1. Different objects: technical contents of patent protection, including invention and use of new designs. Trademark protection is the trademark itself, such as graphics, characters, their combinations or three-dimensional trademarks.
2. Different term: the term of patent protection is limited, 20 years for invention, 10 years for new type and design, and cannot be renewed upon expiration. The trademark protection period is 10 year, and it can be renewed upon expiration, so as long as it is renewed once every 10 year, it can have the exclusive right to use the trademark indefinitely.
3. Different application procedures: the patent should be applied to the China National Intellectual Property Administration Patent Office, and the patent right will be granted after preliminary examination (new type and appearance) and substantive examination (invention). An application for a trademark shall be filed with the Trademark Office of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, and the registration shall be approved after preliminary examination and announcement without objection.
4. Different contents of protection: Patent protection shall not manufacture, use, promise to sell, sell or import products that are the same as or similar to patents. Trademark protection The same trademark may not be registered on the same commodity. If the protected goods are well-known trademarks, even if they are different kinds of goods, others may not mark them.
What is a design patent?
Appearance design refers to a new design that is aesthetically pleasing and suitable for industrial application, which is clearly stipulated in the detailed rules for the implementation of the patent law. Therefore, the protection object of the design patent is the decorative or artistic design of the product, which can be a plane pattern or a three-dimensional shape, and more commonly, the combination of the two. What is emphasized here is that this decorative or artistic design must be applied to specific products, which is the difference between it and paintings and arts and crafts; Trademark is a specific logo pattern to distinguish products, which has nothing to do with the shape and structure of the products themselves, and is based on words, so trademark patterns cannot be patented; Natural objects without industrial products, or with natural objects as the design subject, are obviously products that cannot be mass-produced; Buildings, bridges, etc. Unable to be assembled in the factory; It cannot act on objects that are difficult to be judged by naked eyes or naked eyes, such as integrated circuit blocks or patterns observed under magnifying glasses. These are not the protection objects of design. In addition, it is worth pointing out that when both the utility model and the design take the shape of the product as the design object, similar designs will appear. At this time, you can apply for both utility model and design patent. Novelty is the most basic and important condition for granting the patent right of design. Its examination and approval procedures and patent term are the same as those of utility model patents.
After you know more about the three patents, you can determine which patent you should apply for for for your invention.
trademark
If you are in Beijing, you can apply to the State Trademark Office yourself. If you are in other places, you can entrust a trademark agency to handle it. To register a trademark, you need to prepare a copy of the company's business license, as well as a copy of your ID card and six copies of the trademark pattern (that is, your text combination) (not more than 10* 10cm and not less than 5*5cm). For a class of 10 goods or services, the fee charged by the State Trademark Office is 1000 yuan. Before filing an application, it is necessary to make a trademark inquiry to see if there is a trademark that is the same as or similar to the trademark to be registered. The inquiry fee is not high, but if you entrust a trademark agency, you also need to pay the corresponding agency fee, and the charging standard of each agency is different. Except those that must be registered by law (such as drugs and cigarettes for human use), other products and services may not be registered. However, unregistered trademarks are greatly restricted by legal protection and rights protection. You'd better apply for trademark registration if you want to better protect your exclusive right to use a trademark.
According to the statistics at the end of last year, there are more than 400 trademark agencies in Beijing and 1400 in China.