Make full utilization of family members.
Somtimes they provide very good insights (which i call as internal insights: insights coming from the patent family in question)
Family members can be utilized in various manner.
The first very important use of family members is using their backward and forward citations. Sometimes while doing citation analysis we only check citations of the subject patent as they provide insights on the art that have already been found by the examiner.
Citations of family members are very helpful when a family member was filed after the subject patent. In this case the examiner may find new art that has not been covered under citations of the subject patent.
This is also true when you find a relevant prior art for the subject patent. Do not forget to check family members of the relevant prior art and their citations. Sometimes they may provide a prior art that is more relevant than the one found earlier.
