Teaching students how to use patent databases

CHED 145

Lawton Shaw, lawtons@athabascau.ca, Centre for Science, Athabasca University, 1 University Drive, Athabasca, AB T9S 3A3, Canada and Margy MacMillan, mmacmillan@mtroyal.ca, Library, Mount Royal College, 4825 Mount Royal Gate S.W, Calgary, AB T3E 6K6, Canada.
Chemical patents are a primary source of chemical information. As such, it is easy to make the case that chemistry students should be taught how to find information in the patent literature and how to read patents. In a second year Industrial Organic Chemistry course for engineering students, students were tasked with a group research project that required the use of chemical patents as a source of information. The class was provided with formal instruction into patents and other information sources, which was facilitated by a librarian. Students gained skill in searching the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office database, including time-saving search tactics, cross-referencing, and where to find the most useful information.