Summary and closing a case

What the summary is

The Summary region holds the search record of the case: "The search record of this case: composed by code from what was searched, found and decided, then edited by the examiner in new versions. Every earlier version is kept. Every paragraph and list item outside "Examiner notes" cites the manifest, evidence, decision or claim feature it rests on."

Compose from the case record saves a new version: "Saves a new version composed by code (summary_compose_v2) from the stored features, plan, searches, references and decisions. Earlier versions are kept." The same stored record always composes the same text. No language model writes any part of the composed text.

The Summary region of a synthetic case: Compose from the case record and Edit, the versions list with a comparison of version 1 and version 2, the cited sections Claim features searched, Searches run and References found, an Examiner notes section, the resolved citations, the Adopt form, the Narrative draft section with Draft a narrative, the record metadata, and the Close the case and Export the record sections. — A search summary composed by code, edited by the examiner, with every citation resolved. Screenshot of the product's test fixtures: placeholder records and patent numbers, not search results.

Edit in new versions

Edit opens "Edit as a new version". Every edit is saved as a new version, and every earlier version is kept. Compare with shows what changed between two versions.

Every paragraph and list item outside "Examiner notes" must cite the manifest, evidence, decision or claim feature it rests on. Check citations shows which citations do not resolve within the case. "A version with flags can be saved; it cannot be adopted or closed on until they are resolved."

A drafted narrative

Under "Narrative draft" the case owner can ask for a narrative: "A language model can draft a short narrative of this search summary from the statements the summary already cites. Code checks each sentence and refuses any that fails. Nothing enters the record until you apply the draft as a new version; you can discard it instead." Draft a narrative makes one call to the model. The sentences that pass the checks are offered under "Draft ready to apply", each shown with the statements it cites. Apply as a new version saves the draft as a new version, which names the model that drafted it, and Discard this draft drops it with a reason. The checks do not compare a sentence's meaning with the statements it cites, so read each sentence against them before you apply the draft.

Adopt and close

Only the latest version can be adopted. "Resolve the citation flags in this version before adopting it." Adopting is a recorded decision.

Under Close the case, Close case asks for confirmation before it closes the case; Keep the case open keeps it open. "Adopt the latest version, with no citation flags, before closing the case."

A closed case is final. "This case is closed: its summary is final and nothing more can be saved." Every later change to it is refused, from every region and every pipeline step. A search that was already running when the case closed runs to its end, but it is not rolled up into the references, and the case says so.

When a case is complete

A case becomes Complete when every plan item the examiner sent, in every plan version, has finished: its search is in the references or has failed, or its pattern search has ended. The Case region says what still stands between the case and that status. Completion is computed by code from stored rows only. Closing is the examiner's decision, and the close dialog lists any search or plan item still outstanding.

Export the case record

Export the record… opens "Export the case record": "Choose a format and a redaction profile. The file is the case record of the summary version shown: the summary with every citation resolved, the case's searches, references and decisions and, in the PDF, each search's diligence section. Nothing is chosen for you." The formats are JSON and PDF (tagged document). PDF exports are tagged, and they make no PDF/UA-1 conformance claim. Each export passes through the redaction stage described in Shortlist and export.

Limits

Only the case owner composes, edits, adopts and closes: "Only the case's owner can compose, edit, adopt or close."
The case record's PDF cannot be made for a recipient outside the examining office, because its per-search diligence sections cannot be redacted. Export JSON instead.