(0)ENT:255/0:

47.

When a group is subdivided, each subgroup covers only a particular part of the field covered by the group under which it is indented; thus, a group may have only one subgroup indented thereunder or there may be many. Subgroups do not necessarily contain the major part of the field of the group under which they are indented; each subgroup is primarily devised to take out of that field a well-defined portion of subject matter to which search can often be restricted. Thus, any group may cover subject matter wich falls within its scope but

(a)	is not specified in any subgroup indented thereunder, or

(b)	is too broad in scope to be classified in a single subgroup indented thereunder.

48.	The scope of any subgroup in comparison with its hierarchically higher group is determined by the presence of one or more essential characteristics, shown in the title of the subgroup. Two cases may arise:

Example:

(a)	The essential characteristics are not expressed in the title of the hierarchically higher group.

A 01 B

Example:

(b)	The essential characteristics are already expressed in the title of the hierarchically higher group.

A 45 C

•

Trunks; Travelling baskets

•

Travelling baskets.

Subject matter is only covered by the subgroup when the subject matter has the aforesaid characteristic(s) as an essential part.

III. PRINCIPLES OF THE CLASSIFICATION; CLASSIFYING RULES

49.

The primary purpose of the Classification, as noted in paragraph 2, above, is to facilitate the retrieval of technical subject matter. It is therefore devised, and has to be used, in such a way that one and the same technical subject is classified in, and thus can be retrieved from, one and the same place within the Classification; this place being the one most likely to be searched for that subject. Attention is drawn to the fact that wherever in the Guide reference is made to inventions or technical subjects of inventions, in the context of categorizing or classifying them, it is to be understood that the remarks made apply equally to technical subjects not forming part of inventions as such but which are covered by "additional information", as defined in paragraph 83(b), below.

TECHNICAL SUBJECTS OF INVENTIONS

50.	Technical subjects of inventions may represent processes, products or apparatus (or the way these are used or applied), and these terms should be interpreted in their widest sense, as indicated in the following examples:

(a)	Examples of processes are: polymerisation, fermentation, separation, shaping, conveying, treating of textiles, transfer and transformation of energy, building, preparation of foodstuffs, testing, methods of operating machines and ways in which they work, processing and transmitting of information.

(b)	Examples of products are: chemical compounds, compositions, fabrics, articles of manufacture.

(c)	Examples of apparatus are: installations used in chemical or physical processes, tools, implements, machines, devices for performing operations.

51.

It should be noted that an apparatus can be regarded as a product, since it is produced by a process. The term "product", however, is used to denote the result of a process regardless of the subsequent function of the product, e.g., the end-product of a chemical or manufacturing process, whereas the term "apparatus" is associated with an intended use or purpose, e.g., apparatus for generating gases, apparatus for cutting.

PLACES IN THE CLASSIFICATION FOR TECHNICAL SUBJECTS OF INVENTIONS

52.	The Classification attempts to ensure that any technical subject with which an invention is essentially concerned can be classified, as far as possible, as a whole and not by separate classification of constituent parts.

53.

The technical subjects of inventions dealt with in patent documents concern either the intrinsic nature or function of a thing or the way a thing is used or applied. The term "thing" is used in this context to mean any technical matter, tangible or not, e.g., process, product or apparatus. The above is reflected in the design of the Classification. It provides places for classifying:

Examples:

(a)	a thing "in general", i.e., characterised by its intrinsic nature or function; the thing being either independent of a particular field of use or technically not affected if statements about the field of use are disregarded.

1.	F 16 K has provision for valves characterised by constructional or functional aspects, i.e., the structure of the valve does not depend on the nature of the fluid passing therethrough or of any system of which the valve may form part.

2.	C 07 has provision for organic chemical compounds characterised by their chemical structure but not by their application.

Example:

(b)	A thing "specially adapted for" a particular use or purpose, i.e. modified or particularly constructed for the given use or purpose.

A 61 F has provision for a mechanical valve specially adapted for insertion into a human heart.

Example:

(c)	The particular use or application of a thing.

C 05 has provision for the use of an organic chemical compound as a fertiliser.

Example:

(d)	The incorporation of a thing into a larger system.

B 60 G has provision for the incorporation of a leaf spring into the suspension of a vehicle wheel.

54.	Places of category (a), above, are referred to as "function-oriented places". Places of the other categories are referred to as "application places".

Example:

55.	Places, e.g., subclasses, are not always exclusively function-oriented or application-oriented in relation to other places.

Although F 16 K (valves, etc.) and F 16 N (lubricating) are both function-oriented subclasses, F 16 N includes application places for certain valves specially adapted for lubrication systems (e.g., F 16 N 23/00 - special adaptations of check valves), while, conversely, F 16 K includes application places for lubricating features of gate valves or sliding valves (see, for example, F 16 K 3/36 - features relating to lubrication).

Furthermore, the expressions "function-oriented place" and "application place" cannot always be regarded as absolute. Thus, a given place may be more function-oriented than another place but less function-oriented than yet a further place.

Example:

B 60 D concerns vehicle connections in general and is therefore more function-oriented than B 62 D 53/08, which is specifically directed to fifth-wheel couplings for tractor-trailer combinations, but is less function-oriented than F 16 B, which relates to connecting constructional elements in general.

Example:

56.	It is important to note that not every technical subject is represented in each of the categories set out in paragraph 53, above.

The Classification does not provide for the intrinsic function of striking. It does, however, provide for apparatus specially adapted for a particular striking purpose, e.g. golf clubs (A 63 B), hand hammers (B 25 D).

CLASSIFICATION OF TECHNICAL SUBJECTS OF INVENTIONS

General Observations

Example:

57.	It is of great importance to identify accurately the technical subject(s) with which the invention is essentially concerned. Therefore, consideration should be given to the thing involved in relation to each category set out in paragraph 53, above, in order to determine the appropriate place in the Classification.

If a document discloses pistons, consideration must be given to whether the technical subject is a piston itself, or whether the technical subject is different, for example, the special adaptation of a piston for use in a particular apparatus, or the arrangement of pistons in a larger system, e.g., in an internal-combustion engine.

58.

Often, the only information which is of importance in the disclosure of a given subject is information relating to a particular field of use, and the application places are intended to cover completely the classification of such subjects. The function-oriented places embrace a wider concept in which the constructional or functional characteristics of a subject are applicable to more than one field of use, or in which the application to a particular field of use is not considered to be essential.