Google Patents
Search patent publications across offices and explore drawings, claims, classifications, and families.
Explore the original source- Published by
- Getting in
- Free web search; publication access does not grant permission to practice an invention.
- What you can work with
- HTML · PDF links
- Links and access checked
A good place to start
Search folding bicycle; open a drawing and note the publication number and family.
What you can find
Google Patents is a search portal for patent publications from multiple offices. You can explore drawings, descriptions, claims, and related records. Google's coverage notes explain that coverage is incomplete and that some text is machine-translated. Search results are clues to examine, not a clearance decision.
Try this first
Search folding bicycle. Choose one record with a readable drawing. Sketch the problem it tries to solve, then compare that sketch with the first claim. Record the publication number, applicant, and relevant dates. The search guide explains number searches, names, and classifications when you want to narrow the trail.
Access and reuse
Reading a patent does not authorize making or selling the invention. Website access, copyright in material, and patent rights are separate questions. Consult the service terms and verify important records at the issuing patent office.
Provenance
Keep the jurisdiction and complete publication number, including its ending letters and numbers. Distinguish priority, filing, publication, and grant dates. Related family records can describe the same underlying invention in different jurisdictions, so counting them as independent inventions would distort your story.
What to watch for
- Coverage is not guaranteed complete.
- Translations and legal-status summaries need checking with the issuing office.
- A publication is not proof of a granted or currently enforceable patent.