Patent Trademark Blog

FEBRUARY 6, 2023

Focus on what matters most So much can be said, and has been said, about the patent application process. To avoid information overload, let’s get back to the most basic things you need to know to file a patent application. Apply for design or utility patent? How much to patent an idea?

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Patent Trademark Blog

DECEMBER 12, 2023

Design Patent Application: Where to Start Are you thinking about filing a design patent, but not sure where to begin? We’ll walk through the information and materials required to start the design patent application process. Need to file a design patent?

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The IP Law Blog

FEBRUARY 2, 2023

Design patents and utility patents are two different things. Design patents protect ornamental designs, such as the shape of a perfume bottle or the design on flatware. To be patentable, however, both designs and functional inventions must satisfy two requirements.

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Patent Trademark Blog

MARCH 22, 2022

How can an Amazon seller benefit from design patents? Those who tend to ignore IP are the ones caught off guard when, for example, a patent owner blocks them from selling a competing product on Amazon. If you are an Amazon seller, design patents must be considered – either offensively or defensively.

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Patent Trademark Blog

MARCH 18, 2025

Need the right patents to stop Amazon sellers from copying your innovative products? Contact US patent attorney Vic Lin at vlin@icaplaw.com to see how we can help protect your Amazon sales. Do you need a utility patent or design patent? In some cases, it may make sense to file both types of patent applications.

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Patent Trademark Blog

MAY 26, 2021

What is the meaning of broken or dashed lines in a design patent? While I’m not sure if you can call it a loophole, US design patents enable a particular option in the drawings that can potentially broaden protection. In a US design patent, the claimed design comprises what is drawn in solid lines.

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Patent Trademark Blog

OCTOBER 15, 2024

Can you infringe a pending patent application? You cannot infringe a patent application. Only issued patents can be infringed. For creators of genuinely innovative products, it may seem unfair that they cannot stop copycats unless and until their patents are granted. Focus on the patent number.

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Patent Trademark Blog

SEPTEMBER 17, 2024

Is it too late to apply for a design patent after product sales? Should they apply for a design patent first or sell the product and see how it goes? If you sell first, have you lost the ability to obtain a patent? How long after selling a product can you still file a design patent?

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Patent Trademark Blog

JANUARY 10, 2024

Is there a single design patent application that covers the EU? You can file a single European design patent application that covers the EU countries. If and when granted, a single registration called a Registered Community Design (RCD) would provide you with exclusive rights in all EU countries.

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Patent Trademark Blog

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023

Can you include a logo in your design patent application? Let me share a strategy if you’re thinking about filing a design patent application for a new product that might be considered somewhat similar to existing products. How would a logo help get your design patent application allowed?

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Patent Trademark Blog

FEBRUARY 24, 2022

Should you use a design patent to protect your new product? When compared to utility patents , design patents are often overlooked as an IP asset. Let’s explore when it makes sense to pursue a product design patent. Let’s explore when it makes sense to pursue a product design patent.

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Patent Trademark Blog

JANUARY 18, 2023

If you are thinking of patenting software, it is critical to have your utility nonprovisional patent application drafted with Section 101 in mind. By anticipating the potential rejections, more can written in your specification and illustrated in your drawings before you file your software patent application.

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The IP Law Blog

JUNE 9, 2022

A design patent protects a new, original, ornamental design for an article of manufacture. Ornamental” means that the design is purely decorative; the patentability is based on its visual aspects. Design patents protect only the appearance of the article, not any aspect of functionality.

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Patent Trademark Blog

NOVEMBER 28, 2023

How long is the average design patent application? There are two tracks or timeframes for US design patents. On the fast track known as Rocket Docket , you may be able to get a design patent granted in about 5-10 months from the filing date if there are no rejections.

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Patent Trademark Blog

APRIL 26, 2022

Can filing a design patent protect you from infringement? Patent professionals, including myself, constantly stress that a patent does not protect its owner from infringement. Anyone who has read my posts on the differences between patentability and infringement will understand this long-standing principle.

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LexBlog IP

OCTOBER 18, 2023

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) recently reached an important milestone. On September 26, 2023, the USPTO issued its millionth design patent. United States Patent D1,000,000 covers the ornamental design for a dispensing comb, as shown below. Design patent filings in the U.S.

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Patent Trademark Blog

MARCH 1, 2022

Can a design patent cover a type of material? We all know that designs patents cover the ornamental appearance of a product or idea. Functionality is protected by utility patents. Can a design patent show a specific material, substance or composition of matter? Be careful though.

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Patent Trademark Blog

FEBRUARY 9, 2023

Should you file a utility patent application yourself? Would your utility patent application enjoy a higher success rate if it were filed by a patent attorney? Keep in mind we’re talking about utility patents as opposed to design patents. Do-It-Yourself (DIY) a wise option?

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Patent Trademark Blog

MARCH 14, 2022

We’ve filed so many patent applications that we really do not need to know all the nitty gritty details of your invention in order to answer most of your questions. Do you want to file a utility or design patent application, or possibly both? Do you want a patentability search?

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Patent Trademark Blog

NOVEMBER 30, 2023

Rejected Trademark Application? Get a Design Patent Instead The path to registering a trademark can be strewn with landmines. When your trademark application faces difficult rejections, would a design patent make more sense? Design patents, however, are typically three-dimensional.

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IP Tech Blog

AUGUST 22, 2022

We have specifically covered this topic in a previous blog. Are they protectable by design patents? In this post we will analyze the availability of design patents for digital commodities and how it compares with other Asian countries like Japan, South Korea and Singapore. Section 4.4.2 2014)??(?)???2815?).

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Patent Trademark Blog

JANUARY 4, 2023

What is a utility nonprovisional patent application? Unlike design patents , utility patents protect functionality. To get a utility patent, you have to file a utility nonprovisional patent application and ultimately get it allowed. Need to file a utility nonprovisional patent application?

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Patent Trademark Blog

FEBRUARY 9, 2022

What is a patent application attorney (patent prosecutor) versus a patent litigator? Patent practitioners generally fall under one of two practice areas: 1) patent litigation, or 2) patent prosecution. Are patent litigators required to be registered to practice before the USPTO?

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Patent Trademark Blog

JULY 30, 2021

What kinds of comments are useful in revising a draft patent application? So your patent attorney has send you a first draft of your utility patent application for your review. You’re not sure what to do, so you read my helpful tips on how to review a draft patent application.

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Patent Trademark Blog

FEBRUARY 15, 2022

Do you need a design or utility patent application? If the appearance (how it looks) is what matters, then a design patent application may be the right type of patent application. In some cases, it may make sense to file both design and utility patent applications.

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Patent Application Patent Invention Design 52

The IPKat

FEBRUARY 6, 2022

Take this opportunity not only to renew your energies but also to check what has been going on around the IP blogs. Designs Marques Class 99 reported on the UKIPO's recently launched call for views on the design system. February is finally here, Mercury retrograde is over and we can finally breathe lightly!

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Patent Trademark Blog

APRIL 21, 2022

What is the design patent infringement test? The test for design patent infringement involves a visual comparison between the patented design and the accused product. Practically speaking, it means that the ordinary observer knows that what designs already existed before the filing of the patented design.

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Patent Trademark Blog

OCTOBER 26, 2022

The disclosure in a patent application must enable others of reasonable skill in the field to make and use your invention. In your patent application, you cannot withhold necessary information that others skilled in this area would require in order to make or practice your invention. See MPEP 2164.06

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Patent Trademark Blog

JUNE 28, 2021

Aside from the PCT, a US utility patent application may be filed claiming the benefit of an earlier filing date of a foreign priority application for the same invention. Whatever it may be called, one thing is clear – a direct priority application is not a national stage entry based on a PCT application.

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Patent Trademark Blog

JUNE 10, 2021

What are your chances of getting a design patent? A helpful way to estimate your probability of success in obtaining a US design patent is to consider the average design allowance rate which is the percentage of design patent applications allowed by the USPTO.

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Patent Trademark Blog

JANUARY 5, 2022

What is a design patent continuation application? US patent law allows an applicant to file a “child” patent application while the “parent” application is still pending. This rule applies to both utility and design patent applications.

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Design Patent Design Designs Patent Application 40

Patent Trademark Blog

NOVEMBER 30, 2022

You have one year from this earliest date of public disclosure to file US patent applications on your original product. Keep in mind, however, that foreign patents will not be an option in most cases due to a rule known as the absolute novelty bar. How can you patent an old product? Was it the date of your first sale?

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LexBlog IP

AUGUST 22, 2022

We have specifically covered this topic in a previous blog. Are they protectable by design patents? In this post we will analyze the availability of design patents for digital commodities and how it compares with other Asian countries like Japan, South Korea and Singapore. Section 4.4.2

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Patent Trademark Blog

MARCH 24, 2022

If you do not apply, you will not get any patent rights. This principle also applies to provisional patent applications that do not get converted to nonprovisional applications. If you do not file a timely nonprovisional, your provisional will expire and leave you with no patent rights.

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Patent Trademark Blog

AUGUST 18, 2021

Why not file a patent application? Deciding whether or not to file a patent application is not easy. If you knew for sure that your new product would be a huge success, then the decision to apply for a patent would be easy. What are bad reasons for not filing a patent? Will the innovation work?

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Patent Trademark Blog

MAY 16, 2024

With a life cycle of three years or less, for example, consider filing design patents to protect the appearance of your consumer product. Add a Rocket Docket request to speed up the examination of your application and get your design patent possibly granted within one year. Should you do a novelty patent search?

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Patent Trademark Blog

JANUARY 12, 2023

As of January 10, 2023, the total number of US patents I have obtained for clients is 695. Number of US Patents by Patent Attorney Vic Lin. That total includes both utility and design patents in the US. Of course, this total does not include all the international and foreign patents I’ve handled.

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