Greetings from the Honolulu Patent and Trademark Resource Center (PTRC). Established on December 18, 1989, our PTRC is located at the Federal Documents Section of the Hawaii State Library in downtown Honolulu, Hawaii. As the only PTRC in the State of Hawaii and the Pacific Region, we support the diverse intellectual property needs of the public in the region.
Throughout the year we received a steady number of visits from individuals and groups seeking training on patent or trademark searching. We welcome walk-in, phone call, and e-mail requests for assistance. We can be reached by phone at (808) 586-3477 or email at ohsfed@librarieshawaii.org.
This year we created bulletin board displays showcasing patents related to various holidays in order to help raise awareness of intellectual property rights and how they impact our lives. These displays were viewed by more than 40,000 visitors to our section.
Later in the year we welcomed two new staff members to our section: Emelinda Caso as a library assistant, and Ashley Kajioka as a librarian, who got up to speed quickly on the various services we provide and are always looking for ways to do more for the community we serve.
We are planning to host various intellectual property seminars in the coming year, including IP Strategy is a Business Strategy featuring John Cabeca, the Director of the West Coast Regional U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and Trademark Basics: What Every Small Business Should Know Now, Not Later featuring Jason Lott, the Attorney Advisor for Trademark Educational Outreach at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in Alexandria, Virginia.
In celebration of Arbor Day in Hawaii there will be a plant patent seminar in November, featuring local attorneys Tracey L. Ohta and Seth M. Reiss. They both have expertise in intellectual property and technology laws. Reiss is also a registered patent attorney with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The seminar will be accompanied by a plant patent exhibit showcasing a variety of Hawaii’s plant patents. Ashely will be working on the design of the display panels.
In addition to PTRC services, we provide the public free access to official U.S. Government information as well as assistance in finding and using the information as a selective Federal Depository Library.
We also accept U.S. passport applications as a Passport Acceptance Facility on a walk-in basis from 10:00 am to 1 pm, Monday through Friday, and 9 am to 12 pm on Saturdays except for holidays. This is a very popular service that draws over 40,000 visitors to the library.
In addition, as a Hawaii State Data Center affiliate member, we support the statistical needs of the public and facilitate public access to the data products disseminated by the Census Bureau.