MPEP § 507 — MPEP § 507
Current through: 2022-07-01

507-Drawing Review in the Office of Patent Application Processing 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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 Manual of Patent Examining Procedure 

 Chapter 0500 

 Section 507 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 507 Drawing Review in the Office of Patent Application
 Processing [R-07.2015]
 

 The Office of Patent Application Processing (OPAP) performs an initial
 review of drawings in new utility and plant patent applications to determine whether the
 drawings can be effectively scanned for publication purposes. Design applications are not
 published, and drawings filed in design patent applications are not reviewed by OPAP for
 publication purposes. The standard of review employed by OPAP is such that most drawings,
 including those that have been indicated by applicant to be "informal drawings," will be
 acceptable.
 

 OPAP inspects the drawings to see if they can be effectively scanned and
 adequately reproduced. If the drawings are not acceptable, OPAP will object to the drawings
 and notify applicant that a timely submission of acceptable drawings (e.g., drawings which
 can be scanned) is required. 
 

 Under the OPAP review process, OPAP may object to and require corrected
 drawings within a set time period, if the drawings:
 

 
 (A) have a line quality that is too light to be reproduced (weight of all
 lines and letters must be heavy enough to permit adequate reproduction) or text that
 is illegible (reference characters, sheet numbers, and view numbers must be plain and
 legible). See 37
 CFR 1.84(l) and (p)(1) ;
 

 (B) have missing lead lines. See 37 CFR 1.84(q) . Lead lines are
 those lines between the reference characters and the details referred to;
 

 (C) contain excessive text or text that is not in English (including, for
 example, a flow chart that was originally not in English that has been marked up to
 include the English text). See 37 CFR 1.84(o) and
 (p)(2) and 37 CFR 1.52(d) ;
 

 (D) do not have the appropriate margin or are not on the correct size
 paper. See 37 CFR
 1.84(f) and (g). Each sheet must include a top margin of at
 least 2.5 cm. (1 inch), a left size margin of at least 2.5 cm. (1 inch), a right size
 margin of at least 1.5 cm. (5/8 inch), and a bottom margin of at least 1.0 cm. (3/8
 inch). The size of the sheets on which drawings are made must be either 21.0 cm. by
 29.7 cm. (DIN size A4) or 21.6 cm. by 27.9 cm. (8-1/2 by 11 inches);
 

 (E) have more than one figure and each figure is not labeled “Fig.” with
 a consecutive Arabic numeral (1, 2, etc.) or an Arabic numeral and capital letter in
 the English alphabet (A, B, etc.). See 37 CFR 1.84(u)(1) ;
 

 (F) include photographs of the claimed invention which are capable of
 illustration by other medium such as ink drawings, and which are illegible after
 scanning. See 37
 CFR 1.84(b) ; and
 

 (G) contain color drawings or color photographs, but not a petition to
 accept color drawings/ photographs. Note that the requirement for a black and white
 photocopy of any color drawings/photographs has been eliminated.
 

 
 If OPAP objects to the drawings and sends applicant a Notice requiring
 submission of corrected drawings within a set time period (usually two months), corrected
 drawings must be filed, in paper, to the mailing address set forth in the Notice, along
 with any other items required by OPAP, to avoid abandonment of the application. No fee will
 be necessary for filing corrected drawings which are required by OPAP. Otherwise, in most
 situations, patent application publications and patents will reflect the quality of the
 drawings that are included with a patent application on filing unless applicant voluntarily
 submits better quality drawings as set forth in MPEP § 1121 .
 

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 501-Filing Papers With the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office 

 502-Depositing Correspondence 
 502.01-Correspondence Transmitted by Facsimile 

 502.02-Correspondence Signature Requirements 

 502.03-Communications via Internet Electronic Mail (email) 

 502.04-Duplicate Copies of Correspondence 

 502.05-Correspondence Transmitted by EFS-Web 

 
 

 503-Application Number and Filing Receipt 

 504-Assignment of Application for Examination 

 505-Date of Receipt Stamp 

 506-Completeness of Original Application 
 506.01-[Reserved] 

 506.02-Review of Refusal To Accord Filing Date 

 
 

 507-Drawing Review in the Office of Patent Application Processing 

 508-Distribution 
 508.01-[Reserved] 

 508.02-Papers Received After Patenting or Abandonment 

 508.03-[Reserved] 

 508.04-Unlocatable Patent or Application Files 

 
 

 509-Payment of Fees 
 509.01-Deposit Accounts 

 509.02-Small Entity Status — Definitions 

 509.03-Claiming Small Entity Status 
 509.03(a)-Duty to Investigate Entitlement to Claim Small Entity Status 

 509.03(b)-Change or Correction of Status 

 
 

 509.04-Micro Entity Status — Definitions 
 509.04(a)-Gross Income Basis for Micro Entity Status 

 509.04(b) -Institution of Higher Education Basis for Micro Entity Status 

 509.04(c) -Parties Who Can Sign the Micro Entity Certification 

 509.04(d) -Continued Obligation to Determine Micro Entity Qualification 

 509.04(e) -Notification of Loss of Entitlement to Micro Entity Status 

 509.04(f) -Correcting Errors in Micro Entity Status 

 
 

 
 

 510-U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Business Hours 

 511-Postal Service Interruptions and Emergencies 

 512-Certificate of Mailing or Transmission 

 513-Deposit as Priority Mail Express® with U.S. Postal Service 

 

 

 
 

 
 
 

 
 

 

 
 
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 Last Modified: 
 
 03/09/2026 20:49:43