Design Patent Application Process in the United States

In the United States, any natural or legal person can own a design patent. Design patents initially belong to the inventor of an original, unique, creative and ornamental design. Therefore, the rights in a design patent initially belong to the inventor. If the design is developed by an employee of a company, usually the patent rights are transferred to the company by agreement between the employee and the company.

The purpose of a U.S. design patent is to protect the overall visual appearance of a product, not just the functional aspects. The type of design protection required may depend on the client's goals and the nature of the industry served. Design patents can cover surface markings or decoration (including color), shape, or a combination thereof. Design patents can be used to protect the decorative appearance of a variety of items, such as electronic devices, medical devices, graphical user interfaces, automobiles, furniture, and fabric designs. However, it is important to note that there is currently no separate spare parts provision in the United States. Therefore, spare parts can be protected by design patents without specifically limiting enforcement rights. Several times in the past decade, the U.S. Congress has introduced the "Promoting Automobile Repair, Trade, and Sales Act" (PARTS) focused on the aftermarket to limit enforcement rights for replacement parts, but none of these bills have passed into law.

The USPTO adopts a substantive examination system for design patents. The average cost from preparing and submitting a new design patent application to final authorization is about US$3,500 to US$8,000, but the specific cost depends on whether the USPTO incurs costs for responding to the examination opinion, or costs caused by the USPTO's refusal or rejection. There is no annual fee for US design patents.

Under U.S. patent law, there is a 12-month grace period from the first public disclosure of a design, which also applies to non-public business activities such as sales and sales offers. This 12-month grace period starts from the earliest effective filing date of the design patent application, which may also be based on a priority design application filed outside the United States.

At YeZhiMa, we are committed to helping you gain innovative advantages through design patents. If you have any questions about design patents or need further assistance, please feel free to contact us. Our team of experts will help you protect your creative assets.