Experience & Integrity
Design Patent Lawyer in Houston, Texas
A design patent may be granted to an inventor of a new and original ornamental design of an article of manufacture. Whereas a utility patent may protect the function of an article of manufacture, a design patent only protect the appearance of the article. Accordingly, the claims of a design patent are the actual images of the article of manufacture as shown in the drawings themselves. If a feature of the article is illustrated in solid lines, then that feature is being claimed. Features of the article or the environment of the article that are not being claimed must either be left out of the drawings or illustrated in dashed lines.