CWS Work Program Overview

May 2023

INTRODUCTION

At its tenth session, the Committee on WIPO Standards (CWS) reviewed and approved the Tasks described below (see documents CWS/10/3 and CWS/10/21). To deal with certain Tasks, the CWS established corresponding Task Forces. All Task Forces are listed on the WIPO web site at: http://www.wipo.int/cws/en/taskforce/index.html.

Each Task Force has its own electronic forum (wiki) for carrying out assigned Tasks. Further information about the wikis is available at: https://www3.wipo.int/confluence/display/cwstf/CWS+Task+Forces.

ACTIVE CWS TASKS

Following is the list of active Tasks after the ninth session of the CWS.

TASK NO. 18

Description

Identify areas for standardization relevant to the exchange of machine‑readable data on the basis of projects envisaged by such bodies as the Five IP Offices (IP5), the Five Trademark Offices (TM5), the Industrial Design 5 Forum (ID5), ISO, IEC and other well‑known industry standard‑setting bodies.

Task Leader

International Bureau

Task Force
Scheduled actions to be carried out

The International Bureau should coordinate reporting on developments relating to standardization and/or the presentation of proposals to the CWS as necessary.

TASK NO. 24

Description

Collect and publish Annual Technical Reports (ATRs) on Patent, Trademark and Industrial Design Information Activities of the CWS Members (ATR/PI, ATR/TM, ATR/ID).

Task Leader

International Bureau

Task Force
Scheduled actions to be carried out

The International Bureau will collect and publish ATRs for reporting year 2021 using the simplified process approved at CWS/9.

TASK NO. 33

Description

Ongoing revision of WIPO Standards.

Task Leader

International Bureau: the CWS will further consider the appointment of Task Leaders upon specific requests for the revision of standards.

Task Force
Scheduled actions to be carried out

The revision of standards is considered an ongoing activity. As a means of expediting the standards revision process, the Secretariat may pass requests received for the revision of standards directly to an existing Task Force Leader, or present the request beforehand for consideration by the CWS at its next session. In the latter case, the CWS will be able to decide either on the adoption of the requested revision, or the creation of a new task, or whatever it considers appropriate. The Secretariat will inform the CWS of any revision request passed directly to a Task Force at its next session. If a specific request to revise a particular standard should be sent directly to an existing Task Force Leader, as long as it is possible, the Task Force would start work on it immediately; otherwise, the Task Force Leader would refer the request to the next session of the CWS for consideration (see document CWS/1/9 and paragraph 53 of CWS/1/10).

TASK NO. 33/3

Description

Ongoing revision of WIPO Standard ST.3.

Task Leader

International Bureau

Task Force
Scheduled actions to be carried out
  1. The revision of WIPO Standard ST.3 is considered an ongoing activity. As a means of expediting the revision process, the International Bureau should follow the specific procedure adopted at the eleventh session of the SDWG (see paragraph 35 of document SCIT/SDWG/11/14).
  2. The International Bureau plans to submit a proposal for the revision of WIPO ST.3 for consideration at CWS/10.

TASK NO. 38

Description

Ensure continuous revision and updating of WIPO Standard ST.36.

Task Leader

International Bureau

Task Force

ST.36 Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out
  1. The task is of a continuous nature (see paragraph 191 of document CWS/6/34).
  2. The Task Force Leader will inform the CWS of any revision of WIPO Standard ST.36 adopted by the Task Force at the next session of the CWS (see paragraph 4(a), below).

TASK NO. 39

Description

Ensure the necessary revisions and updates of WIPO Standard ST.66.

Task Leader

International Bureau in collaboration with European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO)

Task Force

ST.66 Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out
  1. The Task is of a continuous nature (see paragraph 191 of document CWS/6/34).
  2. The Task Force Leader will inform the CWS of any revision of WIPO Standard ST.66 adopted by the Task Force at the next session of the CWS (see paragraph 4(a), below).

TASK NO. 41

Description

Ensure the necessary revisions and updates of WIPO Standard ST.96.

Task Leader

International Bureau

Task Force

XML4IP Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out
  1. The Task is of a continuous nature (see paragraph 191 of document CWS/6/34).
  2. The International Bureau will organize regular monthly meetings of the XML4IP Task Force on a day and time agreed by the members.
  3. The XML4IP Task Force will review ST.96 components by comparing them with the corresponding XML components of the older XML Standards: ST.36, ST.66 and ST.86, to determine which ST.96 elements should be mandatory.
  4. The XML4IP Task Force will proceed with a pilot project for an online platform for external developers working with IPOs to provide direct feedback on relevant WIPO Standards.
  5. The International Bureau will work on creating a centralized repository to host Office-specific implementations of ST.96.
  6. The XML4IP Task Force Leader will inform the CWS at the tenth session of any revisions of WIPO ST.96 adopted by the Task Force.
  7. The Task Force will present a final proposal for a JSON standard at the tenth session of the CWS.
  8. The Task Force will present final proposals for copyright orphan work metadata at the tenth session of the CWS.
  9. The Secretariat will publish WIPO ST.96 example XML instances on the WIPO website.

TASK NO. 42

Description

Ensure the necessary revisions and updates of WIPO Standard ST.86.

Task Leader

International Bureau

Task Force

ST.86 Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out
  1. The Task is of a continuous nature (see paragraph 191 of document CWS/6/34).
  2. The Task Leader will inform the CWS of any revision of WIPO Standard ST.86 adopted by the Task Force at the next session of the CWS.

TASK NO. 44

Description

Support the International Bureau by providing users' requirements and feedback on the ST.26 authoring and validation software tool; support the International Bureau in the consequential revision of the PCT Administrative Instructions; and prepare necessary revisions of WIPO Standard ST.26.

Task Leader

European Patent Office (EPO)

Task Force

SEQL Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out
  1. The International Bureau will continue to support IPOs with their implementation plans for transitioning to WIPO Standard ST.26, including offering training webinars.
  2. The International Bureau will finalize development of the WIPO Sequence Suite in line with user feedback.
  3. The SEQL Task Force will support development and
    testing of the WIPO Sequence Suite, and consider further revisions to ST.26 if needed.

TASK NO. 47

Description

Ensure the necessary revisions and updates of WIPO Standards ST.27, ST.87, and ST.61; prepare supporting materials to assist the use of those Standards in IP community; analyze the potential of merging the three standards ST.27, ST.87, and ST.61; and support the XML4IP Task Force to develop XML components for legal status event data.

Task Leader

International Bureau

Task Force

Legal Status Task Force and XML4IP Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out
  1. The Legal Status Task Force will prepare a proposal for any needed revisions to the detailed events or the guidance document for patent legal status data in ST.27, ST.87, or ST.61.
  2. The Legal Status Task Force will propose an update to the description of Task 47 based on the discussions about possibly discontinuing work on a potential merger.
  3. The Legal Status Task Force will work on a proposal for possibly adapting "event indicators" to ST.61 and ST.87, to be presented at the tenth session of the CWS.
  4. The International Bureau will publish the WIPO Standard ST.61 mapping tables from IPOs, which are reproduced in the Annex to document CWS/9/10 Rev.

TASK NO. 50

Description

Ensure the necessary maintenance and update of surveys published in Part 7 of the WIPO Handbook on Industrial Property Information and Documentation.

Task Leader

International Bureau

Task Force

Part 7 Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out
  1. The International Bureau will update Part 7 of the Handbook with the revisions agreed at the ninth session of the CWS.
  2. The International Bureau will conduct and publish results of a survey to update representation of calendar dates in Part 7.1 of the WIPO Handbook.
  3. The Part 7 Task Force will revise their workplan to schedule a survey for updating Part 7.9 of the WIPO Handbook.
  4. At the tenth session, the Secretariat will inform the CWS of the results of surveys conducted this year and present survey analysis for approval.

TASK NO. 52

Description

Prepare recommendations for systems for providing access to publicly available patent information of industrial property offices.

Task Leader

International Bureau

Task Force

Public Access to Patent Information (PAPI) Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out
  1. The International Bureau will publish the results of the part 2 survey.
  2. The PAPI Task Force will prepare recommendations for systems providing access to publicly available patent information from intellectual property offices.

TASK NO. 55

Description

Envisaging developing a WIPO standard assisting Industrial Property Offices (IPOs) in providing better “quality at source” in relation to applicant names, prepare a proposal for future actions aimed at the standardization of applicant names in IP documents and present it for consideration by the CWS.

Task Leader

Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) and the International Bureau

Task Force

Name Standardization Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out

The Task Force will propose recommendations on quality of applicant data to support name standardization at the tenth session of the CWS.

TASK NO. 56

Description

Ensure the necessary revisions and updates of WIPO Standard ST.90; support the International Bureau in developing a unified catalog of APIs that are made available by Offices; and support the International Bureau in promoting and implementing WIPO Standard ST.90.

Task Leader

United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) and

Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO)

Task Force

API Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out
  1. The International Bureau will work to implement the new Web API standard in its products and services, and invite IPOs to participate in testing the new WIPO CASE APIs when they are implemented.
  2. The API Task Force will promote use of WIPO ST.90 at their organizations.
  3. The International Bureau will create a unified catalog on the WIPO website of APIs which IP Offices (IPOs) present externally and report progress at its next session.

TASK NO. 57

Description

Ensure the necessary revisions and updates of WIPO Standard ST.88.

Task Leader

IP Australia and International Bureau

Task Force

Design Representation Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out

The Task Force will review and propose any necessary revisions and updates to WIPO Standard ST.88.

TASK NO. 58

Description

Prepare a proposal for a roadmap of future development and enhancement of WIPO Standards, including policy recommendations, in view of more effective production, sharing, and utilization of data by IP offices and other interested parties, taking the following activities:
i. to review the Recommendations in Group 1 indicated in the Annex of document CWS/6/3, in collaboration with other relevant CWS Task Forces;
ii. to review the Recommendations in Group 2 and Group 3 indicated in the Annex of document CWS/6/3;
iii. to prioritize Recommendations and suggest a timeline; and
iv. to explore the impact of disruptive technologies on IP administration and IP data in view of harmonization and collaboration. Collect information about the requirements from IP offices and customers; and prepare recommendations for electronic visual representations of designs.

Task Leader

International Bureau

Task Force

ICT Strategy for Standards Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out

The ICT Strategy Task Force will take into account the results of the ICT Strategy survey when it prepares its planned ICT strategic roadmap and work plan for 2022.

TASK NO. 59

Description

Explore the possibility of using blockchain technology in the processes of providing IP rights protection, processing information about IP objects and their use;
Collect information about IPO developments in use of and experience with blockchain, assess current Industry Standards on blockchain and consider merit and applicability to IPOs;
Develop reference models of using blockchain technology in the IP field, including guiding principles, common practice and use of terminology as a framework supporting collaboration, joint projects and proofs of concept; and
Prepare a proposal for a new WIPO Standard supporting the potential application of blockchain technology within the IP ecosystem.

Task Leader

IP Australia and Rospatent

Task Force

Blockchain Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out

The International Bureau plans to publish the blockchain whitepaper by early 2022.

TASK NO. 60

Description

Prepare a proposal for the numbering of INID codes regarding word marks and figurative marks, on splitting INID code (551), and a potential INID code for combined marks.

Task Leader

International Bureau

Task Force

Trademark Standardization Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out

After a resolution in the Madrid Working Group, the Task Force will prepare a recommendation on whether to maintain or split INID code 551 for collective, certification, and guarantee marks in WIPO Standard ST.60 for the next session of the CWS.

TASK NO. 61

Description

Ensure the necessary revisions and updates of WIPO Standard ST.91, including methods of search for 3D models and 3D images.

Task Leader

Rospatent

Task Force

3D Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out

The Task Force will prepare a proposal to revise Standard ST.91 on 3D models and 3D images, including methods of search, at the tenth session of the CWS.

TASK NO. 62

Description

Review WIPO Standards: ST.6, ST.8, ST.10, ST.11, ST.15, ST.17, ST.18, ST.63 and ST.81, and WIPO Handbook Part 6, in view of electronic publication of IP documentation; and propose revisions of those Standards and materials if needed.

Task Leader

United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

Task Force

Digital Transformation Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out
  1. The Secretariat will conduct the survey of IPOs on their practices for digital transformation.
  2. The Task Force will report the results of survey and propose draft analysis for consideration at the tenth session of the CWS.

TASK NO. 63

Description

Develop visual representation(s) of XML data, based on WIPO XML Standards, for electronic publication.

Task Leader

United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

Task Force

Digital Transformation Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out

Present a report on the progress of the Task for consideration at the tenth session of the CWS.

TASK NO. 64

Description

Prepare a proposal for recommendations for JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) resources compatible with WIPO Standard ST.96 to be used for filing, processing, publication and/or exchange intellectual property information.

Task Leader

International Bureau

Task Force

XML4IP Task Force

Scheduled actions to be carried out
  1. The XML4IP Task Force will prepare a final proposal for a new WIPO Standard on JSON for consideration at the tenth session of CWS.
  2. The International Bureau will invite IPOs to comment on the working draft of the JSON specification, to participate in discussions, to test the JSON schema, and to provide feedback to the Task Force.