Patent filing and searching: Is deflation in quality the inevitable consequence of hyperinflation in quantity?

Abstract

Roughly one million patent applications are filed each year world-wide. Many describe a small improvement upon the state of the art. The increasing volume of information makes determining the true state of the art almost impossible. Thus many "doubtful" applications are being filed and granted, increasing workload and reducing efficiency. It is a vicious cycle of inflation in numbers leading to deflation in quality.