its website . Visitors of the website can refer to the PDF gazettes mentioned above and subscribers of the mailing service are provided with the gazettes of their interests. The other key information announced at KIPO’s website is as follows:
• Announcements about notifications that couldn’t be delivered. For instance, due to an applicant changing his or her postal address without informing KIPO
• Advance notice on industrial designs expiring due to the non-payment of fees
• Other notices, such as changes in laws or fees
Databases and office automation
With the launch of the KIPOnet system in 1999, Industrial Property Right (IPR) administrative processes have been computerized including the receiving, examining, granting of applications. The system also facilitates the sending of examination results to applicants via email and SMS, publishing of official gazettes on the Internet, and handling most registration and opposition procedures online. Below are some remarkable developments thereafter.
• With the launch of KIPOnet II system (an upgrade to the original KIPOnet system) in 2005, 24/7 e-filing service, a work-at-home examination system, a real-time notification service as well as a public service for notifying applicants of when their applications would be examined, were commenced.
• Through the WEB-PASS launched in November 2007, all types of IPR applications including industrial designs are filed on the web through KIPO’s homepage and in 2008, for the convenience of users, the WEB-PASS was configured to enable applicants to submit documents related to registration, trial or other intermediate processes online. In addition, KIPO started mailing automatic notifications to applicants.
• In 2009, our e-filing portal was advanced so that individual users could more efficiently manage their industrial design affairs. In addition, existing filing editors were integrated to a commercial MS-WORD-based editor with the enhancement of the fee payment system.
• In 2010, towards more customer-oriented services, an animated icon design filing system, a fee mileage system, and a number system, which indicates the turn of examination of each application, were developed.
URLs of web pages of the Office’s website that provide access to online industrial design gazettes and to other sources of industrial design information, including download of bulk industrial design data
http://www.kipo.go.kr/kpo/user.tdf?a=user.html.HtmlApp&c=4015&catmenu=m04_03_04
http://eng.kipris.or.kr/
III. Matters concerning classifying, reclassifying and indexing of industrial design information according to the classification systems applied
Classification and reclassification activities; Classification system used, e.g., International Classification for Industrial Designs (Locarno Classification), other classification (please indicate whether industrial designs are classified by your Office and, if so, which classification is used)
KIPO uses the Korean Article Classification System for Industrial Designs. It is a unique system comprising of 13 categories and 75 main classes. Although KIPO is yet to adopt the Locarno Classification for examination activities, it cross-references the 9th revised Locarno Classification on official gazettes. For indexing containing industrial design information, criteria such as design classification, applicant name, application number/date, publication number/date and registration number/date are used.
IV. Search file establishment and upkeep
File building
KIPO has a database of industrial designs, comprised of bibliographic data and images of industrial design applications dating back to 1960 including gazette data of registered industrial designs onto the Industrial Design Search System. The database also includes foreign data collected from the design gazettes of the JPO, WIPO and OHIM and continued to be updated for improving the quality of examinations. As at the end of 2010, it totaled 32.9 million data comprising 21.2 million data on domestic designs and 11.7 million data on foreign designs.
Storage, including mass storage media
Industrial design data are stored on disks either in Text, TIFF or SGML/XML format.
Documentation from other offices maintained and/or considered part of the available search file
In addition to the searchable data introduced under the file building and updating section above, for easy public access, the official gazettes of the CA, CN, GB, RU, TH and TW are also available at KIPO’s IP Digital Library on microfilm, roll film and tape cartridge.
V. Activities in the field of computerized search systems for industrial designs
In-house systems (online/offline)
Industrial Design Search System
The Industrial Design Search System enables KIPO’s examiners to electronically retrieve domestic and foreign data, including gazettes, design catalogues, and typefaces from Korea, Japan and WIPO. It provides bibliographic data, images, and SGML/XML data. The system features an electronic folding screen system that compares examination results with reference searches on two monitors. Due to its convenient interface, examiners can easily move to the Examination System to prepare a notification and send it to an applicant in real time soon after the examiner finishes retrieving relevant designs etc. The major improvements and additions to the Industrial Design Search System in 2010 are as follows:
• Bolstered web security for user authentication procedures.
• Improved functionality of the monitoring system for reviewing publicly known designs so that both the reviewers and the supervisors can easily find errors and also work in the same environment.
Online Work-at-Home System
Since March 2005, a remote online work-at-home examination system has supported examiners who volunteer to work from home. They are enabled to securely access the KIPOnet system from the comfort of their homes through a VPN, fingerprint identification system, and a government public key infrastructure (GPKI). To prevent the leakage of undisclosed documents, Digital Rights Management (DRM) technology has been incorporated into the system. In an effort to make the work-at-home system more efficient and better managed, a new system was developed and incorporated into the work-at-home system in 2008. The new system facilitates the receiving of applications online from prospective work-at-home examiners, recording of their work hours and the management of the list of undisclosed documents. As at the end of 2010, four design examiners were benefiting from this system.
Administrative management systems (e.g., register, legal status, statistics and administrative support)
KIPOnet has many sub-systems that support managing data produced during the various phases of the IPR administrative processes, such as, dealing with matters that originate in the transfer of data from one phase to another and streamlining search-related administration. Below are some of those sub-systems.
General Information Management Subsystem
The General Information Management Subsystem generates a variety of statistical and policy data on industrial designs as well as trademarks, patents and utility models by using a variety of information retained by KIPO’s databases. The system efficiently manages large volumes of data and provides end-users with various functions and tools.
Electronic Approval and Routing Subsystem
The Electronic Approval and Routing Subsystem enables electronic approval of IPR and general administration processes. The system comprises of two major parts: an approval system for IPR examinations, introduced with the KIPOnet system in 1999; and an approval system for general administration, launched in June 2000. The approval system for general administration was upgraded in January 2004 and replaced with the Onnara System in January 2007. The Electronic Approval and Routing Subsystem is used for the following:
• Electronic approval: preparation, approval, dispatch, and receipt of electronic documents, management of a document box, and circulation of documents.
• Electronic mail: preparation, transmission, receipt, and management of emails.
• Electronic bulletin board: for the submission of posts and reviews
• Management and preservation of records.
The system has a pop-up window feature, which shows messages on the approval status of documents and could be used for managing individual schedules. The electronic approval system was used for 99.66% of all the documents approved in 2010.
Knowledge Oasis
For the efficient management of a variety of knowledge and information created by KIPO staff, the Knowledge Management System was launched in October 2001 and was renamed Knowledge Oasis (KOASIS) in 2006. KOASIS supports KIPO staff members to share knowledge through the bulletin board of the KOASIS website. Furthermore, it offers a keyword search function for gleaning details of approved documents and allows them to utilize various management tools, such as knowledge maps, knowledge warehouses, personalized portals, and cyber knowledge communities. In addition, the system enables KIPO to share ideas and knowledge with 18 external R&D institutes including the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute through an online Q&A communication corner. Some high quality information posted on KOASIS is available to the public through KIPO’s homepage and private search portals like Naver. Since November 2007, it has also been linked to the Government’s Knowledge Management System for more extended information sharing between government agencies. In 2008, a ‘WIKI Corner’ and a multi-dimensional knowledge map were built for more efficient use of KOASIS and in 2010, an integrated search function of the accumulated knowledge and a trade function of knowledge mileage were added to KOASIS.
Equipment used (hardware, including the types of terminal and network used, and software), data carriers used
Hardware
As at the end of 2010, KIPOnet had 42 UNIX Enterprise servers, 73 NT servers, and 22 Linux servers. For higher availability, individual servers are clustered for the e-filing system, IPR administration system, and search system and particularly between the Homepage Server and the Portal Server. In case of system failures, the cluster paired systems temporarily substitute for each other. The combined storage capacity of the 22 servers is 502 terabytes including 13 SANs. The peripherals consist of 6 backup devices, 2 jukeboxes and 383 sets of network equipment. The improvements made in terms of hardware performance in 2010 are as follows:
• Increase of IT resources for administration systems and search systems: 7 servers, 24.8 TB Storage, 48GB Memory
• Replacement of old legacy equipment: 23 servers and 211.8TB Storage
• Follow-up measurement after the checkup for IT equipment
• Structural evaluation of administration systems to prevent their disorder
• Inspection of the availability of administration systems/search systems/homepage systems through a dualized test
• Installation of a security patch for the administration systems to improve the security
Network
Our efforts to advance the network for KIPOnet and enhance related security in 2010 are as follows:
• Improvement of transmission speed enough to be perceptible by users
• Configuration of SLB (server load balancer) for Korean search engine to improve the performance
• Replacement of old (outdated) network equipment: L2 Switch (27 sets), L3 Switch (4 sets) and L4 Switch (10 sets)
• Network connection with the R&D IP Center
• Consultation on the 10Gbps migration for KIPOnet
• Regular dual test for more stable operation of network equipment including communication lines
Software
For databases, performance tests and recovery practice tests are regularly conducted with support from Oracle. In addition, KIPO constantly introduces and upgrades system software such as DBMS, web servers and middleware to improve the KIPOnet system’s performance and functionality. As at the end of 2010, about 207 commercial software applications were in use. The software applications can be grouped into three major groups as follows:
• 189 perpetual licensed software including DBMS and web servers
• 5 subscription licensed software including Vi Robot and other security products
• 13 packaged software for KOASIS, web mail, messenger, performance management system, electronic approval system, career development management system, Call Center, DW, Hompage portal, ITA/EA, DQM, open-end statistics portal, and e-filing portal
VI. Administration of industrial design information products and services available to the public (relating to facilities, e.g., for lodging applications, registering designs, assisting clients with search procedures, obtaining official publications and registry extracts)
Planning, administration, automation, security
The Information Policy Bureau organizes comprehensive services for the public by managing the IP Digital Library and the e-Filing Portal System, while other departments support customers according to their duties and responsibilities.
e-Filing Portal System
Since 2001, for the convenience of applicants, KIPO has served the public through the e-Filing Portal System implemented at KIPO's website. This portal helps applicants file all kinds of industrial property applications online with the applicant code and digital signature authorized by KIPO via the Internet. In addition, they can change their personal information on the website, pay their fees via Internet banking, and are informed of the legal status of their applications. They are also informed in advance of when their applications will be examined by e-mail and/or SMS. Furthermore, they can request and receive certificates, download electronic dossiers, such as priority certificates via the Internet, and check the status of their requests. Moreover, individual applicants can check the status of their applications through a HTML-based service titled How is my application going?, while enterprises, universities, institutes and IP law firms can do the same through a SOAP-based web service. This e-Filing Portal System is linked to the WEB-PASS, which is a web-based e-filing system used for receiving all kinds of IPR applications. In 2008, the WEB-PASS service was extended to include intermediate, registration and trial documents. Furthermore, in 2010, twelve kinds of mobile applications were introduced into this System in accordance with the rapid proliferation of smart phone users.
IP Digital Library
The IP Digital Library located at KIPO's headquarters supports its customers by enabling them to search for industrial design information in a variety of formats including online, microfilm, and paper, as well as of journals and magazines the Library has. They could also order copies of published applications for industrial designs as filed.
Customer Service Center
To integrate scattered counseling resources and promptly provide technical advice, the Customer Service Center was established in March 2002. Its main services are on the following issues:
• Procedural and technical advice on (electronic) filing, examination, registration, trial, search and use of design information
• Use of the Expert System (e-filing support system) and remote consultation
• Consultation through mobile Web/App or Twitter
• Outreach service: informing applicants in advance that their applications would be extinguished and suggests reasonable solutions
Security
In terms of security, the digital signature of electronic documents is used based on a public key infrastructure for encryption and decoding. 24/7 Enterprise Security Management has been introduced for security equipments and servers. Also, a key logger security and a hacking-diagnostic system are used for protecting PCs against other risks, such as spy wares; and a single sign-on system has been implemented for tighter security in accordance with the standardized Directory Access Protocol. Diverse security tools have been used to block illegal access to undisclosed database and unauthorized access to the main database.
Particularly, in 2010, SBC (Server Based Computing) was introduced for enhancing the security of design information. Against external attack threats, network based security systems such as UTM, Firewall, IPS, and VPN have been operated. The extended application of SecureOS is also useful for authorization control to servers. KIPOnet won the ISO 27001 certification in 2006 in recognition of its highly secure web services for applicants, SecureOS for servers, individual information protection marks, and secure site mark. Accordingly, among government departments, KIPO has consecutively won the top spot in security assessment (from 2007 to 2010) and in personal information protection (from 2008 to 2010).
Collection management, preservation
IP Library
The IP Digital Library archives industrial design documents, such as, bibliographic data, abstracts and full texts collected from five countries and one international organization in a variety of media such as, paper, microform, and CD-ROM/DVD-ROM. The library also possesses 8,218 volumes of journals, four kinds of catalogues including Elegance and Spiegel.
Information services available to the public (including computerized services and search files contained in libraries remote from your Office and industrial design information posted by your Office on the World Wide Web)
Korea Industrial Property Rights Information Service (KIPRIS)
Since January 2001, domestic industrial design information has been made available free-of-charge through KIPRIS at http://www.kipris.or.kr/kor/main/main.jsp: bibliographic data (in text format from 1948), images (in JPG format from 1948), and gazette data (in TIFF format from 1964 to 1997 and in PDF/XML from 1998 onwards). This service also covers up-to-date information on the legal status of applications for industrial designs and statistical information. In terms of its functions, the service offers a view function for hexagonal drawings, a Korean to English (and English to Korean) translation service, sorting function for search results, and popular search queries.
URLs of web pages of the Office's website for electronic filing of industrial design applications
http://www.patent.go.kr
URLs of web pages of the Office’s website that provide information on business procedures such as: filing, publication, examination and registration procedures related to industrial designs; opposition and appeal procedures related to industrial designs; etc.
http://www.kipo.go.kr/kpo/user.tdf?a=user.html.HtmlApp&c=10004&catmenu=m04_01_06
http://www.kipo.go.kr/en/
URLs of web pages of the Office’s website that provide a description of information products and services offered by the Office (e.g., industrial design search service(s) and industrial design databases), as well as information on how to access and utilize them
http://www.kipris.or.kr/kor/main/main.jsp
VII. Matters concerning mutual exchange of industrial design documentation and information
International or regional cooperation in the exchange of industrial design information, e.g., in the form of official gazettes
KIPO distributes its official gazettes on industrial designs via DVDs to 19 Industrial Property Offices (IPOs) including the AU, CA, DE, FR, IT, JP, PH, SE, SG, and US. And KIPO receive official gazettes on CDs from IPOs, such as, the JP, RO, RU, and WIPO.
VIII. Matters concerning education and training, including technical assistance to developing countries (please indicate URLs of web pages of the Office’s website wherever appropriate)
Promotional activities (seminars, exhibitions, visits, advertising, etc.)
2010 Trademark-Design Exhibition (December 2010)
Since 2006, KIPO has been holding an annual trademark and design exhibition for raising public awareness of the importance of trademarks and designs as intellectual property rights. The event for 2010 focused on successful management strategies for individual trademarks and designs to strengthen the competitiveness of interested enterprises. As similar to that of last year’s, the exhibition was displayed by themes such as the Best Brand Contest Award, New trends in trademarks and designs, Original/Counterfeit Experience, Hit Brand, Major Brand/Design Rights Conflict Cases, Trademark and Design Counselor, and the Brand and Design Seminar.
Training courses for national and foreign participants
International Intellectual Property Training Institute
In 1987, the International Intellectual Property Training Institute (IIPTI) was established in Seoul as an affiliate of KIPO. It initially offered 11 IPR training courses. In February 1991, it moved to the Daedeok Science Valley in Daejeon with the support of WIPO and the United Nations Development Programme. In 2010, the IIPTI conducted 71 different courses and have always endeavored to cultivate IP professionals, mostly examiners and trial examiners of KIPO, new patent attorneys, IP managers of enterprises, and researchers at universities and research institutes. The IIPTI also facilitates international seminars and training courses in conjunction with WIPO and the Korea International Cooperation Agency. Customized training courses have been conducted at the request of other countries, such as Malaysia and Vietnam.
IX.Other general information related to the Office that is available on the Internet -- URLs of web pages of the Office’s website that:
provide information on legislation related to industrial designs
http://www.kipo.go.kr/kpo/user.tdf?a=user.html.HtmlApp&c=3031&catmenu=m02_02_01
http://www.kipo.go.kr/en/
contain the Annual Report of the Office
http://www.kipo.go.kr/kpo/user.tdf?a=user.html.HtmlApp&c=3072&catmenu=m02_04_04
http://www.kipo.go.kr/en/
contain industrial design-related news regarding the Office
http://www.kipo.go.kr/kpo/user.tdf?a=user.news.trot.BoardApp&c=1001&board_id=trot&catmenu=m02_01_01