A change of paradigms: looking back to the pioneer years of patent information management (1960-1990)

In the context of the journal's 25th anniversary, the author provides a wide ranging historical review of the patent information scene from 1960 to 1990, from the perspective of the providers and users of such information in a large chemical company. He notes the pioneering nature of much of the early activity, as the volume and complexity of patent information expanded rapidly--and continues to do so. Topics covered include: the advent of specialised abstracting services for this market (e.g. from Derwent Information), the adaptation of existing services (e.g. by Chemical Abstracts Service), bibliographic data services (e.g. INPADOC), indexing data (e.g. Derwent's Central Patent index, GREMAS and IDC), the Patent Documentation Group (PDG), topological systems, Markush structure searching, polymer chemistry, full text retrieval, online searching, patent information management systems, current awareness, World Patent Information, and the Internet.