The article presents a novel method that enables the formation of historical patent families. Patent families are useful for studying the value of inventions and identifying key technologies, as they indicate geographic diffusion and higher patenting costs. The concept of patent family has not been employed in historical contexts as historical sources generally lack information about priority rights. The article provides a definition of a historical patent family, where patent families incorporate patents with the same invention core. The method is applied and evaluated by constructing Swedish patent families in 1885–1914 with historical patent data from Finland and the United States. Moreover, the article introduces the Patent Diffusion Index (PDI), which is an indicator of historical patent families which can be used to study the sequence and pace of market entry. The article exemplifies how historical patent families open novel perspectives on patent value and technology diffusion in contrast to current indicators, such as patent fees, which usually are bound to national contexts. The method is applicable to any national patent data, and patent drawings are suggested as an effective way to form historical patent families.

中文翻译：

---

家族优先：定义、构建和应用历史专利家族


本文提出了一种能够形成历史专利家族的新方法。专利家族有助于研究发明的价值和确定关键技术，因为它们表明地理扩散和更高的专利成本。专利家族的概念没有在历史背景下使用，因为历史资料通常缺乏有关优先权的信息。本文提供了历史专利家族的定义，其中专利家族包含具有相同发明核心的专利。该方法是通过使用芬兰和美国的历史专利数据构建 1885-1914 年的瑞典专利家族来应用和评估的。此外，本文还介绍了专利扩散指数 （PDI），这是历史专利家族的指标，可用于研究进入市场的顺序和速度。本文举例说明了历史上的专利家族如何为专利价值和技术扩散开辟了新的视角，而当前指标（如专利费）通常与国家背景形成鲜明对比。该方法适用于任何国家的专利数据，建议将专利附图作为形成历史专利家族的有效方法。