---
name: MPEP Search
slug: mpep-search
category: SEO
description: MPEP Search retrieves relevant passages from the MPEP, 35 USC, 37 CFR, and recent Federal Register updates. Use it to find patent law support for enablement, written description, regulations, and related patent questions.
github: "https://github.com/RobThePCGuy/Claude-Patent-Creator/tree/main/skills/mpep-search"
language: Python
stars: 179
forks: 27
install: "npx degit https://github.com/RobThePCGuy/Claude-Patent-Creator/tree/main/skills/mpep-search ~/.claude/skills/mpep-search"
installs_to: ~/.claude/skills/mpep-search
source_path: skills/mpep-search/SKILL.md
collection_size: 17
category_size: 197
collection_url: "https://dirskills.com/collections/RobThePCGuy/Claude-Patent-Creator"
added: 2026-09-07T05:20:34.462Z
last_synced: 2026-09-07T05:20:34.462Z
canonical_url: "https://dirskills.com/skills/mpep-search"
---

# MPEP Search

MPEP Search retrieves relevant passages from the MPEP, 35 USC, 37 CFR, and recent Federal Register updates. Use it to find patent law support for enablement, written description, regulations, and related patent questions.

**Install:**

```bash
npx degit https://github.com/RobThePCGuy/Claude-Patent-Creator/tree/main/skills/mpep-search ~/.claude/skills/mpep-search
```

## README

# MPEP Search Skill

Search MPEP corpus through hybrid RAG (FAISS vector + BM25 keyword + HyDE + cross-encoder reranking).

**Sources:**
- MPEP: Manual of Patent Examining Procedure
- 35 USC: United States Code Title 35
- 37 CFR: Code of Federal Regulations Title 37
- Subsequent Publications: Federal Register updates (post-Jan 2024)

## Core Operations

### 1. `search_mpep`

**Inputs:**
- `query` (string, required): Search query (minimum 3 characters)
- `top_k` (int, optional): Number of results (default: 5, max: 20)
- `retrieve_k` (int | None, optional): Candidates before reranking (default: top_k * 4, max: 100)
- `source_filter` (string | None, optional): Filter by source (`"MPEP"`, `"35_USC"`, `"37_CFR"`, `"SUBSEQUENT"`, or `None`)
- `is_statute` (bool | None, optional): Filter for statute content
- `is_regulation` (bool | None, optional): Filter for regulation content
- `is_update` (bool | None, optional): Filter for recent updates

**Outputs:**
```python
{
    "rank": int,
    "source": str,
    "section": str,
    "file": str,
    "page": int,
    "has_statute": bool,
    "has_mpep_ref": bool,
    "has_rule_ref": bool,
    "is_statute": bool,
    "is_regulation": bool,
    "is_update": bool,
    "relevance_score": float,
    "text": str,
    # Optional for SUBSEQUENT:
    "doc_type": str,
    "fr_citation": str,
    "effective_date": str
}
```

**Examples:**
```python
# Basic search
search_mpep("enablement requirement 35 USC 112", top_k=5)

# Search only statutes
search_mpep("written description", top_k=10, is_statute=True)

# Search recent updates
search_mpep("AI inventorship", is_update=True)

# Filter by source
search_mpep("fee schedule", source_filter="37_CFR")
```

### 2. `get_mpep_section`

Retrieve all content from specific MPEP section.

**Inputs:**
- `section_number` (string, required): MPEP section number (e.g., `"2100"`, `"608.01"`)
- `max_chunks` (int, optional): Maximum chunks to return (default: 50)

**Outputs:**
```python
{
    "section": str,
    "total_chunks": int,
    "chunks": [
        {
            "text": str,
            "metadata": {
                "source": str,
                "file": str,
                "page": int,
                "section": str,
                "has_statute": bool,
                "has_mpep_ref": bool,
                "has_rule_ref": bool,
                "is_statute": bool,
                "is_regulation": bool,
                "is_update": bool
            }
        }
    ]
}
```

**Error Response:**
```python
{"error": "No content found for MPEP section {section_number}"}
```

**Examples:**
```python
# Get MPEP 2100 (Patentability)
get_mpep_section("2100", max_chunks=50)

# Get subsection
get_mpep_section("608.01")
```

## Input Validation

**Query validation:**
- Minimum 3 characters
- Case-insensitive
- No empty/whitespace-only queries

**Section number validation:**
- Numeric with optional decimal (e.g., "100", "2100", "608.01")

**Limits:**
- `top_k` capped at 20
- `retrieve_k` capped at 100

## Implementation Notes

**Index Location:**
- FAISS index: `mcp_server/index/mpep_index.faiss`
- Metadata: `mcp_server/index/mpep_metadata.json`
- BM25 index: `mcp_server/index/mpep_bm25.json`

**Search Architecture:**
1. HyDE Query Expansion (hypothetical documents)
2. Hybrid Retrieval (FAISS vector + BM25 keyword via RRF)
3. Cross-Encoder Reranking (final relevance scores)
4. Metadata Filtering (source/type filters)

**Dependencies:**
- sentence-transformers (BGE-base-en-v1.5)
- FAISS (vector search)
- rank-bm25 (keyword search)
- Cross-encoder (reranking)
- HyDE (optional, graceful degradation)

**Error Handling:**
- Clear error messages for missing index/invalid queries
- Graceful degradation if HyDE fails
- Input validation before processing