Discovery

Searching

Open Discovery, enter your question in plain language, and choose the types of records to search: research papers, patents, trademarks, or a combination. Discovery converts your question into a query for each database and searches the sources at the same time.

Each search costs 1 credit. Viewing additional pages of the same results is free. If none of the sources responds, the credit is refunded.

Where results come from

Discovery searches all sources for your selected record types by default. To limit the search, open Choose specific databases and select the databases you want. Above the results, you can see each source's record count or the reason it was not searched.

Reading results

Results are grouped by record type, with ten records per page. Each result card links to the original record.

• Papers show authors, journal and year, with Free PDF, Full text and citation badges.
• Patents show the assignee, inventors and patent number. Select Read claims to view the patent's claims.
• Trademarks show the owner, Live or Dead status, and classes. Select Filing history to view the filing record.
• Source badges identify the databases that supplied the record. Multiple badges mean that copies from different sources have been merged.

To export specific records, select their checkboxes before exporting.

Writing your own queries

Select Write the queries to enter queries in each database's own syntax. Select a database to display its query field. Discovery searches only the databases you select and provide a query for.

After a search, check Understood as to see how Discovery interpreted your question. Open Show the query sent to each source to inspect the queries used. Discovery flags syntax problems because some databases automatically modify invalid queries, which can change the results.

Exporting

Select Export above the results. Choose the record types to include, then choose an export option:

• What is on screen: export the displayed results immediately.
• Search deeper and export more: export up to 10,000 records of each type. The export runs in the background and appears on your Dashboard. You can run 2 exports at once.

Export papers as CSV or RIS, and patents and trademarks as CSV. Each record type gets its own file. You can include patent claims or trademark prosecution history and owner details, though these options take longer to export. All exports are free.

From Discovery to screening

Export your papers as RIS. Then open New Task, choose Abstract Screening, and upload the file. If you also upload records from other databases, use Remove duplicates to remove repeated records.

Keeping your results

Export any results you want to keep before reloading the page. Discovery retains search results when you switch tabs, but clears them when you reload. Export jobs remain available on your Dashboard.