Setting up alerts

Recommended:  Using update codes in alerts

Alerts can be set up to monitor new information entered into the Orbit Intelligence databases. 

They allow you to be notified on new patent data within a certain technology field, from specific competitors, or to monitor selected patents. Only the  first 1000 results will be available for each execution of an alert.

Practically any search query can be run as an alert. However, certain searches like citations or similarity will not give you all the results each week/month, due to the limitation used by the system.

Alerts can be set up on patents databases, designs databases, or to monitor online legal registers (see our specific tool Legal Status Alerts). 

This article focuses on alerts in the patents databases. 

NOTE:

thanks to the new search engine implementation, alerts' notifications can now be received on Saturdays (weekly or monthly configurations); thus no more need to wait for the following week to monitor the Orbit database updates.

This delivery schedule may vary depending on the size of the database update and on the delays of our data sources.

In any case, the results of your alerts should be available on your accounts on Mondays AM. 

To set up an alert:

• Run a search on any of the three patent collections in Orbit Intelligence
  • In the example below we use the FamPat database
• Go to 'Search history' > click the 'Alert' link
  • As an alternative you can press the “A” key on your keyboard.

In the alert setup page, define the alert parameters:

 

General section 

You will here give the alert a Name and a Title + specify the frequency (weekly or monthly).    

• The Name of the alert will be stored in your account: it may contain your own codes to recognize the alert. Warning: RSS alert name does not include space character. 
• The Title will be the title received by all recipients: it can be a bit longer and more descriptive.

• Run alert frequency:
  • The default option is "Retrieve records once they have an abstract":
    • This will monitor new records (in the case of FamPat, new families) and produce a hit only once an abstract is available, so as to be certain one has enough content to assess the result 
    • This corresponds to the update codes UMTA (weekly) and UMT4 (monthly)
      
  • If you want to monitor more than only new records with abstracts, deselect this default option:
    • It will allow you to enter the update codes that match your needs. 
    • Update codes are used to specify which types of new information should be monitored, for example new family members or new legal information. 
    • Whenever the box Documents with abstract only is unchecked and no code is indicated in the Specific Monitoring Field(s) line, the following monitoring fields are used:
      - weekly: QW code (FamPat and Fullpat)
      - monthly: QM code (FamPat and Fullpat)
    • See article 'Using update codes in alerts'

Please note that if you deselect the default option "Retrieve records once they have an abstract" without entering any update codes in the update code text box, your alert will be automatically set to QW update code. The QW code will not be displayed even if you enter and save it in the update code text box.

Strategy section
It contains your alert strategy - it is by default populated by the search you have carried out. 
You can modify the strategy by adding or deleting search steps, or by making changes to individual steps. 



Collections to survey
The database that was used in your search is preselected - you can also modify it here. 
If you change the database, don’t forget that the searchable fields may vary depending on the selected database.



Delivery format
3 delivery options are available:
 
1) Excel file 
The file formats available are the same as those of regular exports. 
The latest option used is preselected - you can change file format using the modify button. 

2) Workfile
Your alert will automatically populate a Workfile.
You can select the directory in which you would like the Workfile to be created - the system will automatically generate the Workfile the 1st time the alert runs.

NB: The Workfile will bear the name of the alert - Alerts Workfiles should not be renamed in the Workfile module.

3) RSS reader flow

The link to the RSS feed is already available at the alert creation. No email will be sent : the objective is to retreive the results from your RSS reader software automatically. More details about RSS here.

Warning: RSS alert name does not include space character. 

Alert results are sent via email - you can add up to 23 recipients per alert:
You can  manage your alerts under the section "My Alerts": 

Edit or Delete an Alert 

In the section My Alerts, select the desired action at the end of the line.

Alert results
In addition to the emails notifications, alerts results are also stored in your alerts portfolio for one year from the last execution date, and results from Workfiles alerts are stored in the Workfile. 

NOTE: Our new and improved Advanced Search is different than the one on this video. An updated video will soon be available.