Japan Patent Office

The Japan Patent Office is a Japanese governmental agency in charge of industrial property right affairs, under the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. The Japan Patent Office is located in Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda, Tokyo and is one of the world's largest patent offices. The Japan Patent Office's mission is to promote the growth of the Japanese economy and industry by administering the laws relating to patents, utility models, designs, and trademarks. Copyright affairs are administered by the Agency for Cultural Affairs. The current Commissioner of the JPO is Koichi Hamano. The Japan Patent Office is headed by a commissioner and consists of seven departments: General Affairs Department Trademark, Design, and Administrative Affairs Department, in charge of examining trademark right applications, design right applications and formalities check of all applications including patent applications First Patent Examination Department, examining patent applications related to applied physics, optics, and architecture Second Patent Examination Department, examining patent applications related to machinery Third Patent Examination Department, examining patent applications related to chemistry, pharmacy, and biotechnology Fourth Patent Examination Department, examining patent applications related to electronics, telecommunication, and information technology Appeals Department The commissioner of the JPO is appointed from among the higher officials of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and generally serves for at most two years. During the Edo period, the Tokugawa shogunate discouraged inventions in order to preserve the stability of the feudal society. In fact, Tokugawa Yoshimune, the eighth shōgun of the Tokugawa dynasty, decreed in 1721 the "Ban on Novelty" (新規御法度 shinki gohatto), which was intended to prohibit everything novel, especially clothing of rich design. In 1868, the Tokugawa shogunate ended and a new reformist government took its place (the Meiji Restoration).