The search division is responsible for drafting extended European search reports under Art. 92, including a search opinion pursuant to Rule 62(1), as well as for drafting all of the different types of search report referred to in B‑I, 1, and B‑II, 4. The search division is also responsible for issuing a pre-search invitation under Rule 62a(1) (see also B‑VIII, 4) to clarify or where necessary limit the subject-matter to be searched. The issuing of an invitation under Rule 63(1) is also within the responsibility of the search division (see B‑VIII, 3.1). Furthermore, in the case of lack of unity, it draws up a partial search report, a provisional opinion on the patentability of the invention or unitary group of inventions first mentioned in the claims (see F‑V, 3.4) and the reasons for non-unity findings, together with an invitation to pay additional search fees under Rule 64(1) or Rule 164(1) (see B‑VII, 1.2, and B‑XI, 5). The member of the search division responsible for the search on a European application is also normally the first member of the examining division for that application.[Art. 17; Art. 18; ]

2.1 Consultation with other examiners

2.2 Search division consisting of more than one member