Utility Patent vs. Design Patent

Hello all:

When most people think of a patent, they think of a utility patent. Utility patents protect new, useful and nonobvious products and processes. For example, Thomas Edison (who died 75 years ago) developed numerous inventions that were new, useful and nonobvious.

However, in the United States we have another type of patent, a design patent. A design patent protects the ornamental features of an invention. In other words, the design patent protects what the invention looks like. Although design patents are typically much narrower in scope than utility patents, they can still have value. A design patent can prevent someone from making a device that looks like the patented object. Sometimes that's enough to have a competitive advantage.

Design patents are not available in all countries. For example, in Europe they do not exist. I think that is unfortunate. I recently read an article about an inventor in Europe that was rejected over and over for his bag handle (see story). The inventor was convinced this was a big improvement over previous handles but the European Patent Office found (and was confirmed on Appeal) that the invention was not patentable. Although I am not familiar with the prior art in this case, it probably would've been better to go for a design patent.

More information about types of patents can be found here. If you are trying to decide which type of patent is best for you, you may want to contact a registered patent attorney.

Keep inventing!

Raymond