1. Patent for utility model: According to the US patent law, a patent for utility model refers to any new and useful method, machine, manufacture or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement mentioned above.
To be clear, American utility model patent is not China's utility model. In terms of creative judgment requirements and examination procedures, American utility model patents are more similar to China's invention patents, but they provide more protection objects than China's invention patents, such as some business methods, medicines, computer software and so on.
2. Design patent: it is the design to protect novel, original and decorative products. The patent for design in the United States can only be granted after substantive examination, which is quite different from the preliminary examination of the application for patent for design in China. Moreover, the United States also protects some designs of products, which cannot be protected by the current patent system for designs in China.
3. Plant patents: In the United States, plants can also apply for patents, and it is a separate patent type. However, China's patent law clearly stipulates that new plant varieties cannot apply for patents.