Design Industry Hints

[Design] To those in the housing equipment industry

(1) Introduction

As you know, the connection between "home appliances" and "design (= design rights)" is clear.

It goes without saying that the quality of the design of interior products and furniture for ordinary homes is a very important factor, and is always of high interest to consumers.

Additionally, media outlets regularly feature interior design items, and in recent years, restaurants with stylish interiors that differentiate themselves from other establishments have become popular, and consumer interest in interior products and furniture with a high level of design is on the rise.

Furthermore, in recent years, distinctive spatial designs that focus on the interior design of living rooms and kitchens have become a major element of brand strategies in the home appliance industry, and the infringement of rights associated with this has become an issue. Therefore, the revised Design Act that came into effect on April 2020, 4 now allows protection for interior designs as well.

In this article, we will explain the need to obtain rights for "home appliances," which have been protected until now, and for "interior designs," which have become newly protected due to the revision of the law.

”HARAKENZO more " wishes to support the intellectual property activities of those in Japan's home appliance industry. We hope that this article will be of help to those who are considering filing a design application.

(2) Designs of housing equipment

The main purpose of home appliances is to improve the convenience and comfort of daily life, but at the same time, products that combine these features and have an excellent design as "interior" have become particularly popular.

Of course, superior functionality is one reason for purchasing home appliances, but there seems to be a gradual increase in the number of people who place the greatest importance on design when making purchase decisions.

<Reference: Results of a survey on interior design | Ouchi*Club>

Therefore, in order to gain an advantage over other companies in the home appliances industry, it is extremely effective to create original "designs" and differentiate yourself from your competitors.

However, because a design is a visible "external feature," unlike something like a patent, which is difficult to imitate at first glance, there is a good chance that a design can be easily copied at a glance, and this is also a weak point of design.

Protect such designs to prevent others from copying them.Exclusive right to useis a "design right."

Below are some examples of designs obtained by home appliance manufacturers in Japan.

★Chair

[Design right holder] Okamura Corporation
(Design registration number 1444386)

★Bed

[Design right holder] Paramount Bed Co., Ltd.
(Design registration number 1541258)

★Warm water washing toilet seat

[Design right holder] TOTO Corporation
(Design registration number 1558420)

★Storage shelf

[Design right holder] Ryohin Keikaku Co., Ltd.
      Uchida Yoko Co., Ltd.
(Design registration number 1564935)

★Towel rack

[Design right holder] Sugatsune Kogyo Co., Ltd.
(Design registration number 1544590)

★Sink

[Design right holder] Cleanup Corporation
(Design registration number 1562266)

There are many different types of home appliances, but each one belongs to a specific group within the "Design Classification" established by the Japan Patent Office.

The items classified under the design classification code "Group D (Household appliances)" are as follows.

  • D0: Other housing equipment not included in D3 to D9
  • D3: Light-emitting devices and lighting equipment
  • D4: Heating/cooling equipment or air conditioning/ventilation equipment
  • D5: Kitchen equipment and sanitary equipment
  • D6: Furniture and tools for indoor organization
  • D7: Furniture
  • D9: General-purpose parts and accessories for housing equipment
    *Floor coverings, curtains, and other interior furnishings that are primarily made of textiles are classified in the "C" design classification code, and fittings are classified in the "L" design classification code. Additionally, interior designs are given the classification L3.

(3) Not only the whole article, but also parts of the article can be protected as “partial designs”

partial design

Design rights are protected for the entire product. However, if a third party uses a clever imitation of a design that incorporates an original and distinctive part of a home appliance, but is dissimilar to the entire design, the design right will not be in effect against the third party.

In order to avoid such a situation, in addition to registering the design of the entire home appliance, it is possible to register a distinctive part of the design as a "partial design."

A partial design makes it possible to exercise rights even against imitation of characteristic parts.

Below is an example of a partial design obtained by a manufacturer of home appliances.

★ Furniture drawers
*The solid line portion indicates the scope of partial design rights.

[Design right holder] SUNWAVE CORPORATION
(Design registration number 1342075)

★Washbasin counter with faucet
* "Parts colored in red"other thanThis is the scope of partial design rights.

[Design right holder] LIXIL Corporation
(Design registration number 1550176)

★Furniture adjuster
*The solid line portion indicates the scope of partial design rights.

[Design right holder] Sugatsune Kogyo Co., Ltd.
(Design registration number 1435088)

(4) Interior design

Due to the revision of the law in 2019, "interior designs" that are now eligible for protection must meet the following requirements.

  • ①It must be inside a store, office or other facility.
  • ② It must consist of multiple items, buildings or images covered by the Design Act.
  • 3) The interior as a whole must have a unified aesthetic feel.

■ Examples of interior design protection for living spaces
Residential living room interior, residential kitchen interior, residential bedroom interior, residential bathroom interior, residential toilet interior, etc.

Previously, designs were registered as "system kitchens" or "unit baths," but they had to meet the requirement of one item. With interior designs, it will be possible to protect the aesthetic appeal of a space made up of multiple items such as wallpaper, ceilings, floors, tables, and chairs. Please consider protecting your design for an interior design if it is an innovative and distinctive layout or a unified aesthetic appeal of the space.

For more information on interior design, here.

(5) Use of related designs

Related designs

The related design system is a system that protects variations of designs created from a single design concept as having the same value as the original design (basic design) from the perspective of creativity, and makes it possible to exercise rights for each design. When a related design is registered, the scope of rights can be expanded to include the similarity of the related design.

Main design

[Registered No. 1459926] Chair

Related Design 1

[Registered No. 1460079] Chair

 

Related Design 2

[Ito No. 1460080] Sofa

Related Design 3

[Ito No. 1460081] Sofa

Related Design 4

 

Related Design 5

*The revised Design Act, which came into force on April 2020, 4, also included significant changes to related designs. For details, here.

(6) Protection by other intellectual property rights

We will use "generic furniture," which has become popular in recent years, as an example to explain whether the design of an article can be protected by intellectual property rights other than design rights, which expire 25 years* from the filing date.
*For applications filed by March 2020.3.31, 20, the validity period will be XNUMX years from the date of registration.

★"Generic furniture"

Generic furniture refers to imitation products made by third parties of furniture designs that have entered the public domain after the design protection period (25 years from the application date) has expired. The name became popular because generic drugs are used to refer to generic versions of medicines whose patents have expired.

While the price of genuine counterfeit furniture can be several million yen, generic furniture has the advantage of being available at about one-tenth the price and has been improved by a third party. On the other hand, generic furniture that only copies the design may be of poor quality and safety, so caution is required.

Furthermore, if there is a problem with the generic furniture, the problem could spread to the original manufacturer.

◎Is it illegal to manufacture and sell generic furniture?

Design rights of the original furniture (25 years from the filing date) has expired, it is not illegal.

Furthermore, there will be no problem with manufacturing and selling the original furniture as long as it is not recognized as a "copyrighted work."

 * In the case of copyrighted works, the rights last for 70 years after the death of the author.

 *However, care must be taken as there is a possibility of infringing rights under the Unfair Competition Prevention Act and Trademark Act.

★A case in which copyrightability was confirmed

◎ TRIPP TRAPP Case (Intellectual Property High Court Case No. 26 (Ne) 10063 (Judgment of April 27, 4))

-Until now, in principle, copyright law has protected "works of art" and has not conflicted with "designs for practical items that can be mass-produced," which are protected by the Design Act.

·however,"TRIPP TRAPP Incident"In this case, the Intellectual Property High Court ruled that the "Children's Chair (appellant's product listed below)" was a copyrighted work, sparking considerable debate (although infringement was denied).

・This ruling is based on the premise that judgments are made on an individual and specific basis. This does not mean that all practical items will be deemed copyrighted works, but this ruling has significantly lowered the barrier to being deemed a copyrighted work.

・This is likely to have an impact on future judicial decisions. Manufacturers of genuine furniture have welcomed the move, saying it will make it easier to enforce their rights against generic furniture manufacturers.

◎ What measures are genuine manufacturers taking against generic furniture?

After the design right expires, in addition to the protection provided by copyright, which can last for up to 70 years after the death of the creator, as mentioned above, you may also have the following rights to stop sales and claim damages.

・Trademark law protection

The design of furniture, etc. is considered as "3D trademark" Design rights last for 25 years from the date of application, but trademark rights can last almost indefinitely as long as they are continually renewed.

In order to be protected as a three-dimensional trademark, a design must have acquired sufficient distinctiveness through exclusive use for a certain period of time. Furthermore, a design consisting only of features that are naturally required for the realization of a function cannot be registered.

・Protection under the Unfair Competition Prevention Act

In order to ensure fair competition between businesses, the Unfair Competition Prevention Law prescribes that acts that confuse or mislead others into believing that their business reputation is their own by using a product or other indication that is identical or similar to a well-known product or other indication of another person (Article 2, Paragraph 1, Item 1), and prohibits such acts, thereby protecting the source indication function of well-known product or other indications. When determining whether or not there is an infringement, the following A and B are often problems.

A. Is it of special prominence?

It must be particularly distinctive enough to be distinguished from other people's product displays, etc. If the design is distinctive from anything that has come before, it is more likely to be recognized as being particularly distinctive.

B. Has it gained widespread recognition?

It is important to prove that the mark has been used continuously and exclusively for a long period of time and that consumers recognize it as an indication of origin. Therefore, in court, it is necessary to prove the "duration, frequency, and manner of use in business."

The period varies from case to case; for example, in areas with short life cycles such as toys or things that have created a boom, products tend to become well-known within a period of several months to several years.

In order to receive protection under trademark rights or the Unfair Competition Prevention Act, a certain period of use is required, so ultimately, it is basically difficult to receive protection under trademark rights/the Unfair Competition Prevention Act at the same time as a design registration.

*Design rights and trademark rights are established through registration, so they have high legal stability and deterrent effect against others. On the other hand, in the case of three-dimensional shapes, most of the protections under copyright and the Unfair Competition Prevention Act are less legally stable, as it is only after a court case that it becomes clear whether legal protection is possible. Also, protection under the Unfair Competition Prevention Act does not establish rights.

(7) It will be too late once counterfeit products start circulating overseas

When a certain household equipment or furniture becomes popular, counterfeit products may flow into Japan from abroad, especially from East Asia, and be sold in Japan. In addition, it is often the case that design and trademark applications for similar products have already been filed locally.

After facing such a situation, even if you finally try to protect your rights overseas, you will find it extremely difficult, so we strongly recommend that you simultaneously obtain a design right in Japan and file design applications in other countries. If you are considering expanding overseas, please feel free to consult with us.

Designs are handled in various ways in advanced intellectual property countries such as Europe and the United States, as well as in East Asian and Southeast Asian countries and other countries in recent years. Each country has its own know-how regarding the method of design registration, so please feel free to consult us on this point.

In addition, since Japan joined the Hague Agreement in 2015, it has become possible to use the international design registration system, which can reduce the burden in terms of both procedures and costs.

(XNUMX)”HARAKENZO more E" We support the housing equipment industry.

In the home appliances industry, it is especially important to develop original designs and differentiate your products from others, as well as the functionality of your products. On the other hand, if your intellectual property is not properly protected, pirated versions of your designs will easily be distributed, and you will be forced to take measures to prevent this from happening.

Therefore, you may find yourself in a situation where you have no choice but to be aware of intellectual property rights issues. more " is prepared to do its utmost to protect the intellectual property of those in the home appliances industry. Please feel free to contact us for further information.

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