Product appearance patent inquiry is to know whether the appearance of a product has been protected by other people's patents. The following are the general steps of product appearance patent inquiry:
1. Define query purpose:
The purpose of clear inquiry is to confirm whether the appearance of the product has been patented or to understand the appearance innovation in a certain field.
2. Collect key information:
Collect key information related to product appearance, including product appearance characteristics, design drawings, possible patent numbers, etc.
3. Use the patent database:
Select the appropriate patent database for appearance patent inquiry, which usually includes:
Worldwide: WIPO International Design Classification System (Locarno Classification). China: Patent Retrieval System of China National Intellectual Property Administration, China. United States: Patent Retrieval System of the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Europe: Patent Database of European Patent Office. 4. Enter the key information for retrieval:
In the patent database, key information such as product appearance characteristics and design drawings are used for retrieval. You can use keywords, design categories and so on to filter.
5. Check the patent literature:
Browse the search results and check the patent literature related to product appearance. Pay attention to patent abstracts, drawings, claims and other information.
6. Analyze the retrieval results:
Analyze the search results to determine whether there are patents with similar appearance to the products. Pay attention to the legal status of the patent, whether it has expired and other information.
7. Understand the legal status:
From the results of the inquiry, we can know the legal status of the relevant patents, including whether the patents are valid or not, and whether they are within the protection period.
8. Refer to other sources of information:
In addition to the patent database, you can also consult other information sources, such as patent announcements, professional literature, etc., to get a more comprehensive understanding.
When inquiring about product appearance patents, it is necessary to make full use of various retrieval tools to ensure that the patent information is accurate and comprehensive, so as to judge whether there is patent protection.
The above contents were carefully arranged by Zhu Bajie. Com, I hope I can help you.