PCT(Patent Cooperation Treaty) Drawings Image File Converter to TIFF(.TIF) Format

 

Tired of Bad PCT Image Converters? I Built a Better One.

When filing an international patent application under the Patent Cooperation Treaty(PCT), your drawings must meet strict standards. They need to be drawn with sharp, clear, dark black lines of uniform thickness, without any color or shading.

But the real headache for many patent professionals isn't the drawing itself—it's the file format. When submitting electronically, drawings must be TIFF files that meet a very specific, and frankly, outdated set of requirements:

• Group 4 (G4) Compression
• Intel Byte Order
• Single-Strip Format

These standards are based on old fax machine technology, which is why most modern, user-friendly image converters—whether free or paid—simply don't handle them correctly.

The problem gets worse when you receive drawings from inventors as JPEGs or PNGs—often screenshots, graphs from research papers, or photographs filled with color and shading. Converting these into compliant TIFF files is a nightmare.

Sure, some official tools exist, like the one provided by KIPO (the Korean Intellectual Property Office). But frankly, they are often a source of frustration. In my experience, they are:

1. Slow and inefficient.
2. Clunky to use, with inconvenient folder selection.
3. Prone to producing low-quality results.
4. Lacking smart resizing—they don't automatically adjust oversized images to fit within the required dimensions.

Frustrated by this process, I decided to build my own solution in my spare time.

Introducing: The PCT Image Converter

You can download the latest version here:

 

Releases · iygfa/PCT-Image-Converter

 

This tool is designed to solve all the problems I mentioned above. Here’s what it can do:

1. Full PCT Compliance, Guaranteed The converter ensures all output files meet the technical requirements for PCT filings, including: Group 4 compression, 1-bit black & white conversion, Intel byte order, single-strip formatting, and 300 DPI resolution.

2. Advanced & Intelligent Resizing It automatically shrinks images that exceed the maximum size specifications. You also have the option to enlarge smaller images, and all resizing operations use the high-quality Lanczos resampling algorithm to preserve detail.

3. Streamlined Workflow No more clunky folder pickers. You can type or paste file paths directly. If the output folder doesn't exist, the program will automatically create it for you.

4. Powerful Image Enhancement to Minimize Quality Loss Converting complex images to 1-bit black and white inevitably degrades quality. To combat this, I’ve included several advanced image processing features to help you get the best possible result:

• Unsharp Mask: Sharpen edges and improve clarity.
• Minimum Filter (Elode): Thin out lines and reduce noise.
• Top-Hat/Bottom-Hat Transforms: Enhance fine details and correct uneven shading.
• Selectable Dithering Algorithms: Choose the best method for preserving tones and textures from the original image.

5. Real-Time Preview See exactly how your converted image will look before you save it. Adjust the settings on the fly until the result is perfect.

This tool was built to make one tedious part of the patent filing process a little bit easier. I hope it saves you as much time and frustration as it has saved me. Give it a try!

 

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*Translated by Gemini-2.5-pro