U.S. commerce secretary Gary Locke recently announced the names of several new appointees to the Patent Public Advisory Committee and the Trademark Public Advisory Committee.

Three members were appointed to each committee.

New PPAC members include Louis Foreman, founder and chief executive of integrated product design and engineering firm Enventys; Esther Kepplinger, who currently serves as director for patent operations at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati; and Wayne Sobon, director of intellectual property for Accenture.

The three newly appointed TPAC members are Anne Chasser, University of Cincinnati vice president for intellectual property; Deborah Hampton, intellectual property manager at Limited Brands; and Maury Tepper, an intellectual property attorney.

"The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office faces tough challenges as it works to reduce its backlog of patent applications, enhance patent and trademark quality and become more efficient," said Locke. "Input from these advisory committees is critical to our efforts to support American innovation, create U.S. jobs and make U.S. businesses more competitive in the global economy."

The TPAC and PPAC committees were both created by the 1999 American Inventors Protection Act. Their official purpose is to advise the secretary of commerce and the director of the USPTO on matters pertaining to intellectual property management.