How to distinguish the patent situation in the United States?

There is no utility model in the United States, and the types of patents in the United States are invention patents, design patents and plant patents. Invention patent: Only functional inventions can apply for invention patents. Inventions that can be applied include: processes, machines, articles of manufacture and combinations. Among them, the program can be the method or new use of the above invention. The protection period is 20 years from the date of application. Design patent: You can apply for a new design patent as long as it is a design. The scope of protection of a design patent is mainly limited to the appearance of the goods shown in the patent. Because opponents can easily evade new style patents by changing the design, the protection scope of the design patent is narrower than that of the invention patent. The protection period is 14 years from the date of authorization. Plant patents: new varieties propagated asexually are protected by plant patents, but tubers and tuber plants are not included. The term of protection is 20 years from the date of application.