Pour précision, est-ce que traitement des demandes des brevets ne se réfère pas uniquement aux actions qui précèdent le dépôt du brevet ?
Patent prosecution describes the interaction between applicants and their representatives, and a patent office with regard to a patent, or an application for a patent. Broadly, patent prosecution can be split into pre-grant prosecution, which involves negotiation with a patent office for the grant of a patent, and post-grant prosecution, which involves issues such as post-grant amendment and opposition.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patent_prosecution