What are the tips for patent protection of design?

When a new product is about to be born, in addition to organizing production and marketing planning, the decision-making level of an enterprise also has a very important issue, that is, the guarantee of product design. First, while protecting product technological inventions, we should pay attention to protecting product design. For most products of enterprises, their functions and internal structures are the same or similar to those of previous products, so excellent design has become the competitive advantage of these products. The product has a certain appearance, which will make the product beautiful and become the selling point of the product. Such as the familiar refrigerator. At present, there are various models of refrigerators suitable for children in the market. At this time, enterprises should apply for a design patent before the new product goes on the market, so as to protect the appearance of the product, which can actively prevent others from implementing the design patent without permission, that is, they cannot manufacture, sell or import the patented product for production and operation purposes. It is worth mentioning that for patented products of invention or utility model, for all-round protection, the outer packaging and publicity materials can also apply for design patents at the same time. Second, how to choose the country and method of applying for the design patent. If the design products are only sold in China, enterprises can only apply for China patents. If the designed products are likely to be sold to other countries, it is best to apply for corresponding patents in these countries. There are two ways: (1) apply for a design patent in China first, and then apply to other countries within 6 months after the date of application, so that you can enjoy priority. The advantage of this is that you can pay the application fees (including agency fees) in other countries after half a year, and at the same time, you can conduct market research and product improvement to decide whether you need to apply in other countries further; (2) When the products are sold to some countries or processed and produced in some countries, or want to be authorized in some countries as soon as possible, you can apply for a patent for design in these countries while applying for a patent in China, with financial support; (3) When an enterprise intends to sell its products in Hong Kong at the same time, it must also register with the Intellectual Property Department of Hong Kong. Third, how to deal with some public acts before the filing date. When an enterprise's design product has the following circumstances within 6 months before the application date, it can be considered that the design application will not lose its novelty: (1) It will be exhibited for the first time at an international exhibition sponsored or recognized by the China Municipal Government; (2) It was first published at a specific academic conference or technical conference; (three) without the consent of the applicant, others disclose its contents. At this point, the enterprise needs to provide relevant supporting documents, otherwise anyone can request the Patent Reexamination Board to declare the design patent invalid on the grounds that the application has been made public before the application date and is already existing technology ... Fourth, how to choose the time to apply for a design patent When you have a good idea and its design point has been formed on the drawings, of course, the earlier you apply for a patent, the better. The general application for design patent will be authorized in about half a year, so it will also be published in the patent gazette. When half a year is not enough for the enterprise to complete the listing of a new product, if the enterprise wants to apply for an appearance patent as soon as possible and does not want to disclose the design in the patent bulletin before the product goes on the market, then the enterprise should consider comprehensively, choose a suitable application opportunity, or take appropriate measures to extend the publicity time appropriately, so as not to give the infringer an opportunity. Of course, it is worth mentioning that when developing new products, enterprises should sign confidentiality agreements or cooperation agreements with relevant personnel, pay attention to the rights and obligations of intellectual property rights and avoid leaks and patent disputes. V. How to use the patent bulletin 1? An enterprise may entrust an agency or relevant personnel to consult patent announcements regularly, and once it finds that a design similar to its own is authorized, it may voluntarily declare it invalid to the Patent Reexamination Board. 2. Enterprises can learn the latest R&D trends of related enterprises and related products by studying patent announcements, which is convenient for making new product development plans of enterprises, avoiding repeated research and reducing the waste of manpower, material resources and financial resources. 3. Redevelop the existing patented technology, including both functional perfection and product appearance redesign. Judging from the ratio of patent to productivity in China, the marketization of patent technology is not enough, for many reasons. One of the reasons is that some patented technologies are very good, but their appearance is very poor, and the principles of ergonomics are not well applied, thus limiting their popularization and application in the market. In China, engineers usually pay more attention to the technology itself, and the design of products needs the cooperation of industrial designers. The market needs new products that are practical, good in performance and beautiful in appearance. In a word, it is very important for enterprises to take the initiative to protect themselves if they want to be in an invincible position in the fierce market competition and make their painstakingly developed products get corresponding market returns.