Design is protected by the Design Act, 2000 and is defined as ‘any design, configuration, pattern, ornament or composition of lines or colors applied to an article.
An article can be two-dimensional or three-dimensional. For a design to be registered under the Act, the following criteria must be satisfied:
- Originality is essential.
2. It can be applied to an article. Thus, an article is an article of manufacture or substance, artificial or natural, and includes any component of an article capable of being manufactured or sold individually.
COMMERCIALS:
- Design elements must be capable of existing separately from the article to which they are applied
4. There must be a distinctive nature to the design and it must appeal to the public.
India’s Registration Procedure for Designs
Here’s how Indian industrial Designs are Registered.
- See if your design filing has been registered previously: Check to see if it hasn’t already. You will have to apply to the Kolkata Patent Office for that. The system operates based on the first-to-file principle, so it is ideal to register designs as soon as possible.
- Afterward, you must make an application in which you specify all the necessary details such as the applicant’s name and address, whether it is an individual or company, and the article’s class and claim of novelty. You may also be required to include drawings or images.
- An applicant receives a registration certificate after the Patent Office has scrutinized it, and if it is accepted and registered, he gets a certificate of registration. In case of complications, the entire concept could take a year if the article and other bibliographic data are published in the Patent Office Journal every Friday after the design has been filed.
- Design Registration: The Patent Office, Kolkata enters the registered design in the Register of Designs. In addition to design number and class number, it also includes the date of filing (in this country) and reciprocity date (if any), proprietor name and address, and other information.
- In terms of duration, the design is valid for 10 years but can be extended up to five more years.
- As a signatory to the Paris Convention, India has the right to priority claims. You can use this claim to file a second application in another country for a similar invention or trademark applicable as of the date the first application was filed.Design Act protection is not available for the following designs:
- Construction principles or methods
COMMERCIALS:
- Function dictates features
iii. A device that works mechanically
- Having a trademark
- Illegal designs
THE BANNER :
The application for registration of a design must be sent to the Controller for the Registration of Designs and accompanied by the prescribed fee. The application for registration of a design must be sent to the Controller for the Registration of Designs and accompanied by the prescribed fee.
In accordance with the Act, the design must be original and meet all the criteria. Once the design is registered, its details are published by the Controller and it is open to public inspection. The public can also raise objections against the registration. A registered design can be ripped off for both civil and criminal charges, and an unregistered design can also be subject to legal action.
Frequently Asked Questions
- In regards to the design application, how should the images appear?
To protect your product, you must include images of its appearance in your design application. It is best to submit several images from different perspectives to show the total appearance. Clearer images will improve the quality of your registration. - Are there any changes or additions I can make to my design application?
Prior to filing your application, make sure you have finished designing your product. Once it is filed, you cannot change the appearance or add another design.
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