Patent by Ouroboros Apps

Official4 tools

by LAHutchins91 · TypeScript

USPTO patent search and prior art lookup. Not legal advice

MCP Server: io.github.LAHutchins91/patent

This MCP server, io.github.LAHutchins91/patent, provides functionality described as “Patent by Ouroboros: USPTO and EPO search for AI assistants, over MCP.” The server is associated with a slug of io-github-lahutchins91-patent and focuses on patent searching across the USPTO and EPO, delivered via Model Context Protocol.

🛠️ Key Features

USPTO search support
EPO search support
Exposed over MCP

🚀 Use Cases

Searching patents relevant to AI assistants
Using an MCP-integrated workflow to query USPTO and EPO sources

⚡ Developer Benefits

Standardized access through Model Context Protocol (MCP)
Clear scope: USPTO and EPO searching for AI assistant–related patent material

⚠️ Limitations

Available information does not specify additional tools, parameters, authentication, or response formats

Captured live from the server via tools/list.

search_patents

Search public patent records by keywords, claim language, CPC class, assignee, inventor, or grant date. Every number in the result was returned by USPTO or EPO. Not legal advice.

Parameters8

keywords	string	optional	Words to find in the application or title and abstract.
claims	string	optional	Claim language. EPO searches claim text. USPTO matches these words across the file wrapper.
cpc	string	optional	CPC symbol, such as H04L or C07H19/207.
assignee	string	optional	Applicant or assignee name.
inventor	string	optional	Inventor name.
dateFrom	string	optional	Grant or publication date from, YYYY-MM-DD.
dateTo	string	optional	Grant or publication date to, YYYY-MM-DD.
limit	integer	optional	Maximum hits, 1 to 25.

Raw schema

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "keywords": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 400,
      "description": "Words to find in the application or title and abstract."
    },
    "claims": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 2000,
      "description": "Claim language. EPO searches claim text. USPTO matches these words across the file wrapper."
    },
    "cpc": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 30,
      "description": "CPC symbol, such as H04L or C07H19/207."
    },
    "assignee": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 200,
      "description": "Applicant or assignee name."
    },
    "inventor": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 200,
      "description": "Inventor name."
    },
    "dateFrom": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 10,
      "description": "Grant or publication date from, YYYY-MM-DD."
    },
    "dateTo": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 10,
      "description": "Grant or publication date to, YYYY-MM-DD."
    },
    "limit": {
      "type": "integer",
      "minimum": 1,
      "maximum": 25,
      "description": "Maximum hits, 1 to 25."
    }
  },
  "additionalProperties": false,
  "$schema": "http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#"
}

get_patent

Fetch one patent's title, abstract, claims, status, family, and citations from USPTO and, when configured, EPO. Missing text is omitted rather than filled in. Not legal advice.

Parameters1

patentNumber

string

required

Patent or publication number, such as US12000000, 12000000, or EP0351918.

Raw schema

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "patentNumber": {
      "type": "string",
      "minLength": 4,
      "maxLength": 32,
      "description": "Patent or publication number, such as US12000000, 12000000, or EP0351918."
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "patentNumber"
  ],
  "additionalProperties": false,
  "$schema": "http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#"
}

find_patent_citations

List documents cited by a patent and documents that cite it, using USPTO grant references, USPTO office-action citations, and EPO citation search. This is not the full PatentsView citation graph, which is paused. Not legal advice.

Parameters2

patentNumber	string	required	Patent or publication number.
direction	string	optional	citing: documents that cite this patent. cited_by: documents this patent cites. both is the default.

Raw schema

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "patentNumber": {
      "type": "string",
      "minLength": 4,
      "maxLength": 32,
      "description": "Patent or publication number."
    },
    "direction": {
      "type": "string",
      "enum": [
        "citing",
        "cited_by",
        "both"
      ],
      "description": "citing: documents that cite this patent. cited_by: documents this patent cites. both is the default."
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "patentNumber"
  ],
  "additionalProperties": false,
  "$schema": "http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#"
}

search_prior_art

Turn an idea description into a public-patent search and return the closest records the offices actually returned, with Google Patents links. Ranking counts overlapping words. It is not a patentability opinion. Not legal advice.

Parameters2

idea	string	required	What the invention is, in plain language.
limit	integer	optional	Maximum patents to return.

Raw schema

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "idea": {
      "type": "string",
      "minLength": 20,
      "maxLength": 4000,
      "description": "What the invention is, in plain language."
    },
    "limit": {
      "type": "integer",
      "minimum": 1,
      "maximum": 25,
      "description": "Maximum patents to return."
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "idea"
  ],
  "additionalProperties": false,
  "$schema": "http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#"
}

README.md7 KBView on GitHub

Patent by Ouroboros

Patent by Ouroboros is a remote MCP server for inventors, startup founders, patent agents and attorneys, and engineers who need to check whether an idea already appears in the public patent record.

It searches United States patent records on the USPTO Open Data Portal. Google Patents is used only as a link. Every patent number in a tool result is copied from a USPTO response. The server does not fill in numbers when USPTO does not answer.

This is not legal advice. It is not a substitute for a registered patent attorney or agent. A result is not an opinion on patentability, infringement, validity, or freedom to operate.

Hosted server

MCP server URL: https://patent-mcp.vercel.app/mcp (live, Streamable HTTP, OAuth sign-in)
Health: https://patent-mcp.vercel.app/health
Protected-resource metadata: https://patent-mcp.vercel.app/.well-known/oauth-protected-resource
Connect guide: https://patent-mcp.vercel.app/connect
Docs: https://ouroborosapps.com/docs/patent
Coverage on the hosted server: United States patents from the USPTO Open Data Portal.
Registry name: io.github.LAHutchins91/patent

Connect

The hosted MCP address is https://patent-mcp.vercel.app/mcp. A self-hosted copy uses its own origin plus /mcp. Locally that is http://127.0.0.1:8787/mcp.

Sign in when the assistant opens OAuth. Leave the client id and secret empty. The server supports OAuth 2.1 dynamic client registration and PKCE (S256). Do not paste a password or an office API key into the assistant.

Cursor, in ~/.cursor/mcp.json or a project .cursor/mcp.json:

json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "patent": {
      "url": "https://patent-mcp.vercel.app/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Claude Code:

bash

claude mcp add --transport http patent https://patent-mcp.vercel.app/mcp

ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok, and any other Streamable HTTP client: add the same URL, choose OAuth, and leave client id and secret blank. Full steps are on /connect.

A new account includes 14 days of search access. After the trial, Pro continues through Stripe Checkout. The amount is shown by Stripe, not in this repository.

server.json is the MCP Registry manifest (io.github.LAHutchins91/patent). Its remotes[0].url is the hosted server, https://patent-mcp.vercel.app/mcp, and its icon is https://patent-mcp.vercel.app/logo.jpg. A self-hosted copy should point both at its own origin.

Tools

search_patents — keywords, claim language, CPC class, assignee, inventor, and dates
get_patent — abstract, claims, status, family, and citations for one record
find_patent_citations — documents that cite a patent, and documents that patent cites
search_prior_art — an idea description in, the closest USPTO records and their Google Patents links out

Citation coverage is the USPTO grant document and USPTO office-action citations. The PatentsView citation graph is paused: USPTO paused the PatentsView PatentSearch API when PatentsView moved to the Open Data Portal on 20 March 2026.

Run locally

bash

npm install
cp .env.example .env
npm run dev

The server listens on port 8787. GET /health returns JSON. billingConfigured is true only when STRIPE_SECRET_KEY, STRIPE_PRICE_MONTHLY, and STRIPE_PRICE_YEARLY are all set.

bash

npm test
npm run typecheck

Tests call the public USPTO host. Office payloads that require a key are mocked. With USPTO_API_KEY in the environment, the live test uses that key instead of expecting the unauthenticated response.

Environment

Lawrence needs to supply:

Variable	Purpose
`APP_BASE_URL`	Public origin used as the OAuth issuer and Stripe return URL
`AUTH_SECRET`	Signs browser sessions. Required in production
`USPTO_API_KEY`	USPTO Open Data Portal key, sent as `X-API-KEY`. This is the key the hosted server uses.
`EPO_CONSUMER_KEY`	Leave unset on the hosted server. The unused client reads it only when a secret is set too.
`EPO_CONSUMER_SECRET`	Leave unset on the hosted server. Search stays on United States patents from USPTO.
`STRIPE_SECRET_KEY`	Existing Stripe secret
`STRIPE_PRICE_MONTHLY`	Existing monthly price id
`STRIPE_PRICE_YEARLY`	Existing yearly price id
`STRIPE_WEBHOOK_SECRET`	Stripe webhook signature secret
`STORAGE_BACKEND`	`memory` (default), `file`, `http`, or `blob`
`STORAGE_PATH`	JSON file used when the backend is `file`
`STORAGE_URL`	GET/PUT URL for one JSON document when the backend is `http`
`STORAGE_TOKEN`	Optional bearer token for that URL
`BLOB_READ_WRITE_TOKEN`	Vercel Blob read-write token. Vercel injects this for a linked store. Required when `STORAGE_BACKEND=blob`
`STORAGE_BLOB_PATH`	Blob pathname for the account document. Default `patent/accounts.json`

Do not create Stripe products or prices in this app. Do not commit secrets.

USPTO key

Create a USPTO.gov account.
Verify and link ID.me. That link is one time.
Open Open Data Portal getting started and request an API key.
Set USPTO_API_KEY.

Old PatentsView API keys do not work on the Open Data Portal.

Accounts and storage

Patent tools are stateless searches of United States patents on the USPTO Open Data Portal. Trial and subscription state, OAuth clients, and tokens live in one JSON document behind AccountStore.

memory keeps that document in the process. It is the default and is what local tests use. It does not survive a restart or a second serverless instance.
file writes STORAGE_PATH (default ./data/patent-store.json). Use it for Docker or a long-running Node process.
http GETs and PUTs the same document at STORAGE_URL. Point it at storage you already run. This server does not create a database.
blob stores the same document in Vercel Blob at STORAGE_BLOB_PATH (default patent/accounts.json). Set STORAGE_BACKEND=blob on Vercel. The Blob client uses BLOB_READ_WRITE_TOKEN, which Vercel injects when a Blob store is connected. Reads bypass the CDN cache. Writes send ifMatch and retry when another instance updated the document first.

OAuth clients, authorization codes, access tokens, and refresh tokens are fields in that document. The consent screen posts the authorization request with the approval; nothing about the grant is kept in process memory. Expired codes and refresh tokens are removed on each write.

Deploy

Vercel: the Express app is the default export of api/index.ts. vercel.json sends every path to that function and bundles logo.jpg into it, so /logo.jpg is served by the app and repository files such as /package.json are not static assets. Set the environment variables above, including STORAGE_BACKEND=blob. Point the Stripe webhook at https://<your-host>/billing/webhook.

Docker:

bash

docker build -t patent-mcp .
docker run --env-file .env -p 8787:8787 patent-mcp

What was verified

Locally, over Streamable HTTP: tools/list and each of the four tools, OAuth registration with PKCE, trial expiry, Stripe checkout request shape, and webhook signature verification. No live Stripe charge was made in tests.

Hosted: the server is deployed at https://patent-mcp.vercel.app. tools/list answers without a token, an unsigned tool call returns 401 with a WWW-Authenticate header, /.well-known/oauth-protected-resource returns 200, and /health reports the USPTO key as configured.

Patent by Ouroboros. More from Ouroboros: https://ouroborosapps.com

Install

Tools (4)

search_patentsget_patentfind_patent_citationssearch_prior_art

Remote endpoint

Streamable HTTP

Hosted server - connect over the network, no local install.

url

https://patent-mcp.vercel.app/mcp

Add to VS Code Add to Cursor

claude_desktop_config.json

json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "patent": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-remote",
        "https://patent-mcp.vercel.app/mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Desktop config is stdio-only; this bridges via mcp-remote. Native remote: Settings > Connectors.

MCP Server: io.github.LAHutchins91/patent

🛠️ Key Features

🚀 Use Cases

⚡ Developer Benefits

⚠️ Limitations

search_patents

get_patent

find_patent_citations

search_prior_art

Patent by Ouroboros

Hosted server

Connect

Tools

Run locally

Environment

USPTO key

Accounts and storage

Deploy

What was verified

Install

Remote endpoint

Related servers