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MECH 3064 (5)

ENGINEERING DESIGN

LECTURE 9

Intellectual Property, Patents and


Liability

Mr L. Sanassee
Mechanical and Production Engineering Department
Faculty of Engineering
University of Mauritius
What is Intellectual Property?

It includes:

• patents,
• trademarks,
• Copyrights
• Industrial Property
• Industrial designs
• Confidential information
• Geographical Indications
• trade secrets.

These represents important assets to the


entrepreneur/developer/designer.

An entrepreneur needs to be aware of any regulations that


may affect a venture.
Why is IP protection given?

 Capital expenditure for new products


 Research and Development
 Marketing and advertisement
 No free loaders
 Maintaining loyal followers
 profit
IP as a property

 Can be sold
 Can be bought
 Can be lease or rent
 Can pass under a will
 Can be assigned
The Laws For Intellectual Property
Protection

 Copyright Act 1987

 Trademarks Act 1976

 Patent Act 1983

 Industrial Design Act 1996

 Geographical Indications Act 2000


Copyrights

 Right given to prevent others from printing, copying, or


publishing any original works of authorship.

 Issues surrounding access to material on the Internet


have led to major legal battles for the entertainment
industry.

 Copyrights are registered with the Library of Congress.

 Term of the copyright is the life of the author plus


70 years.
Protection for trade marks
 A distinguishing word, name, or symbol
used to identify a product.

 It can last indefinitely.


 It can be filed solely on the intent to use the
trademark in interstate or foreign commerce; also
with the intent to use in the future.
Categories of trade marks
Coined marks.
made-up word that has NO MEANING other than as a
trademark (EXXON, VERIZON, and KODAK - do not carry
any characteristics attributes)

Arbitrary marks.
words that have a common meaning but are applied to a
product or service that is UNRELATED to that meaning.
(APPLE for computers, SHELL for gasoline, and
BLACKBERRY for cell phones)
Categories of trade marks

Suggestive marks.
Indicate some quality or characteristic of the products or
services or in connection with which they are used, but they
do not directly describe the product or service. ( AIRBUS for
airplanes, KITCHENAID for kitchen appliances, and
SWEETARTS for candy)

Descriptive marks.
directly identify the nature of the products or services
without imagination, thought, or perception. (COLD AND
CREAMY as a trademark for ice cream)
Registering the Trademark
 Filing must meet four requirements:
 Completion of the written form.
 A drawing of the mark.
 Five specimens showing actual use of the mark.
 The fee.

 Initial determination of suitability takes 3 months.

 Objections must be raise within six months, or


application is considered abandoned.

 The entrepreneur has the right to appeal in case of


refusal.
Benefits of a Registered
Trademark
Trade Secrets
 Provides protection against others
revealing or disclosing information that
could be damaging to business.

 Trade secrets have a life as long as the idea or


process remains a secret.
 It is not covered by any federal law but is
recognized under a governing body of common
laws in each state.
 Employees may be asked to sign a confidential
information agreement.
 Entrepreneur needs to take proper precautions.
 Legal action is possible only after the secret has
been revealed.
Licensing
 A contractual agreement giving rights to others to
use intellectual property in return for a royalty or
fee.

 Types of licensing:
 Patent license agreements - Specify how the
licensee would have access to the patent.
 Trademark license agreements - Involve a
franchising agreement.
 Copyright license agreements - Involve rights to
use or copy books, software, music, photographs,
plays, etc.
Patents
 Patent - Grants holder protection from
others making, using, or selling similar idea

 Utility patent – Protection of new, useful, and


unobvious processes, machines, compositions of
matter, and articles of manufacture; term of 20
years.
 Design patent – Covers new, original, ornamental,
and unobvious designs for articles of manufacture;
term of 14 years.
 Plant patent - Given for new varieties of plants.
International Patents
 The Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) was
established to facilitate patent filings in multiple
countries in one office.

 Role: Provide a preliminary search that assesses


whether the filing firm will face infringements in any
country.

 Differences may exists in the patent laws of each of


these countries.

 It is administered by the World Intellectual Property


Organization (WIPO) in Geneva, Switzerland; has over
100 participants.
Patent Infringement
 Many businesses, inventions, or innovations are
results of improvements on, or modifications of,
existing products.

 Copying and improving on a product may be


perfectly legal and a good business strategy.

 If patent infringement is unavoidable, the


entrepreneur may try to license the product from
the patent holder.

 It is advisable to hire a patent attorney to ensure


there is no possibility of infringement.
Protection for industrial designs

 Protection for industrial designs that are new


or original
 Design are feature of shape, configuration,
pattern or ornament
 The design must be applied to an article
 The design must be applied by an industrial
process.
 Appeal to the eye.
Protection for geographical
indications

Meaning “ an indication which identifies any goods as


originating in a country or territory, or a region or locality
where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of the
goods is essentially attributable to their geographical origin”

• Product must come from a particular geographical territory


• Uses a name link to the particular geographical nature of
the territory

Example of GI products:
• Swiss made
• Swiss chocolates
Enforcing IP rights
 Civil action
• Starting a civil action
• Advantages
• Liability for cost
• Monetary compensation in term of damages

 Criminal prosecution
• Police or enforcement division
• Remedy in term of fines or imprisonment for the offender

 Cost in the process of taking legal action


Product Safety and Liability
 It is the responsibility of a company to meet
any legal specifications regarding a new
product covered by the Consumer Product
Safety Act.

 The Act created a commission with the responsibility


of prescribing safety standards.
 The development of stricter regulations regarding
labeling and advertising is also part of the
commission’s responsibility.
 Large fines as well as product recalls are the typical
outcomes of any action enforced by the commission.

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