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How to Run a Patent Invalidity Search

This article walks you through running an invalidity search on the Validity page, reviewing the element matrix, and managing your search history.

Written by Jonathan Liu
The Validity page showing the Patent identifier or concept field with a patent number entered, the helper text below it, the Prepare Claim button, and the History button in the top right

Prerequisites

  • Your role must include access to the Validity page. If Validity does not appear under Patents > Intelligence, ask your workspace administrator.

  • You need enough units unless your workspace plan covers the search. The page shows the cost as units per search before you start.

Steps

  1. Open Patents > Intelligence > Validity.

  2. Under Patent identifier or concept, enter a patent number, publication number, or application number. You can also describe a technical concept or paste a claim.

  3. Click Prepare Claim. ArcPrime shows Preparing claim…, then a preview with the Patent title, Assignee, Resolved identifier, and Priority date. For a concept, the page reads Concept claim ready for review.

  4. Optionally enter guidance under Custom instruction (optional), such as a standard to focus on.

  5. Review the Independent claim editor. Edit any element, remove one, or add one so the search targets the claim language you care about.

  6. Click Start Prior Art Search. Click Back if you want to change the identifier instead.

The report page shows Searching prior art… while the search runs. You can leave the page and return through History.

Reading the Report

The Prior Art Search Report opens when the search completes. The Version: line and the version dropdown show which run you are viewing.

  • Prior Art Risk — Low, Medium, or High. The level reflects how many substantive claim elements any reference teaches: all of them is High, most of them is Medium.

  • Element matrix — Each row is a claim element with a Coverage column, followed by one column per reference. References are sorted so the most-covered one comes first. Hover over an assessment icon to read the reasoning.

  • Export — Click the export icon to download the matrix as an Excel workbook.

If no qualifying references dated before the critical date were found, the report says so. That result does not establish that the patent or concept is valid.

A completed Prior Art Search Report on the Validity page showing the Prior Art Risk level, the version dropdown, the Edit Claim & Rerun button, and the element matrix with reference columns

Rerunning With Edited Claims

Click Edit Claim & Rerun at the top of the report. In the window, adjust the Custom instruction (optional) and the claim elements, then click Save and Rerun Prior Art Search. The rerun becomes a new version of the same report.

If a search does not complete, the report shows Retry Search. A report with an active search cannot be deleted until it finishes.

Managing History

Click History to open Validity History. The table lists each Report with its Custom Instruction, number of Versions, Latest Run, and Status (Queued, Running, Completed, or Failed). Click a report to open it, or use the row menu to Rename or Delete it. Click New Search to start another.

Note: ArcPrime identifies candidate references and maps them to claim elements. Review each mapping with counsel before relying on it in a validity opinion or proceeding.

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