Also, when the claims of the application do not relate to one invention only, nor to a group of inventions linked so as to form a single general inventive concept, the search will normally be restricted to the invention or the linked group of inventions first mentioned in the claims (see B‑VII and F‑V, 3.4). Restriction of the search for the above reasons will be notified to the applicant in a communication accompanying the partial search report (see B‑VII, 1.2).[Rule 64; ]
Source: http://www.epo.org/law-practice/legal-texts/html/guidelines/e/b_iii_3_12.htm
Date retrieved: 17 May 2021