International, regional and corporate classification - friend and foe of the user - Mr. Arndt Mecke

Mr. Arndt Mecke, Patent Analyst, PDG - Siemens AG, Munich, Germany

Without any doubt patent classification systems are a unique tool in the toolbox of patent analysts, enabling him/her to search for concepts without the need of using ambiguous and sometimes unfamiliar words. But the prerequisite for replacing words with classification symbols is a consistent, reliable and well documented assignment of those symbols by the issuing bodies. More classification systems at hand mean more options, but also more responsibility in choosing or combining them. A wrong selection may have grave/severe consequences not only for the result of the search or analysis but also for the company in general. Often the outlook that computers are becoming more capable of analyzing and translating texts is said to have an impact on the necessity of classification systems. But for the time being classification systems are still a key tool when dealing with the overwhelming number of patent publications in various languages.

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