United States Patent Office (USPTO)
USPTO is an agency of the Department of Commerce, and its role is to grant patents as well as to protect new inventions and register trademarks. It is also responsible for the preservation, classification and dissemination of patent information.
USPTO Patent Full-Text and Full-Page Image Databases
For the use of the general public with many search options and help screens available on the site to assist the user.
National Technical Information Service (NTIS)
The main resource for government sponsored scientific, technical and engineering information. NTIS indexes these reports and makes them available to the public. NTIS charges a nominal fee for its publications since the law requires it to be self-supporting. NTIS provides access to millions of documents published after 1990 and it covers over 350 subject areas.
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
An agency within the U.S. Commerce Department's Technology Administration. NIST 's “mission is to develop and promote measurements, standards, and technology to enhance productivity, facilitate trade and improves the quality of life.” It conducts and supports scientific and engineering research and offers more than 100 databases for the scientific, technical, and engineering communities.
NIST Publications, apart from other information, provides a list of NIST online databases with descriptions and provides online access to them. There are 26 databases at present that include Atomic Spectra databases, Chemistry Web Book, Protein Databank, and a web version of the Standard Reference Database 60.
Federal Information Processing Standards Publications (FIPS)
Another important set of Standards that is produced by the NIST. These standards are used by the government and are concerned with portability of data, software, and computer security.
