Science and Technology
Main Library Louis Stokes Wing 3rd Floor 325 Superior Avenue Cleveland, OH 44114 216.623.2932 SciTech@cpl.org Manager: Sarah Dobransky About the Department Collections range from the physical and life sciences to applied technology, needlecraft, handicrafts, and cooking. This department serves students, researchers, casual readers, crafters, and a diverse industrial community. The department is also one of […]
Main Library
Louis Stokes Wing
3rd Floor
325 Superior Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44114
216.623.2932
SciTech@cpl.org
Manager: Sarah Dobransky
About the Department
Collections range from the physical and life sciences to applied technology, needlecraft, handicrafts, and cooking. This department serves students, researchers, casual readers, crafters, and a diverse industrial community.
The department is also one of the locations for The Seed Library at Cleveland Public Library in collaboration with the Cleveland Seed Bank. The primary goals of The Seed Library are to preserve biodiversity and to promote local, heirloom varieties of plants. The Seed Library allows you to “check out” a packet of heirloom seeds, grow your own heritage vegetables or flowers, save seeds from the best plants, and then lend them to a friend or neighbor, participate in a “seed swap,” or use them yourself next year. In addition to the downtown Science and Technology department, branches participating in The Seed Library program are Addison, Carnegie West, Jefferson, and the BookBox at Edgewater LIVE and at Wade Oval Wednesdays. Additional libraries in The Seed Library initiative are Willoughby Public Library, Coventry Village Branch of Heights Libraries, and West River Branch of Elyria Public Library. The Seed Library will be hosted at each location from the first day of spring in March through the first day of fall in September.
Along with The Seed Library, Science and Technology also recommends taking a look at Cleveland Growing Strong, a local grassroots project documenting the community garden and urban agriculture movement here in our city. The website features oral histories of pivotal people, locations, and organizations.
The Collection
Engineering
A collection grown in conjunction with Cleveland’s local industry. Metallurgy and chemical, civil and mechanical engineering. Biomechanics, fiber optics and nanotechnology.
Car and Truck Repair
Traditional printed shop manuals, ranging from a slim pre-WWI manual for the Model T Ford to the massive sets published by modern car makers.
Chemistry
Includes 100 years of cumulative indexes to Chemical Abstracts.
Cooking
Dazzling array of ethnic, local interest, and specialty cookbooks. Collection of Florence LaGanke Harris, home economics editor of the Plain Dealer and food editor of the Cleveland Press.
Crafts
Vast array of craft books on knitting, sewing, embroidery, crocheting, weaving, beading, quilting, scrapbooking, woodworking, and crafts periodicals.
Dogs
Over 3,000 volumes on specific breeds, stud books, care and training, canine psychology, and texts on breeding, showing and kennel management.
Gardening
Flowers, trees, shrubs, vegetables, houseplants, fruit, herbs. Garden design, landscape design, and organic gardening. How-to’s for the homesteader, the tree farmer, or the worm rancher. Pest control techniques.
Geology
Special focus on Ohio and the Great Lakes region. Soil surveys by county, field guides, guides to minerals, rocks and gemstones.
Health and Medicine
An extensive collection of books on health, medicine, wellness, diet, and exercise including materials for the medical professional and test preparation for medical studies. The department also provides recommended online health and medical resources and tips for being a savvy health information consumer.
Industry Standards
Standards developing organization (SDO) documents from groups such as ANSI, ASTM, and IEEE.
Schematics
Used in repairing radio, TV, and other electronic equipment. Sams Photofact and Sams VCRfacts Services, and Rider’s Perpetual Trouble Shooter’s Manuals.
Patent & Trademark Resource Center
- Disseminate Patent and Trademark Information
- Support Diverse Intellectual Property Needs of the Public
Intellectual Property is a legal umbrella term for creations of the mind. Creative works or ideas can be legally protected in four ways – patents, trademarks, copyrights, or trade secrets.
The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the Copyright Office derive their authority from Article I, Section 8, Clause 8 of the Constitution – the authors and inventors’ clause:
The Congress shall have Power To…promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries….
The USPTO reports to the Secretary of Commerce in the executive branch of government, while the Copyright Office reports to Congress in the legislative branch of government.
An Introduction to Intellectual Property Rights
What is a Patent?
A patent for an invention is the grant of a property right to the inventor, issued by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The right conferred by the patent grant is, in the language of the statute and of the grant itself, “the right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling” the invention in the United States or “importing” the invention into the United States.
If you have an invention that you’re thinking about patenting, your first step is going to be to search for existing patents that are similar to your idea. This short video (7m25s) from the University of Central Florida Libraries on How to Search for Patents is a good place to start to get an idea of the process involved:
Where can I read more about patents? Try www.uspto.gov/patents-getting-started/general-information-concerning-patents
What are the different types of patents?
The 3 main types of patents are Utility, Design, and Plant Patents.
- Utility patents may be granted to anyone who invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, article of manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof;
- Design patents may be granted to anyone who invents a new, original, and ornamental design for an article of manufacture; and
- Plant patents may be granted to anyone who invents or discovers and asexually reproduces any distinct and new variety of plant.
What is a Trademark?
A trademark is a word, phrase, symbol, and/or design that identifies and distinguishes the source of the goods of one party from those of others. A service mark is a word, phrase, symbol, and/or design that identifies and distinguishes the source of a service rather than goods. The term “trademark” is often used to refer to both trademarks and service marks.
Must all marks be registered? No, but federal registration has several advantages, including a notice to the public of the registrant’s claim of ownership of the mark, a legal presumption of ownership nationwide, and the exclusive right to use the mark on or in connection with the goods or services set forth in the registration.
Read more about trademarks here: www.uspto.gov/trademarks-getting-started/trademark-basics
Can sounds be trademarked? Yes, they are called soundmarks. Here are some examples: www.uspto.gov/trademark/soundmarks/trademark-sound-mark-examples
What is a Copyright?
A copyright protects works of authorship, such as writings, music, and works of art that have been tangibly expressed.
Overview of copyright: copyright.gov/about/
Copyright forms: www.copyright.gov/forms/
Should I tell someone my Trade Secret?
NO!
Basics on trade secrets:
- www.uspto.gov/patents-getting-started/international-protection/office-policy-and-external-affairs-patent-trade
- www.wipo.int/sme/en/ip_business/trade_secrets/patent_trade.htm
Additional Greater Cleveland Intellectual Property Resources
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We’re here to help, wherever you are in your journey!