H.—lo

1902. iNEW ZEALAND.

PATENTS, DESIGNS, AND TRADE MARKS: THIRTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE REGISTRAR.

Presented to both Houses of the General Assembly purstiant to Section 128 of " The Patents, Designs, and Trade Marks Act, 1889."

I have the honour to submit my report on the operations 'of the Patents, Designs, and Trade Marks Office for the year ended the 31st December, 1901. The total number of applications for the grant of letters patent for inventions and for the registration of designs and trade marks received during the year amounted to 1,511, a number considerably in excess of that of any previous year. The total number of applications in 1891 was 818, and the business of the office has therefore almost doubled itself in the decade. The number of applications for patents was 1,114, an increase of 105 over the previous year. The most numerous among last year's applications are those under the following headings: Extraction of gold and treatment of metals generally, 104; agricultural appliances (including seedsowers, chaff-cutters, &c), 61 ; vehicles (including cycles and parts thereof), 61; milk aerators and dairy appliances generally, 39 ; fire alarms and escapes, 37; dredging apparatus, 30; acetylene generators, 14; horse-covers, 10; spark-arresters, 8; linotypes, 7; and shearing appliances, 7. Local inventors are again well to the fore, the number of applications received from residents in the colony being 65.8, as against 602 in 1900, and 563 in 1899. The United Kingdom contributed 110, 10 less than the previous year, and the United States 124, an increase of 36 over the number received in 1900. 174 came from Australia and Tasmania, 13 more than the previous year. Nine applications were received under the International Convention. Seven names were added to the Eegister of Patent Agents during the year, bringing the total of registered agents up to 52. The number of applications to register trade marks was 379, an increase of 31 over the total for the preceding year. 172 applications were received from residents in the colony, 117 from the United Kingdom, 47 from the United States, and 48 from Australia. The figures for 1900 were respectively 167, 95, 12, and 71. The revenue of the office shows a slight falling-off, being £3,366 12s. 4d., or £30 4s. lid. less than for the previous year. The fees derived from patents amounted to £2,929 13s. 10d., or £30 4s. Id. more than last year. The small loss is in trade-mark revenue, which shows a fallingoff of £80 6s. 6d.— £408 10s., as against £488 16s. 6d. The figures for the current year, however, point to the revenue not only recovering itself, but showing a considerable increase over any previous years. The following table shows over a series of years the number of patents that were considered of sufficient value to be kept alive by payment of the renewal fees: —

It will be noticed that there is a considerable falling-off in respect of the number of patents in which the third-term fee of £10 has been paid. It may be that this fee is too high; but, on the other hand, if a patent is worth keeping alive at all it ought to be worth a fee of £10.

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Year. Number of Applications received. Number of Letters Patent granted. Number of Patents on which Second-term Fee paid. umber of Patents on which Final Pee paid. 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 614 589 606 625 756 816 992 1,093 364 348 326 333 349 362 478 517 80 78 84 . 99 88 113 118 136 37 23 37 47 31