Patents Basicfacts

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This leaflet provides basic information on

some areas of design protection.

Designs:

Basic Facts

Intellectual Property Of fice is an operating name of the Patent Of fice


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All information contained in this document was correct at the time of going to print, and is available inalternative formats on request. For further information please visit our website at:- www.ipo.gov.uk or

contact us on:- 0300 300 2000


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Introduction This leaflet provides basic information on some areas

of design protection. It is not a reference book and has no legal

authority. We cannot give legal advice or opinions about design

protection unless it is in the course of formal legal action.


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Design protection takes two forms.

Registered design gives stronger

protection and involves applying to

us. Unregistered Design Right gives

weaker but automatic protection without

the need to register the design with us.

What is a registered design?

It is a total right of ownership to the

appearance of a product or part of a

product. It lasts for five years at first but

may be extended over four five-year

periods up to a maximum of 25 years.

Registering a design provides further

protection over any protection whichmay exist automatically in the design.

A registered design is a property which,

like any other business commodity, can

be bought, sold or licensed.

Can all designs be registered?

Design registration cannot protect

designs where:

• the appearance of the product

design is set because of its

technical function;

• the design must be reproduced

in an exact form and dimensions

in order to allow the product to

perform its function;

• the design goes against public

policy or accepted principles of

public morality;

• if design incorporates a foreign

flag or protected symbol, then the

applicant will have to get permission

from the country concerned. Any UK

flag or symbol can be used as long

as it is not in a derogatory manner

and not owned by the Royal Family.

Registered designs

Registered design is a total right of ownership to the

appearance of a product or part of a product.


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Are there any other conditions

the design has to meet?

Your design must be novel at the time

you apply. This means that it must

not be identical to a design which has

already been made available to the

public.

The design must also possess

individual character - this means that

the overall impression that it produces

must be different from any other design

which has been made available to the

public.

What is the difference between apatent and a registered design?

A registered design applies to the

appearance of a product or part of a

product. A patent is concerned with

the function, operation, manufacture or

material of an item.

What rights do registered

designs provide?

A registered design gives you the

exclusive right to use the design and

any similar design.

Using the design includes:

• making, offering, selling, importing

or exporting a product to which the

design has been applied;

• stocking a product for those

purposes; or

• letting others use the design under

terms agreed with you as the

registered owner .

You also have the right to take legal

action against anyone using your

design without your permission and to

claim damages from them. Finally, thefact that your design is registered may

be enough to put anyone off using your

design without permission.

Registered designs


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How can I register a design in

the UK?

As the owner of the design you must

apply to our Designs Registry. You will

need to send us:

• photos, drawings or a 2

dimensional sample of the design;

• an application form; and

• a filing fee.

If your design meets our requirements,

we will then send you a certificate of

registration. Otherwise we will refuse

registration, but you can appeal against

this decision.

Can I register more than one

design at anyone time?

Yes, you can apply for as many

designs as you like on one application

form. This is known as a multipleapplication and you will be required

to provide separate information and

representations for each different

design you are applying for.

Can I register changes to my

design?

You will need to make a separate

application to register any changed

version of your registered design.

How long does registration take?

Correctly filed applications are

registered within two months.

What will you charge me?

We charge a fee for handling your

application. Also this fee will vary

according to the number of designs youapply for and whether you want them

published straight away. If you want

to extend the registration after the first

five-year registration period, you will

have to pay a fee for each extra five-

year period. You can get a list of design

fees from us.

Does a UK registration giveprotection abroad?

A UK-registered design applies only

in the United Kingdom and the Isle of

Man. However, some countries accept

registration of a design in the UK as

equivalent to a registration in their

country. In other cases you can useyour UK application to set a ‘priority’

Registered designs


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date for a separate application in

another country, if the application is

made within six months from the date

the application is filed in the UK.

Can you help me exploit my

registered design?

We cannot provide any financial or

other support as this would conflict with

our role as an impartial organisation

for registering designs. But there are

organisations throughout the UK which

can help you exploit designs with

commercial potential.

Can I tell anyone about mydesign and how soon can

products made to my design be

manufactured?

If you want to test the market for

your design, you can do so in the 12

months before you file your application.

However, protection will only begin fromthe date you filed your application.

Are registered designs made

public?

Once we have registered your design,

it will be open to public inspection at

the Intellectual Property Office. Theregistration details will also be:

Registered designs

Protection will only begin from the

date you filed your application.


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Do registered designs have

other uses?

Existing registered designs provide

a large amount of technical and

commercial information about the latest

developments in product design.

Does the Designs Registry

provide any other services?

In return for a fee, the Registry will carry

out a search for you to see whether

your design is the same as a design

which has already been registered, in

the United Kingdom.

Where can I get more

information?

Our booklet, “How to apply to register

a design” contains more details of the

matters mentioned in this leaflet. Also,

the information is regularly updated on

our website at www.ipo.gov.uk

Registered designs

• recorded in the Register of Designs

which any member of the public

can look at; and

• published in The Registered

Designs Journal – an illustrated

journal containing a selected image

for each registered design.

Registration details are also published

in the Patents and Designs Journal and

on our website at www.ipo.gov.uk

Can I postpone the publication ofmy design?

If you want to keep the appearance

of your design secret, you can ask us

to postpone publication, (known as

deferment), for up to 12 months from

the application date.


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Do all designs qualify for a

Design Right?

The design must be of the shape

or configuration of an item, so two-

dimensional designs, such as textile

or wallpaper designs, will not qualify.

(These may qualify for copyrightand/or possibly registered design

protection.) Also, the design must

not be commonplace, so well-known,

routine designs will not qualify for a

Design Right.

What is a Design Right?

Design Right is an intellectual property

right which applies to an original design

of the shape or configuration of an

item. Design Right is not a total right of

design ownership. It is a right to prevent

copying. It lasts for 10 years after youhave first marketed an item made to

the design, up to an overall limit of 15

years from creating the design. Design

Right is a property which, like any other

business commodity, can be bought,

sold or licensed. For more information

on Design Right see Part III of the

Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Unregistered Design Right

Design Right is a property which, like any other business

commodity, can be bought, sold or licensed.


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Who can get protection through

unregistered Design Right?

In general, unregistered Design Right

protects designs created by nationals,

residents or companies of the

European Union, and designs created

by citizens of the United Kingdomcolonies.

Do I have to apply for

unregistered Design Right?

Unregistered Design Right is like

copyright in that you are protected

automatically when you create the

design. However, it may be wise to

keep a note of:

• when you first recorded the design;

and

• when articles made to the design

were first made available for

sale or hire.

This information may be useful if

someone challenges your rights in

the design or if you believe someone

is copying the design without your

permission.


In general, unregistered Design Right

protects designs created by nationals,

residents or companies


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What protection does

unregistered Design Right give?

Unregistered Design Right gives you an

‘exclusive right’ to your design for five

years after you first market it. People

can then apply for licences of right to

use your design for the remaining fiveyears. This means that, in general,

during the first five years no one can

make or trade in items copying your

design without your permission. If they

do, you can claim damages from them

in the civil courts, apply for an injunction

to stop them and so on. During the last

five years of your Design Right, anyone

will be entitled to a licence to makeand sell items copying your design.

However, you will not have to make

your design drawings or know-how

available to them.

Are there any exceptions to

Design Right?

Design features which allow one item

to be functionally fitted or matched

to another item get no protection.

These so-called ‘must fit’ and ‘must

match’ exceptions are there to makesure that competing designs for spare

parts cannot be kept out of the market.

They mean that competitors cannot be

prevented from copying features of a

protected design to help them connect

or match their own design to existing

equipment designed by someone else.

However, competitors must not copy

features of a protected design wherethere is no need to do so.


So-called ‘must fit’ and ‘must match’ exceptions are there to make sure that competing

designs for spare parts cannot be kept out of the market.


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What about semi-conductor

chips?

Designs of semi-conductor chips will

get Design Right protection. But to

meet a European Community Directive,

the exclusive rights in semi-conductor

chip designs will last for the full 10years in the market. In other words,

licences to copy will not be available

during the last five years.

Does the Design Right give

protection abroad?

Design Right applies only in the United

Kingdom, apart from any countriesthe UK has or may in the future have

reciprocal agreements with. Protection

may be available in other countries

under, for example, petty patent or

registered design systems, but usually

you will have to apply for this protection.

Are there any other kinds of

protection for designs?

If your design is technically inventive

it may qualify for up to 20 years’ total

protection of ownership under the

patent system. Or the appearance

of the design may qualify for up to 25

years’ total protection of ownership

under the registered design system.Design drawings and graphic designs

may get copyright protection.

Will I need professional help?

Unless you are very experienced in

design matters, you may want to get

professional advice.

You can get more details from our

Information Centre or our website.

Who should I contact at

the Intellectual Property Office

about designs?

Our Information Centre will answer your

questions. You can contact them at:

Concept HouseCardiff Road

Newport

South Wales

NP10 8QQ.

Phone: 0300 300 2000 (calls charged

at local rate; 24-hour answerphone

available)Minicom: 0300 0200 015

E-mail: [email protected]

Fax: 01633 813600

Website: www.ipo.gov.uk

Or you can visit the Designs Registry

on weekdays between 9am and 5pm

(not including bank holidays).



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Other Publications

How to Apply to Register aDesign

IntellectualProperty Of fice is an operating name of the Patent Of fice

Thisbooklet willhelp you applyto register a design in

the United Kingdom. It also includes information about

applying to register a design outside the UK.

This leaflet provides basicinformation on

some areas of design protection.

Designs:

Basic Facts

IntellectualProperty Of fice isan operating name of the Patent Of fice

Copyright givesthe creators of certain kinds of materialrights to controlwaystheir materialcan be used.

Copyright:

Basic facts


Thisbookletprovidesinformationyouneedtoconsider beforecommittingyourselftoapplyingforapatent,a

summaryofthepatentingprocessintheUKandabroad.

PATENTS:

EssentialReading


PATENTS:

Application Guide


ThisguideisallabouthowtoapplyforaUKpatent.Beforeyouapply,therearetwoimportantissuesyouneedtoconsider–theneedtokeepyour

inventionsecretandtheimportanceofgettingprofessionaladvice.

PATENTS:

Basic Facts


Ifyouinventsomethingthatcouldbecommercially

successful,youmaybeinterestedinapplyingfora patent.

TradeMarks:

EssentialReading


This booklet, together with the booklet ‘Trade marks:application guide’, willhelp you applyto register a trade mark in the UK.This booklet, together with the booklet ‘Trade marks:application guide’, willhelp you applyto register a trade mark in the UK.


Trade Marks:

Application Guide

This booklet, together with the booklet ‘Trade marks: essential

reading’, willhelp you applyto register a trade mark in the UK. TradeMarks:

Basic Facts


This leaflet providesbasic information on someareas of trade marks. It is not a reference bookand hasno legalauthority.

Patents

1. Patents: Essential Reading

2. Patents: Application Guide

3. Patents: Basic Facts

Designs

4. How to Apply to Register a Design

5. Designs: Basic Facts

Copyright

6. Copyright: Basic Facts

Trade Marks

7. Trade Marks: Essential Reading

8. Trade Marks: Application Guide

9. Trade Marks: Basic Facts

Additional

10. Confidential Disclosure Agreements

11. Licensing Intellectual Property

12. Agreeing a Price for Intellectual

Property Rights13. Search and Advisory Service


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Name:

Address:

Phone number:

Fax number:

E-mail:

Any other comments you may wish to add:

All Publications are available through the Intellectual Property Of fice Website:

www.ipo.gov.uk or by phoning our Information Centre on 0300 300 2000

To order any of the publications overleaf, please tick the box next to the ones youwant, fill in your name and address, and return the form to:

Information Centre, Concept House, Cardiff Road, Newport, NP10 8QQ.

Intellectual Property Of fi ce

Publications order form


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Concept House

Cardiff Road

Newport

NP10 8QQ

Tel: 0300 300 2000

Minicom: 0300 0200 015Fax: 01633 817 777

www.ipo.gov.uk

For copies in alternative formats pleasecontact our Information Centre.

When you no longer need this booklet,

please recycle it.

Revised: July 09

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