Patent Documents as a Source of Technological Information in Brazil: a user study of the Program of Automatic Supply of Technological Information (PROFINT).

PROFINT is a program of the Brazilian National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI) which sends technological information contained in patent documents to companies registered in the program. This paper presents the results of a survey of users of PROFINT, identifying: a) the profile of these users; 2) their use of the patent system; and c) the results obtained from using technological information from patent documents. The work was based on documentary research and the application of questionnaires. The research showed that patent documents are being used as instruments of competitive intelligence, providing strategic information to assist managers of technology and innovation to generate and improve products and processes. Although the users of PROFINT also make use of other sources of information, the importance attributed to technological information obtained from patent documents was considered high. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]