Colorado Patent Attorney Discusses Design Patents – Part 1 of 3
View the video interview here: Colorado Patent Attorney Discusses Design Patents
Introduction: This morning we are interviewing Denver-area patent attorney Mark Trenner. Mark has been practicing as a patent attorney in Colorado for almost 14 years; the past 9 years at Trenner Law Firm. While his practice focuses primarily on helping small businesses protect their inventions with patents, Trenner Law Firm assists clients build out all aspects of their intellectual property portfolio, including copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets.
Interviewer: The National Law Review recently published an article titled “Design Patent Basics.” Mark, aren’t all patents for product designs?
Patent Attorney: That’s a good question, one I get all the time. There are actually three types of patent applications inventors can file in the United States: utility patent applications, plant patent applications, and as discussed in this article, design patent applications.
Interviewer: I didn’t realize that. So what is a design patent?
Patent Attorney: In the United States, a design patent protects the unique ornamental appearance of a product, but not the function. Think of a lamp for example. The function of a lamp is to produce light, usually with an electric light bulb. The common electric light bulb that you can buy in your local hardware store can’t be patented. But if you have a unique design for the lamp – maybe the lamp base or the lamp shade – you may be able to apply for a design patent. Or as the article discusses, “a design patent can protect the shape of a bottle or the pattern on the bottom of a shoe.”
For Part 2 of 3 Follow This Link: Colorado Patent Attorney Discusses Design Patents – Part 2 of 3
