Have a Break

　Hello, this is Hiro.
In recent years, the evolution of AI technology has been remarkable, and its use in the patent industry is progressing, with the use of ChatGPT and other generative AI in patent searches and as a tool to assist in the preparation of specifications.
The other day, I attended a seminar (hands-on workshop) on how to use ChatGPT in responding to reasons for refusal. In the exercises at that seminar, ChatGPT presented proposed amendments and arguments that at first glance seemed appropriate. However, it is ultimately the job of patent attorneys and other specialists to check and judge whether the suggestions are really appropriate and whether there are any legal issues, and if there are any errors, they need to be corrected, so at the moment I got the impression that it is not easy (rather difficult) to use ChatGPT to improve the efficiency of work related to responding to reasons for refusal. On the other hand, ChatGPT is good at summarizing and explaining long documents in a short time. This ability is far superior to that of humans, and I thought it could be used conveniently when there is a need to understand the contents of a large number of patent documents in a short time.

　After the seminar, I loaded various patent documents (PDF patent gazettes) into ChatGPT and asked it to explain their contents.
The following is an example of a conversation (input prompt and ChatGPT response example) in which ChatGPT (4o) explains the contents of a patent document (Patent No. 6691280: patent holder “Commissioner of the Japan Patent Office”) for an invention (“management system and management method”) by a patent office employee in a way that even an elementary school student can understand.

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■Input prompt:
JPB006691280.pdf (←attached)
Please explain the contents of the attached patent document in a way that even elementary school students can understand.

■ChatGPT response:
This patent document (JP 6691280 B1) is about a system that efficiently manages patent information from around the world and makes it easier to search. If I explain it in a way that even elementary school students can understand, it would be as follows

1. What problem does it solve?
Many inventions are registered as patents around the world. However, since the way patents are written and the format of the data differs from country to country, it is very difficult to manage them all together.
For example, if you went to a library and the Japanese books and English books were all placed separately, it would be difficult to find the books you were looking for, wouldn’t it? If all the books were organized according to the same rules, it would be much easier to find the books you were looking for.
This invention is a system that organizes patent information so that it can be easily searched.

2. How does it solve the problem?
This system does the following things.
1. Gathers patent information from around the world
→ Automatically collects patent data from each country.
2. Organizes the data
→ Assigns a number to each patent, and converts information written in different ways into a common format.
3. Translates the data
→ Automatically translates foreign language patents so that they can be viewed in the same language.
4. Classifies the data using AI
→ Classify the patents by type of invention, e.g. “this patent is related to automobiles” or “this patent is related to computers”.
5. Save to the database
→ Register the organized patent information in a database so that it can be searched.

3. What happens when you use it?
With this system, searching for and managing patents becomes much easier.
• People at the patent office can quickly look up past inventions
• When a company makes a new invention, they can quickly check whether there are any similar patents
• Researchers can easily look up the latest inventions
In other words, it’s like creating a “magical library where you can quickly search through lots of inventions”.

Thanks to this invention, inventions from all over the world will be organized and made more convenient to use!
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How was it? After a few seconds to load the attached file (PDF of the patent gazette), the above text appeared to flow smoothly. It is explained concisely and clearly, using bullet points and boldface decorations.
　What if you asked it to explain it in an even easier-to-understand way?

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■Input prompt:
Next, please explain it in an even easier-to-understand way that even young children can understand.

■ChatGPT’s response:
A library of amazing inventions! 📚✨
If there were all sorts of toys jumbled up in a toy box, wouldn’t it be hard to find the toy you wanted to play with? 😵💦
If you could sort the toys into categories and make it so you could easily see where everything was, it would be even more fun to play with them!
This invention is a system that makes it easy to find new ideas by organizing them neatly in a notebook called a “patent”!

How do you organize them?🤔
1️⃣ Collect a lot!
　We’ll collect lots of patent notebooks from all over the world! 📖🌍
2️⃣ Arrange them in the same shape!
The way the notebooks are written is all over the place, so we’ll arrange them all in the same way! 📚✨
3️⃣ Translate them!
We’ll make it so that you can read the foreign language notebooks in Japanese! 🌎➡️🗾
4️⃣ Grouping!
Like “Car ideas🚗” and “Robot ideas🤖”, we’ll sort them by the same type!📂
5️⃣ Search!
If you say “Show me this idea!”, you’ll be able to find it right away!🔍

What happens if we have this?😃
✨ It makes it easier for people who work on researching patents!
✨ It makes it easier for people at your company to quickly check whether an idea is new or not!
✨ It makes it easier for people doing research to find things like “I didn’t know this kind of invention existed!”
In other words, it’s a system that helps you organize your invention notebook so that you can find what you’re looking for quickly, just like cleaning out a toy box so that you can find the toy you want to play with straight away! 🎊✨
That’s amazing! 😊💡
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　It’s certainly easy to understand, even for young children. The examples are aimed at children, and even pictograms that match the context are used. At the end, there is even a comment on ChatGPT (“That’s amazing! 😊💡”). There are no typos or omissions, and the text is easy to understand from a child’s perspective, and to me, it looks like a text written by a human.

The generative AI is still continuing to evolve. We plan to continue to consider ways to use it in our work.

　The two illustrations in this article were generated by ChatGPT (4o), and are “a simple illustration inspired by ChatGPT” and “a simple illustration inspired by the content of the Patent Gazette (Patent No. 6691280)”.

It’s Swimmer.
The image shows a cosmetic accessory that I bought without thinking when I saw the word “patent” on the product shelf at my regular drugstore. It’s a curler that holds the eyelashes from above and below to curl them.

The product did not have a patent number on it, so I tried searching for it on the patent information platform J-PlatPat by entering the company name, and found several patents for eyelash curlers. The patent for the product I bought has expired, but it seems that the product has continued to be improved since then.

Personally, I like the fact that it is very compact and doesn’t take up much space in my makeup bag, as well as the fact that it curls my eyelashes.

Eyelash curler
https://www.j-platpat.inpit.go.jp/c1801/PU/JP-2005-312712/11/en

　I’ve been curious about Okamoto Corporation’s “Marude Kotatsu” series
and finally bought one this year. There were various types to choose from, but I decided on the “Socks Supplement Marude Kotatsu Ankle Warmer”.

　When I looked at the back, I saw a patent number (Japanese Patent No. 6043982).

　Reading the patent bulletin, I found that the invention was characterized by its material and shape, which were designed to stimulate the “acupuncture points” on the ankles with pinpoint accuracy.

　The oval part with a different color seems to stimulate the acupuncture points. When I tried wearing it, it didn’t get too hot, but I definitely felt like it was warming me up from the inside. I like that it makes it easy to stimulate the acupuncture points and that it can be expected to improve your constitution.

　I want to get through the cold winter by keeping my feet warm. (Marron)

　This article introduces a patented invention that uses scientific methods to solve the problem of customer harassment.

　In the invention of Japanese Patent No. 7164793 “Speech Processing System, Speech Processing Device, and Speech Processing Method” (patent holder: SoftBank Corp.), a speech signal from a customer speaking to a call center operator is recognized by a speech processing device. If a specific word sequence is detected in the speech signal that insults the listener, denies the listener’s character, or otherwise makes the listener feel uncomfortable, the specific word sequence is removed or replaced with another word sequence. In addition, the customer’s emotions are evaluated, and if the anger level is high, a synthesized voice with suppressed emotions is output. This reduces the stress on the operator.

　In the invention of Japanese Patent No. 7384558 “Harmful Behavior Detection System and Method” (patent holder: Hitachi Systems, Ltd.), for example, the harmful behavior detection system detects and supports responses to harmful behavior such as malicious complaints from customers to store staff in stores. If a shop assistant receives a malicious complaint from a customer, the information terminal will detect words that indicate the possibility of harmful behavior from the voice data that has been recognized by voice recognition, and send it to the server. The server will make a judgment regarding the status of the malicious complaint, and if the degree of the malicious complaint is high, a security guard will be dispatched immediately.

　In Tokyo, the Customer Harassment Prevention Ordinance will come into effect on April 1st, 2025. It is hoped that providers of goods and services and customers (consumers) will respect each other’s positions, and that a fair and sustainable society free from customer harassment will be realized. (Conan)