Patent & Trademark Resource Center: Home

Patent and Trademark Resource Centers are a nationwide network of public, state and academic libraries designated by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to disseminate patent and trademark information. LSU Library was designated a PTRC in 1981 and is one of two PTRCs in Louisiana. The other Louisiana PTRC is John B. Cade Library at Southern University. Services are freely available to any Louisiana resident.

History and Background

IP Identifier: Learn to Identify and Protect Your Intellectual Property

Learn how to identify which of your creative ideas might be intellectual property assets and how to protect them by using the USPTO Intellectual Property (IP) Identifier.

Are you thinking about starting a business? Do you own one already? Or maybe you’re an inventor, artist, or designer. Maybe you sell goods online or in a store or provide a service to others. If so, you may have intellectual property.

The PTRC Representative can answer general questions about the patent and trademark process.

• Provide free brochures and forms on patents and trademarks in person or via mail
• Offer free one-on-one consultations by appointment
• Instruct patrons in the use of search tools such as PatFT (Patent Full-Text) and TESS (Trademark Electronic Search System)
• Direct patrons to legal assistance and resources.

USPTO Events

Every month, the USPTO hosts free, virtual workshops aimed at educating the public and supporting entrepreneurs and inventors on Intellectual Property basics and resources. Click the above link to register for the workshops that best meet your IP needs!

United States Patent and Trademark Office

Official website for the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Patent and Trademark Resource Centers by state

Find a PTRC near you.

Texas Regional Office

Extension of USPTO headquarters servicing Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas.

Is there an intellectual property (IP) term or concept you don't understand? The USPTO IP glossary may have the answer.

Intellectual Property: Creations of the mind—creative works or ideas embodied in a form that can be shared or can enable others to recreate, emulate, or manufacture them. There are four ways to protect intellectual property: patents, trademarks, copyrights, and/or trade secrets.

Patent: A property right granted by the government of the United States of America to an inventor "to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling the invention throughout the United States or importing the invention into the United States" for a limited time in exchange for public disclosure of the invention when the patent is granted.

Trademark: Any word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination of these things that identifies the source of goods or services. Businesses and individuals use trademarks with their goods or services so that customers recognize them in the marketplace and distinguish them from competitors.

Copyright: Protect works of authorship, such as writings, music, and works of art that have been tangibly expressed.

Trade Secret: Information that companies keep secret to give them an advantage over their competitors.