DesignsA registered design protects the shape, configuration and/or pattern and ornamentation applied to an article or object. Once registered, the design owner has an exclusive right to that design for a manufactured product. This protection does not cover how the product works or is manufactured. It protects the visual appearance of the article/object and must be judged by the eye. For example, you may be able to register a design for a particular shape of a motor vehicle but you are not protecting the basic concept of the vehicle (e.g. four wheels, engine, steering wheel etc). In order to obtain design protection, the design must:
- embody a feature of shape, configuration, pattern or ornamentation;
- have distinct features that are visible to someone looking at the article;
- be new or original;
- not have already been shown in public; and
- be used or conceptually applied to an article of manufacture.
The following concepts cannot be protected as registered designs:
- items that are primarily artistic or literary works (these would be protected by copyright);
- a method or principle of construction;
- how the article works or functions; and
- an article that can only have one design (e.g. an ordinary tap washer).
The Designs Act 1996 provides for design protection and an Australian design registration scheme. Original protection is for a 12 month period but can be extended for up to 16 years of protection.
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