What Are Design Patents?

What it Can Mean to a Small Business Owner or a Computer Programmer

For those of you who have managed to come up with a new product or service, and who are looking for unique avenues to brand your product, there might be something right before your very eyes that you may not have considered. It doesn’t take any special scientific skill, nor does it require any special qualifications to register. More importantly, it can go a long way towards protecting the unique identity of your trademark, your product, or your services. Coca-Cola™ has one, and so does Pinch™, and why wouldn’t you want one to protect you? What is it? It is called a design patent, and you will be glad you got one.

Design Patents are a neat feature of our business world, and if you’ve come up with a special container or a special design to add to your product or service marketing materials, this is the best way to protect it. But first, here is some food for thought:

• The best source for information about design patents is an ATTORNEY, and especially one with experience in design patents, since they are a unique beast;
• You can NEVER get protection for a design someone else has already registered;
• Design patents can be obtained for similar designs in different product categories in some instances, but consult your attorney first;
• Design Patents must be filed with the USPTO in order to obtain the full protection of the patent allowed under United States law and international conventions;

Back to what these strange things are:

In its barest form, a design patent is best described as a Patent to protect the decorative, non-functional appearance of something. It is different from a Trademark, but performs very similar functions. Where a trademark may specifically be used to indicate a soft-drink, or bleach or dining location, the Design Patent operates to identify a spray bottle, or a container or a pressurized canister or some other object as uniquely that of its manufacturer.