table of contents
Drafting design application drawings and figures
(1) What are design drawings?
In this article, we will provide you with detailed information and wisdom about "design drawings."
(1-1) Design drawings and architectural drawings
For products that are to be manufactured and sold, first create design drawings and then manufacture the product according to those design drawings. On the other hand, if you wish to register the design of the product, you create design drawings and submit an application to the Japan Patent Office with the design drawings attached. In principle, both design drawings and design drawings are created based on JIS standards.
So, is it okay for design drawings to be the same as engineering drawings? Are there any differences?
Needless to say, design drawings are drawings created to accurately manufacture a product, and to convey information such as the dimensions of each part of the product and the finish state to those involved in manufacturing in an easy-to-understand manner. If design drawings are created this accurately, it seems like it would be fine to use them as design drawings as they are.
However, design drawings are examined by an examiner at the Japan Patent Office to obtain design registration, and if registered, they serve as a kind of certificate of title that shows the scope of the design right. Therefore, when creating design drawings, there are many points to keep in mind that are not present in design drawings. Therefore, when creating design drawings, make changes to the design drawings, etc., while keeping in mind the points described below, and then create the design drawings.
(1-2) Subject of the examination
As mentioned above, design drawings are examined by examiners at the Japan Patent Office. The method of creating design drawings is specified in detail by the JIS standard, the "Guide to Writing Design Registration Application Forms and Drawings, etc." (hereinafter referred to as the "Guide") issued by the Japan Patent Office, the Design Law Enforcement Regulations, etc.
Therefore, design drawings must be prepared in accordance with the method prescribed by the Patent Office. If design drawings are not prepared in this manner, the design application may be rejected during examination.
For example, even if a product is three-dimensional, a design drawing is basically a diagram showing the surfaces and appearance from six directions (six-sided drawing).
In addition, design drawings must not include center lines or characters that specify cross-section lines. This is because it can be confusing as to whether the center lines or characters are the product's pattern or characters that specify the center lines or cross-section lines.
As an aside, in the past, the examination of drawings was quite strict, and a great many of the rejected design applications were rejected due to inconsistencies in the drawings, etc. The examination was so strict that it could be said that the first difficult aspect of a design application was the creation of the drawings, but in recent years, the examination has become much more lenient compared to the past.
(1-3) Design right certificate
In addition, after a design is registered, the design drawing will serve as a title deed. For example, a land title deed will show the area of the land owned by the right holder and the boundaries with other people's land. The design drawing, together with the details of the application, will also show the scope of the design right.
Therefore, if the six-sided drawings are not consistent with each other and there are contradictions between them, if there are parts that are not shown in the drawings, or if the three-dimensional product design that can be identified from the six-sided drawings may or may not be a single design, doubts will arise as to the scope of rights.
In the case of a partial design, for example, if the distinction between broken and solid lines is unclear, or if there is inconsistency between the drawings, the boundary between the part for which the design is to be registered and the other parts will not be clear. This will make the scope of the design right unclear.
(1-4) Appealing the key points of the design
In the case of a product for which a design is to be registered, there will likely be a unique or novel shape that has never been seen before. It would be disappointing if the key features of the design were not prominent in the drawings, and the parts that the designer put so much effort into creating were buried.
We believe that drawings that can appeal such key points of a product to examiners and competitors are better design drawings, and are advantageous in examination and enforcement of rights. At our firm, our experienced staff fully understands such key points of designs and prepares drawings that can appeal the key points of a design.
(2) Required drawings and reference drawings
A drawing that depicts only the components of a design and is necessary to understand the shape of an article is called a required drawing, while a drawing that explains the shape, etc., or a diagram of how the article is used, and that includes lines that do not constitute the design, is called a reference drawing. Reference drawings are marked as [XX reference drawing], etc., to distinguish them from required drawings.
Please note that if the reference drawing shows a shape different from that in the required drawing, that shape will not be included in the scope of the design right.
(3) Six-sided drawing (third angle projection of orthographic drawing)
Each view must be created to the same scale, and a sufficient number of views must be created from among the front view, back view, left side view, right side view, top view, and bottom view in order to clearly show the design for which a design registration is sought.
(3-1) Third angle projection
The method of drawing by making two projection planes perpendicular to each other to create a space, dividing each of them into four spaces from the first angle to the fourth angle, and placing an object in the third angle is called third angle projection.
(3-2) Six-sided view
(4) Cross-section
A cross-sectional view can show the internal structure of a product, which is difficult to show in an external view such as a six-sided drawing. Since a design cannot protect the internal shape of an object that cannot be seen from the outside, a cross-sectional view is mainly used to show the shapes of depressions and holes that cannot be seen in a six-sided drawing.
(5) Photographs and CG
For example, for items such as stuffed toys, whose surface texture is difficult to show in drawings, you can submit photographs or CG images of the item. In this case, just like with the six-sided drawings, you will need to create photographs or CG images of the item from six different angles at the same scale.
Our graphic design department can take photographs for design applications. We will take the photographs and process them in the most optimal way for your design application.
Please note that if you file a design application using photographs or CG, the scope of design rights may be narrower than if you use line drawings.
Please feel free to contact us for any enquiries regarding design applications.Inquiry formPlease visit www.