`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Case: IPR2018-01592
`Patent No.: 9,320,122
`
`EXHIBIT 1026
`
`PRIME WIRE & CABLE, INC.
`
` Petitioner,
`
`v.
`
`CANTIGNY LIGHTING
`CONTROL, LLC.
`
` Patent owner
`
`JASCO PRODUCTS, INC.
`
` Licensee
`
`IN THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
`
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`UNITED STATES
`PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`
`United States Patent and Trademark Office
`
`
`Performance
`and
`Accountability
`Report 20
` 16FISCALYEAR
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`FINANCIAL AND RELATED HIGHLIGHTS
`
`(Dollars In Thousands)
`
`% Change
`2016 over 2015
`
`For the year ended
`September 30, 2016
`
`For the year ended
`September 30, 2015
`
`Fund Balance with Treasury
`Property, Plant, and Equipment, Net
`Other Assets
` Total Assets
`
`Deferred Revenue
`Accounts Payable
`Accrued Payroll, Benefits, and Leave
`Other Liabilities
` Total Liabilities
`Net Position
`Total Liabilities and Net Position
`
`Total Earned Revenue
`Total Program Cost
`Net Income from Operations
`
`Budgetary Resources Available for Spending
`Net Outlays
`
`Federal Personnel
`On-Time Payments to Vendors
`
`(5.5%)
`24.2%
`30.5%
` (1.0%)
`
`(6.5%)
`(19.6%)
`10.8%
`(6.5%)
`(5.0%)
`3.3%
`(1.0%)
`
`1.9%
`3.5%
`(77.5%)
`
`(2.0%)
`428.3%
`
` 0.5%
` 2.1%
`PERFORMANCE HIGHLIGHTS
`FY 2016 Target
`14.8
`25.4
`2.5–3.5
`12.0
`95.5%
`97.0%
`40.0%
`82.0%
`
`$ 2,358,227
`504,025
` 31,212
`$ 2,893,464
`
`$ 960,398
`93,461
`241,147
` 150,936
`$ 1,445,942
` 1,447,522
`$ 2,893,464
`
`$ 3,133,370
` (3,119,584)
`$    13,786
`
`$  3,607,845
`$ 122,253
`
`12,725
` 99%
`
`FY 2016 Actual
`16.2
`25.3
`3.1
` 9.8
` 97.1%
` 97.8%
` 45.4%
` 84.8%
`
`Performance Measures
`Patent Average First Action Pendency (months)
`Patent Average Total Pendency (months)
`Trademark Average First Action Pendency (months)
`Trademark Average Total Pendency (months)
`Trademark First Action Compliance Rate
`Trademark Final Compliance Rate
`Exceptional Office Action
`Trademark Applications Processed Electronically
`Percentage of prioritized countries for which country teams have
`made progress on at least 75% of action steps in the country-specific
`action plans along the following dimensions:
`•
`Institutional improvements of intellectual property (IP)
`office administration for advancing IP rights,
`Institutional improvements of IP enforcement entities,
`Improvements in IP laws and regulations, and
`Establishment of government-to-government cooperative
`mechanisms.
`Number of Foreign Government Officials Trained on Best
`Practices to Protect and Enforce IP
`* The performance result of a given measure is either met (100% or greater of target), slightly below (95–99% of the target), or not met (below 95% of target).
`
`•
`•
`•
`
`75%
`
`100%
`
`5,000
`
`4,975
`
`$ 2,494,267
`405,740
` 23,916
`$ 2,923,923
`
`$ 1,027,460
`116,211
`217,666
` 161,429
`$ 1,522,766
` 1,401,157
`$  2,923,923
`
`$ 3,074,001
` (3,012,833)
`$ 61,168
`
`$ 3,680,438
`$   23,140
`
`12,667
`97%
`
`Performance Results*
`Not Met
`Met
`Met
`Met
`Met
`Met
`Met
`Met
`
`Met
`
`Slightly Below
`
`

`

`TABLE OF CONTENTS
`
`MESSAGE
`From the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and
`Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office
`
`INTRODUCTION
`About This Report
`Your Guide to Using This Report
`
`MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
`Mission and Organization of the USPTO
`Our Organization
`Patent Organization
`Trademark Organization
`Policy and International Affairs
`Our People
`Regional Office Updates
`Open Data and Big Data
`Significant Case Law Developments
`Recent Decisions
`Performance Highlights
`Introduction to Performance
`Strategic Performance Framework
`Summary of Strategic Goal Results
`Management Challenges and What’s Ahead
`Sustainable Funding
`Enhanced Patent Quality Initiative
`Administering AIA Patent Dispute Resolution Provisions
`Reliance on Information Technology
`Legal Challenges
`Systems and Controls
`Management Assurances
`Other Compliance with Laws and Regulations
`Other Systems and Control Considerations
`Financial Discussion and Analysis
`Financial Highlights
`
`PERFORMANCE INFORMATION
`Introduction to the USPTO’s Performance Goals and Results
`Performance Audits and Evaluations
`Performance Data Verification and Validation
`Commissioners’ Performance for FY 2016
`
`1
`
`9
`10
`11
`
`12
`13
`13
`14
`15
`15
`15
`17
`18
`20
`20
`22
`22
`22
`25
`27
`27
`27
`28
`28
`28
`30
`30
`31
`33
`34
`34
`
`52
`53
`54
`56
`57
`
`i
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`www.uspto.gov
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`

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`Patents: Strategic Goal I
`Strategic Goal I: Optimize Patent Quality and Timeliness
`Trademarks: Strategic Goal II
`Strategic Goal II: Optimize Trademark Quality and Timeliness
`Intellectual Property: Strategic Goal III
`Strategic Goal III: Provide Domestic and Global Leadership to Improve
` Intellectual Property Policy, Protection, and Enforcement Worldwide
`Management Goal
`Management Goal: Achieve Organizational Excellence
`
`FINANCIAL SECTION
`Message
`From the Chief Financial Officer
`Principal Financial Statements and Related Notes
`Required Supplementary Information
`Independent Auditors' Report
`
`OTHER INFORMATION
`Combined Schedule of Spending
`Inspector General’s Top Management Challenges Facing the USPTO
`Summary of Financial Statement Audit & Management Assurances
`Improper Payments Information Act (IPIA) of 2002, as Amended
`Freeze the Footprint
`Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990
`(formerly known as the Civil Monetary Penalties Act)
`FY 2016 Other Administrative Updates
`The Nature of the Training Provided to USPTO Examiners
`FY 2016 USPTO Workload Tables
`
`GLOSSARY OF ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS
`
`INDEX OF URLs
`
`58
`60
`73
`75
`84
`
`86
`97
`98
`
`117
`118
`
`120
`152
`153
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`160
`161
`162
`164
`165
`168
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`169
`170
`172
`177
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`207
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`211
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`II
`
`PERFORMANCE AND ACCOUNTABILITY REPORT
`
`

`

`MESSAGE
`MESSAGE
`
`

`

`Michelle K. Lee
`
`MESSAGE FROM THE UNDER SECRETARY OF COMMERCE FOR INTELLECTUAL
`PROPERTY AND DIRECTOR OF THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`
`This past fiscal year at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) provided
`several unique opportunities to reflect on the history and impact of our intellectual property
`(IP) system, including two recent celebrations: one marking the 70th anniversary of the
`Lanham Act and the other marking the 5th anniversary of the America Invents Act (AIA).
`
`President Truman signed the Lanham Act into law on July 6, 1946, which served as a
`visionary, far-reaching piece of legislation that established the modern trademark system
`as we know it. President Truman also signed into law the Patent Act of 1952, one of the
`most ambitious overhauls to our nation’s patent system until President Barack Obama
`signed the AIA on September 16, 2011.
`
`The AIA went considerably further than did the previous patent acts. Among other
`major changes, it harmonized U.S. patent law with the rest of the world’s by switching
`to a first-inventor-to-file regime; created a new Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) with
`new post-grant proceedings, providing quicker and less expensive alternatives to district
`court litigation; and granted the USPTO fee-setting authority. It also called on the USPTO,
`for the first time in the agency’s history, to establish regional offices in every continental
`time zone and pro bono patent assistance in every state.
`
`Through tremendous work by our talented employees and our dedicated partners in the
`private and public sectors, we succeeded in meeting or exceeding every one of the AIA’s
`goals—including the creation of four new regional offices with full-time directors and
`staff—in the heart of our nation’s most innovative ecosystems. These offices in Dallas,
`Denver, Detroit, and the Silicon Valley powerfully expand our ability to educate regional
`innovators about intellectual property. They also help inventors and businesses of all sizes
`directly access a wider range of services offered by the USPTO—including PTAB trials and
`public patent quality events like those we have planned for November and December of
`the new fiscal year. Having had the opportunity to stand up and help define the vision of
`these offices, I am very proud of their work and the ways they will benefit our IP system for
`generations to come. I've always said that one day when my daughter is old enough, I can
`point to the Silicon Valley Regional Office in our hometown and say, "Your mom had a
`hand in opening that office."
`
`These noteworthy accomplishments could not be more timely, as they come into effect
`at a time when intellectual property is key to our economy. According to our new
`Intellectual Property and the U.S. Economy: 2016 Update, co-authored with the Economics
`& Statistics Administration:
`
`• IP-intensive industries directly and indirectly supported 45.5 million jobs in 2014,
`nearly one-third of all U.S. employment.
`• The share of total U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) attributable to IP-intensive
`industries increased from 34.8 percent in 2010 to 38.2 percent in 2014.
`• In 2014, workers in IP-intensive industries earned an average weekly wage of $1,312,
`46 percent higher than the $896 average weekly wages in non-IP-intensive industries
`in the private sector.
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`PERFORMANCE AND ACCOUNTABILITY REPORT
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`The USPTO Mission
`Fostering innovation,
`competitiveness and
`economic growth,
`domestically and abroad
`by delivering (1) high quality
`and timely examination
`of patent and trademark
`applications, (2) guiding
`domestic and international
`intellectual property
`policy, and (3) delivering
`intellectual property
`information and education
`worldwide, with a highly-
`skilled, diverse workforce.
`
`Altogether, the findings in the report strongly suggest that the IP initiatives of the Obama
`administration—building on those of the Truman administration and others—have benefited
`not only our nation’s innovators and entrepreneurs, but also the American public and
`economy at large. IP today touches every aspect of our lives, from the increasingly “smart”
`devices we use and the vehicles we drive to the clothes we wear and the entertainment we
`enjoy. It is also critical to the breathtaking advances in science and medicine that save lives
`and improve our standard of living on a wide variety of fronts.
`
`Making smart investments in our IP system to foster more game-changing innovations
`and economic growth has been my top priority as head of America’s Innovation Agency
`since day one. That effort continued at full speed in fiscal year (FY) 2016, thanks in large
`part to the fee-setting authority granted by the AIA, a responsible operating reserve
`collected through those fees, and an expanding and highly talented nationwide workforce
`now totaling nearly 13,000.
`
`We are confident that the USPTO’s financial and performance data are complete, reliable,
`accurate, and consistent as we improve our ability to measure progress toward our
`performance goals. For the 24th consecutive year, we earned an unmodified audit opinion
`on our annual financial statements. For FY 2016 financial reporting, the independent
`auditors did not identify any material weaknesses or instances of non-compliance with
`laws and regulations. As a result of our internal review processes, as well as input from
`the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the Office of Inspector General (OIG),
`we continue to make efforts to improve our internal operations and controls.
`
`Patents
`At the start of the Obama administration in 2009, our backlog of unexamined patent
`applications stood at 750,000. By FY 2016, we had reduced that number to about 540,000,
`a decline of more than 28 percent in spite of an annual increase in filings of almost 4 percent.
`We also reduced our first action pendency, by 37.5 percent, from 25.9 months in January 2009
`to 16.2 months in September 2016, and the total pendency, by 25.1 percent, from 33.8
`months in January 2009 to 25.3 months in September 2016—all of which means that
`deserving patented technology can reach consumers at home and around the world sooner
`than they would have in the past, further driving innovation and economic growth.
`
`We continued to execute on our Enhanced Patent Quality Initiative (EPQI) started in FY
`2015, which aims to improve patent quality by taking steps before, during, and after
`examination to ensure that the patents that we issue are clear, consistent, and accurate.
`We, again, collaborated with the public through a Patent Quality Community Symposium
`(similar to the Patent Quality Summit of 2015), with an extraordinary turnout at our
`headquarters, regional offices, and online. We also started several new quality projects
`in FY 2016, like the Clarity of the Record Pilot that concluded in August. The goal of this
`pilot was to identify and refine best practices for enhancing the clarity of the prosecution
`record with respect to claim interpretation, reasons for allowance, and interview
`summaries. It also encouraged examiners to initiate pre-search interviews as needed
` to gain a better understanding of the claimed invention.
`
`We also initiated a Clarity and Correctness Data Capture program, with the goal of creating
`an improved data capture system that will enable reviewers of completed USPTO work
`products to consistently document and access, in one place, data from the reviews the
`agency already conducts. By entering the results of these reviews into a single database,
`the agency will ultimately capture much more data than it had in the past. By using this
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`data, we will be able to identify trends at a more granular level (eventually 3 to 5 times
`more data), and in doing so, will be poised to provide more targeted training to achieve
`greater accuracy, consistency, and clarity in prosecution. As part of this effort, the USPTO
`is standardizing reviews through the use of a single review form, called the Master Review
`Form, which places a much greater emphasis on assessing the clarity of an examiner’s
`reasoning in a rejection compared with past review forms, while maintaining the agency’s
`historic focus on addressing the correctness of an examiner’s action.
`
`Another quality initiative of note this year was our Post Grant Outcomes Pilot, which focuses
`on harnessing the art raised during PTAB AIA trials to enhance the examination of related
`applications. Also, by reviewing the results from the PTAB proceedings, we may be able to
`identify examination best practices or deficiencies in certain areas that we can propagate or
`correct through additional examiner training. We also plan to enhance our examiners’
`understanding about what happens to a patent after it leaves the USPTO, including how
`licensors, licensees, and litigants might take a patent and its prosecution history to argue
`infringement or invalidity and how courts have ruled on these issues.
`
`Trademarks
`Meanwhile, our Trademarks team—in addition to meeting or exceeding targets for pendency
`and quality in spite of a 5.2-percent increase in new filings from FY 2015—has been updating
`its information technology (IT) systems, developing educational outreach programs,
`improving the accuracy and integrity of the trademark register, and ensuring that our
`trademark fees are fair and reflect the full cost of our services and products.
`
`Trademarks recently established the Office of the Deputy Commissioner for Trademark
`Administration to support IT, finance, and strategic planning. The new deputy will be
`supported by two new senior-level positions: the Information Technology Administrator
`and the Information Technology Legal Administrator.
`
`The Trademarks IT team is working with the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO)
`on a multi-year Trademark Next Generation (TMNG) project for replacing legacy IT systems,
`with an expected deployment in FY 2017. In addition, they are working to increase the
`capability of those legacy systems needed for the foreseeable future, with a full suite of
`improvements anticipated before the end of calendar year 2016. Trademarks is working
`diligently with the OCIO to retire legacy systems as quickly as possible.
`
`Trademarks is also actively engaged in developing educational outreach programs that
`offer the best possible IP guidance and training to all, including a series of videos on the
`trademark information network that cover an array of subjects, the most popular being
`“Basic Facts about Trademarks: What Every Small Business Should Know Now, Not Later.”
`Trademarks will continue to provide this service and expand on it in the future in an effort
`to promote understanding of trademark basics, enforcement measures, and available tools
`for protecting and enforcing trademark rights.
`
`Trademarks is continually taking strides to improve the accuracy and integrity of the trademark
`register, including a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in the Federal Register to make
`our random audits of Section 8 or 71 Affidavits of Continued Use permanent. In addition, we
`are considering one or more new or revised procedures to cancel registrations for marks that
`are either no longer in use or have never been used. On April 28, the Trademark Public
`Advisory Committee convened an executive session to discuss the possibility of a new
`expungement procedure as well as several streamlined Trademark Trial and Appeal Board
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`(TTAB) cancellation procedures. We also discussed this idea with various stakeholder groups
`and will continue to obtain feedback to aid us in fully developing the concepts.
`
`Finally, Trademarks published an NPRM to modify some of our fees. The purpose of this fee
`proposal is to further USPTO strategic objectives by (1) better aligning fees with the full cost
`of products and services, (2) protecting the integrity of the register by incentivizing more
`timely filing or examination of applications and other filings and more efficient resolution
`of appeals and trials, and (3) promoting the efficiency of the process, in large part through
`lower-cost electronic filing options than paper filing options. By modifying these fees, we
`hope to further incentivize electronic filing and easier communication.
`
`Policy and International Affairs
`The agency has also been active on copyright policy. In January, the USPTO—as co-lead of the
`Commerce Department’s Internet Policy Task Force with the National Telecommunications
`and Information Administration—released the long-anticipated White Paper on Remixes, First
`Sale, and Statutory Damages. The paper analyzed three important copyright topics: (1) the
`legal framework for the creation of remixes, (2) the relevance and scope of the first sale
`doctrine in the digital environment, and (3)the appropriate calibration of statutory damages
`in the contexts of individual file sharers and of secondary liability for non-willful, large-scale
`online infringement. Among other recommendations, the white paper supports amending the
`Copyright Act to provide more guidance and greater flexibility to courts in awarding statutory
`damages by incorporating a list of factors to consider when determining the amount of a
`statutory damages award.
`
`On another important policy front, the USPTO held a symposium on trade secrets in
`January and provided technical assistance as Congress formulated and considered legislative
`proposals regarding trade secrets. Innovators of all types, from independent inventors to
`large corporations, rely on trade secrets to safeguard their creativity, gain competitive
`advantage, and further their business goals. This is why enactment of the Defend Trade
`Secrets Act in May 2016 was such a noteworthy achievement. It strengthens U.S. trade
`secret protection for U.S. companies and independent inventors, including manufacturers
`of all sizes, allowing them to have the same access to federal courts long enjoyed by holders
`of other types of intellectual property. I’m proud of the work the USPTO did to secure
`passage of this landmark legislation.
`
`On the international front, the USPTO continued to promote and guide sound IP policy in
`several critical areas. This February, the USPTO—which led the U.S. negotiation of the Beijing
`Treaty on Audiovisual Performances in 2012 and the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to
`Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled in
`2013—sent the administration’s implementation proposals for both treaties to Congress.
`
`The Beijing Treaty will fill a gap in the international copyright system by extending to
`audiovisual performers the types of protections already provided to authors and to
`performers and producers of sound recordings. The Marrakesh Treaty will improve access to
`printed works for persons with visual disabilities. Together, they amount to a complementary
`and historic improvement in global copyright policy.
`
`The USPTO also made significant progress in cooperative efforts related to harmonization of
`substantive patent law. For example, we continued to work with IP offices in other countries
`to develop an “objectives and principles” document that specifies the principles for an
`internationally harmonized patent system, as well as the goals that such a system should aim
`to achieve. In December 2015, we hosted the inaugural meeting of the ID5 (Industrial Design
`
`5
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`

`Five) Forum, bringing together for the first time representatives of the world’s five largest
`industrial design offices.1 At the meeting, we discussed ways of improving consistency in
`industrial design registration policies, promoting interoperable procedural frameworks, and
`better protecting emerging designs, such as graphical user interfaces, animations, and other
`new technology designs. The five offices also signed the Agreed Statement on Administering
`a New Industrial Design Framework, which recognized the importance of promoting and further
`developing a user-friendly industrial design protection system and endeavored to establish
`a new industrial design framework comprised of the five offices.
`
`The USPTO also continued working with its partners in the IP5, the forum of the five
`largest IP offices in the world,2 including on a Patent Cooperation Treaty collaborative
`search and examination project. In the trademark area, the USPTO advanced several
`strategic cooperative projects through the TM5, a framework that consists of the five
`largest trademark offices in the world.3 These projects help foster more efficient and
`user-friendly trademark systems.
`
`In January, the USPTO and Brazil’s National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI-BR)
`launched a Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) pilot program, the USPTO’s first-ever work
`sharing arrangement with INPI-BR and the culmination of several years of dialogue and
`cooperation. Under the PPH, an applicant who receives a favorable ruling on patentability
`from one office may request that the other participating office expedite the examination
`of a commonly filed application. By leveraging each office’s work products, participating
`offices can accelerate processing and improve patent quality, which in turn allows
`applicants to obtain higher quality patents in multiple jurisdictions with significant savings
`in terms of time and money. The agreement with INPI-BR brings the total of PPH agreements
`that the United States has signed with other nations around the world to 22.
`
`Finally, the USPTO supported the administration’s efforts in negotiating outcomes for the
`G-20 meeting held in Hangzhou, China, September 4–5, by participating in Department
`of Commerce leadership for task forces dealing with the Digital Economy, Innovation, and
`the New Industrial Revolution. The action plans for all three contain positive references
`to IP, affirming “the importance of adequate and effective intellectual property protection
`and enforcement for innovation.”
`
`Investing in Our Future
`In FY 2016, the USPTO continued to invest in its employees and the tools they use to deliver
`timely and quality IP protections for the American people.
`
`Working with experts from the private sector, the USPTO initiated an agency-wide
`Customer Experience Excellence Program to enhance the customer experience and to
`better serve our internal and external customers. The first phase, now complete, included
`baselining our performance; benchmarking USPTO customer experience performance
`against industry and government organizations; and creating a plan for improvement.
`
`To better understand the drivers of employee engagement, and to pinpoint specific areas
`for improvement, we continued the administration of our own “People Survey,” in addition to
`
`1 The USPTO, the Japan Patent Office (JPO), the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO), the European Union’s Office for
`Harmonization in the Internal Market, and the State Intellectual Property Office of the People’s Republic of China (SIPO).
`2 The USPTO, the European Patent Office, the JPO, the KIPO, and the SIPO.
`3 The USPTO, the European Union Intellectual Property Office, the JPO, the KIPO, and the Trademark Office of the State
`Administration for Industry and Commerce of the People’s Republic of China.
`
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`the federally administered “Employee Viewpoint Survey.” Both surveys are critical tools in
`ensuring that the USPTO remains one of the best places to work in the federal government.
`
`Another valuable tool is the USPTO Innovation Challenge, an agency-wide competition
`that encourages employees to submit, view, comment, and vote on ideas on how to
`improve USPTO. This year’s challenge topic was to identify new ways to communicate,
`connect, and engage at the USPTO. We received a lot of valuable and creative input, which
`was still being evaluated at the end of the fiscal year. The winner of this challenge will be
`announced on November 15.
`
`Finally, the USPTO continued its improvement efforts to build a 21st century IT system for a
`21st century innovation agency, not just with the latest hardware and software, but also with
`the latest thinking about how IT operates in a complex environment—including examination
`quality and reliability and enhancements to our telework program, a vital business strategy
`that saves the USPTO millions of dollars in facility costs each year and allows continued
`operations during shutdowns of the physical office. This past January, when the East Coast
`was hit by a monster blizzard and the federal government in the Washington, DC, area was
`officially shut down, 77 percent of the total USPTO workforce was able to telework at peak
`times of the day.
`
`Cancer Moonshot and the Future
`Our employees and the work we do at the USPTO are more important than ever, because the
`power of American innovation and IP is being called upon once again to meet some of the
`most pressing challenges of our times.
`
`In his final State of the Union address, President Obama challenged our nation to cure
`cancer once and for all, and during the subsequent White House Cancer Moonshot
`Summit, Vice President Joe Biden and the USPTO announced new actions aimed at
`answering the president’s call to action.
`
`One of these actions is the “Patents 4 Patients” initiative, which establishes a fast track
`review for cancer-treatment–related patents. Launched in July, this free, accelerated
`initiative will cut in half the time it takes to review patent applications in cancer therapy,
`aiming to have final decisions made in 12 months or less. This “fast track” will be open to
`any applicant, including early stage bio-tech companies, universities, and large
`pharmaceutical firms.
`
`In August, we launched a Cancer Moonshot Challenge on the USPTO Developer Hub,
`a new platform we created to leverage what very well may be the world’s largest
`repository of data on innovation and research and development technology trends.
`As part of this challenge, we released a curated data set consisting of 269,353 patent
`documents (published patent applications and granted patents), including our own
`cancer moonshot API (application programming interface). The data included detailed
`information on published patent applications and granted patents relevant to cancer
`research and development, such as drugs, diagnostics, surgical devices, data analytics,
`and genomic-based inventions. We challenged participants to use the IP data to reveal
`new insights on how we can leverage it in the fight against cancer.
`
`In September we added a “Horizon Scanning Tool” to the USPTO Developer Hub, which
`will leverage patent data sets to reveal new insights into investments around cancer
`therapy research and treatments. This data will enable users to build rich visualizations of
`IP data, often an early indicator of meaningful research and development, and combine
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`www.uspto.gov
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`them with other economic and funding data. The Horizon Scanning Tool ultimately will
`illuminate trend lines for new treatments and empower the federal government, as
`well as the medical, research, and data communities, to make more precise funding
`and policy decisions based on the commercialization lifecycle of the most promising
`treatments, thereby maximizing U.S. competitiveness in cancer investments.
`
`Finding a cure for cancer requires the formation of new alliances between the public
`and private sectors, and the USPTO is proud to be a part of that team. We are also
`proud of our Patents for Humanity program, launched in 2012 as part of an Obama
`administration initiative promoting game-changing innovations to solve long-standing
`development challenges. Award recipients receive public recognition at an award
`ceremony arranged by the USPTO and a certificate to accelerate certain matters
`before the USPTO. This year’s winning innovations included an improved meningitis
`vaccine production process that has been used to immunize 235 million people in
`high-risk African countries; a low-cost, accurate malaria detection device that uses
`magnets and lasers to allow better diagnosis and treatment; a quick, simple diagnostic
`test for preeclampsia, a potentially life-threatening pregnancy complication; and a
`passive cooler that can keep vaccines cold for over 30 days.
`
`I have always believed that collectively we can make a real difference through the power
`of innovation and our IP system more broadly. It was this conviction that led me to
`accept my position at the USPTO, and everything I have experienced here since then has
`reinforced my faith in the importance of this agency's role in the IP system.
`
`Thanks to the historic efforts of this administration and the exceptional manner in
`which USPTO employees rose to the challenge, this agency is poised for even greater
`achievements to come in the years ahead.
`
`Michelle K. Lee
`November 14, 2016
`Under Secretary of Commerce for
`Intellectual Property and Director of the
`United States Patent and Trademark Office
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`PERFORMANCE AND ACCOUNTABILITY REPORT
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`INTRODUCTION
`INTRODUCTION
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`

`

`ABOUT THIS REPORT
`
`The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Performance and Accountability Report
`(PAR) provides information on the USPTO’s programs and the results of the agency’s
`programmatic and financial performance for fiscal year (FY) 2016. This report
`demonstrates to Congress, the administration, and to the public the USPTO’s efforts to
`promote transparency and accountability over the resources entrusted to the agency.
`This report is available on the USPTO’s website at www.uspto.gov/annualreport and
`satisfies the reporting requirements contained in the following legislation:
`
`• Title 35 U.S.C. § 13;
`• Leahy–Smith America Invents Act (AIA) of 2011;
`• Federal Managers’ Financial Integrity Act of 1982;
`• Government Performance and Results Modernization Act of 2010;
`• Government Management Reform Act of 1994;
`• Accountability of Tax Dollars Act of 2002;
`• Improper Payments Information Act of 2002, as amended;
`• Reports Consolidation Act of 2000;
`• Federal Financial Management Improvement Act of 1996; and
`• Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990.
`
`The USPTO’s program and financial performance is summarized in the USPTO Citizen
`Centric Report, available on the USPTO website at www.uspto.gov/annualreport.
`
`CONTRIBUTORS
`The financial and program performance information presented in this report is the
`joint effort of the Under Secretary’s office, the Patent organization, the Trademark
`organization, the Office of Policy and International Affairs (OPIA), the Patent Trial and
`Appeal Board (PTAB), the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB), the Office of the
`Chief Information Officer (OCIO), the