MPEP 2125: Drawings as Prior Art

Answer in brief

Under MPEP 2125, "drawings and pictures can anticipate claims if they clearly show the structure which is claimed". The picture must show all the claimed structural features and how they fit together. Proportions in patent drawings are not evidence of actual dimensions unless the reference says the drawings are to scale.

What MPEP 2125 covers

A reference is prior art for everything it teaches, including what its figures show.

Drawings may anticipate if they clearly disclose every claimed feature.
Arguments based on measuring patent drawings fail when the reference does not state that the drawings are to scale.

How examiners use it

Examiners cite figures directly in rejections. Applicants can argue a figure does not clearly show the claimed arrangement.

On the patent bar

Know the scale rule: drawings are not presumed to be to scale.

Read the full text

Official title: Drawings as Prior Art [R-10.2019].

Read MPEP 2125 in full on Wysebridge ↗

Or at the source: USPTO MPEP § 2125.

Sources for this entry

USPTO — MPEP § 2125 USPTO
Official text of this section, Ninth Edition, Revision 01.2024.
Wysebridge MPEP Center Wysebridge (publisher of this site)
The full MPEP (9th Ed., Rev. 01.2024) free to read, with Wysebridge's estimated patent bar weight for each chapter.

Practical guidance is original editorial content. Company-published figures are the company's own claims and are labeled as such.

Continue this reading path

MPEP 2131: Anticipation Under 35 U.S.C. 102

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Cite or share this entry

MPEP.net. “MPEP 2125: Drawings as Prior Art.” Wysebridge Reference. Content reviewed 9 November 2026.
https://mpep.net/mpep-2125/