Plant Variety Journal - IP Australia

Plant Varieties Journal Vol. 23 Number 4
Interactive Variety Description System (IVDS)
For preparing the detailed description, the Plant Breeder’s Rights Office (PBRO) has
released the Interactive Variety Description System (IVDS) in the Internet
(https://pbr-ivds.ipaustralia.plantbreeders.gov.au/pbr_ivds/) for the Qualified Persons
(QPs).
In the beginning of April 2005, all QPs have officially been notified of this new
system giving them access to IVDS with their individual user name and
password. The main purpose of the system is to harmonise variety descriptions at both
national and international level and make the PBR application process as smooth and
efficient as possible.
The IVDS allows QPs to fill in descriptions on-line by accessing relevant test
guidelines and selecting specific characteristics with their various states of
expressions from the options provided. The IVDS incorporated all of the approved
UPOV test guidelines (and some national equivalents where a UPOV test guideline is
not available) into interactive forms with easy to use drop-down menus. QPs can
“build” their own additional/special characteristics if they are not available in the
guideline. The IVDS also accepts statistical information.
The IVDS emphasises the use of “grouping characteristics” in selecting comparator
varieties. Finally, it allows QPs to lodge the completed variety descriptions on-line.
There is a minimum typing involved in the process.
The PBRO anticipates that the QPs had the opportunity to familiarise themselves with
IVDS during the testing and demonstration phase (August – Dec 2004) and could
operate the system comfortably. There are step by step on-screen instructions with
examples in each step of IVDS, which will assist the QPs to complete the process
smoothly. In addition, PBRO is ready to help QPs, if they encounter any problem.
Please send an e-mail to pbr@ipaustralia.gov.au if there is a problem in completing
the description using IVDS.
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