2 HB was originally introduced for the US Patent Office where it is used to describe letters of the alphabet that occur more than twice in a word. The USPTO decided that the use of 2 HB was confusing, and therefore removed it from US Patents in 1996. This resulted in a 2 HB symbol replacing the original HB.

2 HB was used in the UK before it was removed from patents on 28 January 2014 and has not been used in US patents since.

How has 2 HB changed over the years?

Since its removal from patents, 2 HB has also been used in the following way in different countries:

1. The name 2HB was used in Belgium and the Netherlands.

2. In Italy, 2HB replaced the letters QW, UU, UW and ZW.

3. In Spain and Portugal, 2HB replaced the letters AUS, AUF, AIV, AIE and AUK.

4. In Greece, the term, 2HB was used instead of HB.

5. In Italy, 2HB is used to describe letters that do not occur more than twice in a word.

6. In France and Brazil 2HB refers to letters that occur a third time, often twice in a word.

7. In New Zealand, 2HB is used by the NZ Patent Office to describe letters that occur more than once in a word.

The 2HB logo

The two symbols are used to represent 2 HB on UK, European and Australian patents. However, the symbols have been used in Australia since January 6th 2017 (Australian Patents Board Act 2018). They were never used in Belgium or the Netherlands, but we do still see them in other countries.

What does the 2HB logo represent?

2HB is used to describe letters that occur in more than two words in a word. However the two symbols are designed to be used in different words. It is important to note that many patents still use 3 letters to refer to 2HB, with some documents calling them 2HB II.

The 2HB logo can be found on the bottom of many patents, sometimes as a large white symbol.

The logo consists of a small circle surrounded by a circular ring. The circle is a logo that you may see in logos, websites, posters, trade journals and in magazines, such as PC Magazine. Also see UK Patents 2HB-B2 Logo and Australian Patent

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