MPEP § 150 — MPEP § 150
Current through: 2022-07-01

150-Statements to DOE and NASA 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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 Chapter 0100 

 Section 150 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 150 Statements to DOE and NASA [R-11.2013]

 
 37 CFR 1.14 Patent applications preserved in confidence. 

 *****

 
 (d) Applications reported to Department of Energy. Applications for
 patents which appear to disclose, purport to disclose or do disclose inventions or
 discoveries relating to atomic energy are reported to the Department of Energy,
 which Department will be given access to the applications. Such reporting does not
 constitute a determination that the subject matter of each application so reported
 is in fact useful or is an invention or discovery, or that such application in
 fact discloses subject matter in categories specified by 42 U.S.C. 2181(c) and
 (d).
 

 
 *****

 

 

 Title 42 United States Code, Section 2182 reads in part:

 
 42 U.S.C. 2182 
 Inventions conceived during Commission contracts; ownership; waiver; hearings 

 *****

 No patent for any invention or discovery, useful in the production or
 utilization of special nuclear material or atomic energy, shall be issued unless the
 applicant files with the application, or within thirty days after request therefor by
 the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United
 States Patent and Trademark Office (unless the Commission advises the Under Secretary of
 Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and
 Trademark Office that its rights have been determined and that accordingly no statement
 is necessary) a statement under oath setting forth the full facts surrounding the making
 or conception of the invention or discovery described in the application and whether the
 invention or discovery was made or conceived in the course of or under any contract,
 subcontract, or arrangement entered into with or for the benefit of the Commission,
 regardless of whether the contract, subcontract, or arrangement involved the expenditure
 of funds by the Commission. The Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property
 and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office shall as soon as the
 application is otherwise in condition for allowance forward copies of the application
 and the statement to the Commission.
 

 *****

 

 

 Similarly, Title 51 United States Code, section 20135 provides in part:

 
 51 U.S.C. 20135 
 Property rights in inventions 

 *****

 (d) Patent Application. - No patent may be issued to any applicant other
 than the Administrator for any invention which appears to the Under Secretary of
 Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and
 Trademark Office (hereafter in this section referred to as the "Director") to have
 significant utility in the conduct of aeronautical and space activities unless the
 applicant files with the Director, with the application or within 30 days after request
 therefor by the Director, a written statement executed under oath setting forth the full
 facts concerning the circumstances under which the invention was made and stating the
 relationship (if any) of the invention to the performance of any work under any contract
 of the Administration. Copies of each such statement and the application to which it
 relates shall be transmitted forthwith by the Director to the Administrator. 
 

 *****

 

 

 Property rights statements to DOE or NASA may be filed at any time but
 should be updated if necessary to accurately reflect property rights at the time the
 application is allowed.
 

 Shortly after filing, an informal request for a property rights statement
 will be mailed to those applicants whose nonprovisional applications have been marked by
 the USPTO security screeners as being of interest to DOE or NASA. Provisional applications
 are not subject to DOE or NASA property rights review. While no formal time period is set,
 a response by applicants within 45 days will expedite processing. If the statement
 submitted during this period is defective, another letter is sent from Licensing and Review
 detailing the deficiencies and giving applicant another opportunity to respond during this
 period of informal correspondence.
 

 If no response to the initial so called 45-Day Letter is received or if
 repeated efforts to correct a defective statement evidence an absence of cooperation on the
 part of the applicant, a formal request for a statement in accordance with the statutes
 will be made. A 30-day statutory period for response is then set. There is no provision for
 an extension of this time period. If no proper and timely statement is received, the
 application will be held abandoned and the applicant so notified. Such applications may be
 revived under the provisions of 37 CFR 1.137 . In re
 Rutan, 231 USPQ 864 (Comm’r Pat. 1986).
 

 Any papers pertaining to property rights under section 152 of the Atomic
 Energy Act, 42 U.S.C. 2182, (DOE), or section 305(c) or the National Aeronautics and Space
 Act, 42 U.S.C. 2457, (NASA), that have not been associated with the application file, or
 have not been made of record in the file and processed by the Licensing and Review section,
 must be sent to the Licensing and Review section immediately.
 

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 101-General 

 102-Information as to Status of an Application 

 103-Right of Public To Inspect Patent Files and Some Application Files 

 104-Power to Inspect Application 

 105-Suspended or Excluded Practitioner Cannot Inspect 

 106-Control of Inspection by Assignee 
 106.01-Rights of Assignee of Part Interest 

 
 

 107‑109-[Reserved] 

 110-Confidential Nature of International Applications 

 111‑114-[Reserved] 

 115-Review of Applications for National Security and Property Rights Issues 

 116‑119-[Reserved] 

 120-Secrecy Orders 

 121-Handling of Applications under Secrecy Order and/or Bearing National Security Markings 

 122‑129-[Reserved] 

 130-Examination of Secrecy Order Cases 

 131‑139-[Reserved] 

 140-Foreign Filing Licenses 

 141‑149-[Reserved] 

 150-Statements to DOE and NASA 

 151-Content of the Statements 

 

 

 
 

 
 
 

 
 

 

 
 
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 03/09/2026 20:50:35