OA Citations Client

clients.oa_citations - Client for USPTO Office Action Citations API.

This module provides a client for interacting with the USPTO Office Action Citations API (v2). It allows users to search citation data from Office Actions mailed from October 1, 2017 to 30 days prior to the current date, derived from Form PTO-892, Form PTO-1449, and Office Action text.

class pyUSPTO.clients.oa_citations.OACitationsClient(config=None, base_url=None)[source]

Bases: BaseUSPTOClient[OACitationsResponse]

Client for interacting with the USPTO Office Action Citations API.

This client provides methods to search for citation data referenced in Office Actions. The API refreshes daily and uses information derived from citations on Form PTO-892, Form PTO-1449, and Office Action text.

ENDPOINTS = {'get_fields': 'api/v1/patent/oa/oa_citations/v2/fields', 'search': 'api/v1/patent/oa/oa_citations/v2/records'}
__init__(config=None, base_url=None)[source]

Initialize the OACitationsClient.

Parameters:

  • config (USPTOConfig | None) – USPTOConfig instance containing API key and settings. If not provided, creates config from environment variables (requires USPTO_API_KEY).

  • base_url (str | None) – Optional base URL override for the USPTO OA Citations API. If not provided, uses config.oa_citations_base_url or default.

get_fields()[source]

Retrieve available fields and API metadata for the OA Citations API.

Returns:

API metadata including available field

names and last data update timestamp.

Return type:

OACitationsFieldsResponse

Examples

>>> fields_response = client.get_fields()
>>> print(fields_response.field_count)
16
>>> print(fields_response.api_status)
'PUBLISHED'
paginate(post_body=None, **kwargs)[source]

Provide an iterator to paginate through citation search results.

Automatically handles pagination using Solr-style start/rows parameters. The start parameter is managed internally; providing it will raise a ValueError.

Parameters:

  • post_body (dict[str, Any] | None) – Optional POST body dict for complex search queries.

  • **kwargs (Any) – Keyword arguments passed to search().

Returns:

An iterator yielding OACitationRecord objects.

Return type:

Iterator[OACitationRecord]

Examples

# Paginate through all 103 rejections with examiner-cited references >>> for record in client.paginate( … legal_section_code_q=”103”, … examiner_cited_reference_indicator_q=True, … rows=50, … ): … print(record.parsed_reference_identifier)

# Paginate with POST body >>> for record in client.paginate( … post_body={“criteria”: “techCenter:2800”, “rows”: 50} … ): … process(record)

search(criteria=None, sort=None, start=0, rows=25, post_body=None, patent_application_number_q=None, legal_section_code_q=None, action_type_category_q=None, tech_center_q=None, work_group_q=None, group_art_unit_number_q=None, examiner_cited_reference_indicator_q=None, applicant_cited_examiner_reference_indicator_q=None, create_date_time_from_q=None, create_date_time_to_q=None, additional_query_params=None)[source]

Return citation records matching the given criteria.

This method performs a POST request (form-urlencoded) to search for Office Action citation records. You can provide either a direct post_body, a criteria string, or use convenience parameters.

Parameters:

  • criteria (str | None) – Direct Solr query string (e.g., "patentApplicationNumber:16845502").

  • sort (str | None) – Sort order for results (e.g., "createDateTime desc").

  • start (int | None) – Starting index for pagination (default: 0).

  • rows (int | None) – Maximum number of records to return (default: 25).

  • post_body (dict[str, Any] | None) – Optional POST body dict for complex queries. When provided, all other parameters are ignored.

  • patent_application_number_q (str | None) – Filter by patent application number.

  • legal_section_code_q (str | None) – Filter by legal section code (e.g., "101", "103").

  • action_type_category_q (str | None) – Filter by action type (e.g., "rejected").

  • tech_center_q (str | None) – Filter by technology center code.

  • work_group_q (str | None) – Filter by work group code.

  • group_art_unit_number_q (str | None) – Filter by group art unit number.

  • examiner_cited_reference_indicator_q (bool | None) – Filter by examiner-cited indicator.

  • applicant_cited_examiner_reference_indicator_q (bool | None) – Filter by applicant-cited examiner reference indicator.

  • create_date_time_from_q (str | None) – Filter from this create date ("YYYY-MM-DD").

  • create_date_time_to_q (str | None) – Filter to this create date ("YYYY-MM-DD").

  • additional_query_params (dict[str, Any] | None) – Additional custom POST body parameters.

Returns:

Response containing matching citation records.

Return type:

OACitationsResponse

Examples

# Search with a direct criteria string >>> response = client.search( … criteria=”patentApplicationNumber:16845502” … )

# Search with convenience parameters >>> response = client.search( … legal_section_code_q=”103”, … examiner_cited_reference_indicator_q=True, … rows=50, … )

# Search with POST body >>> response = client.search( … post_body={“criteria”: “techCenter:2800”, “rows”: 100} … )