Outbound-Patent Engineer Tries Patent Family Search with Generative AI

2025/7/72025/7/10

📝 Continued from the previous article

This article is a practical implementation guide following “MCP Server Setup Guide – Compiled with Claude!”

While the previous article covered technical setup, this one demonstrates practical application in actual work.

This guide is based on actual search results for EP1000000.

How much time do you spend on patent family searches?

Patent family searches are one of the frequent tasks for outbound-patent engineers. Understanding the patent status across different countries is necessary in various situations.

Manual searches take a certain amount of time, but we’ve confirmed that combining Claude Desktop with Espacenet can streamline this process.

🌍Espacenet: Comprehensive Patent Family Search Tool

Espacenet is an INPADOC family database that integrates patent office data from around the world. It’s the standard tool for patent family searches that every outbound-patent engineer knows.

Why Espacenet is Suitable

Data Integration Power: Centralized management of worldwide patent office data
Family Search: Comprehensive display of INPADOC families
Free Access: Public database available to everyone
Multilingual Support: Multilingual access through machine translation

📊Proven Use Case: EP1000000 Search

Here are the actual results from searching patent family information for EP1000000.

Actual Instruction

“Search for EP1000000 in Espacenet and investigate the patent family information in detail.”

Execution Results

✅ Automatic search execution – Found EP1000000A1 in Espacenet
✅ Patent family retrieval – Identified 5 family members
✅ Detailed data extraction – Both Simple Family and INPADOC Family
✅ Screenshot capture – Evidence of search results

Search time: Completed in about 3 minutes (Significantly reduced compared to manual search)

Retrieved Patent Family Information

Patent Number	Country/Region	Publication Date	Title
ATE232441T1	Austria	2003-02-15	VORRICHTUNG ZUR HERSTELLUNG VON STEINFORMLINGEN FÜR DIE ZIEGELINDUSTRIE
EP1000000A1	European Patent	2000-05-17	Apparatus for manufacturing green bricks for the brick manufacturing industry
EP1000000B1	European Patent	2003-02-12	Apparatus for manufacturing green bricks for the brick manufacturing industry
NL1010536C2	Netherlands	2000-05-15	Inrichting voor het vervaardigen van vormlingen voor de steenindustrie
US6093011A	United States	2000-07-25	Apparatus for manufacturing green bricks for the brick manufacturing industry

🚀How to Use Espacenet Search

Step 1: Launch Claude Desktop

Launch Claude Desktop that you configured in the previous article.

Step 2: Give Instructions in Natural Language

Basic patent family search:

"Search for EP1234567 in Espacenet and provide the patent family information.
Include the patent status and technical field in a table format."

Batch search for multiple patents:

"Search for patent families in Espacenet for the following patents:
US8123456, EP2345678, CN101234567
Summarize the patent status in major countries in table format."

Step 3: Claude Executes Automatically

✅ Executes search in Espacenet
📊 Retrieves patent family information
🔍 Confirms patent status
📄 Organizes results in table format
📸 Saves screenshots (Search evidence)

🛠️Initial Setup (July 2025 Update)

🆕 July 2025 Update: About Playwright MCP Selection

This article uses @executeautomation/playwright-mcp-server, but there are actually two options for Playwright MCP:

Microsoft Official: @playwright/mcp@latest
ExecuteAutomation Version: @executeautomation/playwright-mcp-server (used in this article)

For my experience choosing between them and detailed comparison of features and selection criteria, please see “My Dilemma Choosing Between Playwright MCPs”.

💡 Both work fine for patent family searches
The procedures in this article work the same way with either Playwright MCP.

Recommended Setup: Using Dedicated Browser

There are two setup methods for Playwright MCP, but we recommend using the dedicated browser:

✅ Stable operation, environment-independent
✅ Not affected by Google Chrome version

Step 1: Install Dedicated Browser (First time only)

Open Command Prompt
- Windows + R → cmd → Enter
Run the following command
```
npx playwright install chromium
```
Note: This uses approximately 280MB of disk space

Step 2: Claude Desktop Configuration

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "playwright": {
      "command": "npx", 
      "args": ["-y", "@executeautomation/playwright-mcp-server"]
    }
  }
}

🌍Other Patent Office Databases (Supplementary Use)

After basic searches in Espacenet, you can check details in individual country databases as needed.

J-PlatPat (Japan)

Use case: Detailed analysis of Japanese applications

"Search for JP2023-123456 in J-PlatPat and investigate 
the prosecution history and cited references in detail."

USPTO Patent Center (United States)

Use case: Detailed US prosecution history

Note: Manual download recommended for PDFs

🔧Troubleshooting

Issue 1: “Playwright browser is not installed”

Solution:

Open Command Prompt
Run npx playwright install chromium
Restart Claude Desktop

Issue 2: Error with specific database