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ARTICLE · 24 JUNE 2020

Are Design Patents Missing From Your IP Portfolio?

Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C.
Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C.
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Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C.

Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C.

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A design patent protects the visual ornamental characteristics of an article, including consumer and industrial products, medical devices and related tools, sports equipment...

United StatesIntellectual Property
Michael Van Loy, PhD
Michael Van Loy, PhD
Joshua D. Berk
Joshua D. Berk
Author LinkedIn connections

A design patent protects the visual ornamental characteristics of an article, including consumer and industrial products, medical devices and related tools, sports equipment, jewelry, product packaging, and even web-based and mobile graphical user interfaces and icons. Yet, design patent protection for these types of products is often overlooked in favor of other forms of IP protection.

Companies tend to rely on utility patents, which cover the function of a device, to prevent others from making, using, selling, or importing infringing products. While utility patents can be a broader and stronger form of protection in terms of protecting the way an article of manufacture is used or functions, they typically do not protect the visual appearance of the product. Design patents protect a product's appearance or other "ornamental" features, not its function. This allows for protecting designs that have a unique visual appearance, regardless of whether or not the product

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