- 1). Visit the USPTO website, www.uspto.gov. Under the "trademarks" heading, select option 2, "search marks." This link will take you to the main page of the TESS. For detailed help using TESS, click the blue "help" box at the top left-hand corner of the TESS main page, and/or the TESS TIPS link in the center of the main page.
- 2). Choose the search form you want to use. The USPTO recommends either the "new user form search" or the "structured form search" for first-time TESS users. The "structured form search" uses Boolean operators. You also may use the "free form search," browse the trademark dictionary or search by a trademark's publication or registration date. TESS allows you to toggle among these five search options during your search.
- 3). Enter your search term in the appropriate field. The new user form search and the structured form search will search among word marks only. For both words and images, use the free form search and use the category symbols at the bottom of the screen to narrow your search. If you are searching in the new user form, choose "plural and singular" and "live and dead" to return the widest field of possible matches. Click "submit query" to search the database.
- 4). Review your search results carefully. If they do not appear to match your search, you may want to try a new search, either by using another form or by altering your search terms.
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