Design Patent Cost: An Overview of Start to Finish Fees

So you have developed a new product that has a unique look or appearance. You now wish to keep others from copying your unique creation. A utility patent would allow you to protect the functional aspects of your new invention. If the functional aspects already exist (meaning you cannot claim them as your own), you may be able to protect the design or how the invention looks. The way to do this is with a design patent.

A design patent protects the aesthetic or ornamental features of a product or article of manufacture. It does not pertain to the usefulness or utility of the underlying invention. As such, you may be able to protect the appearance of the invention without needing to defend the uniqueness of the mechanical function. As with utility patents, to acquire design patent protections, you must file a patent application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

As is the case for all patent filings, you have 12 months to file your patent application after disclosing your invention or design to the public. This can be done by selling the product, introducing it at a tradesheow publishing the design publicly (such as in a trade magazine or posting the design elements on your website), or filing a provisional patent application (for utility patents only).

The USPTO will examine your design application to make certain that it meets the legal requirements. For example, the design must attached to an article of manufacture and it must be novel and non-obvious in nature. Novel means that this design has not been previously patented or otherwise disclosed to the public through sale. Non-obvious designs are ones that are not commonly known or understood by individuals with particular skill or knowledge in the field of design.

Now that you know your options, it’s time to learn about the process for securing your patent. This article identifies the steps involved in acquiring design patent rights and the costs associated with each step. Knowing the upfront costs of filing a design patent can help in your determination of whether to file. It can also help you save money by understanding where it is most important to allocate your funds in the process. Of course, some of these steps may be avoided or carried out in alternative manners (such as doing it yourself) to save money. The wisdom of doing so is up for debate; but, it is relevant to understanding the total costs you can expect.

The costs for securing a design patent can be broken into several parts, as follows:

Researching Prior Design Patents

A major cost that might arise before filing the patent application is a patent search. You will need to determine whether someone already holds patent rights in your product design. This search is conducted differently than a utility patent search. The utility patent search is very complicated, as you need to try and identify any conflicting art from a variety of types of inventions. With a design patent, you are primarily looking for designs of the same types of invention. Of course, if your invention strongly resembles a related (but distinct) invention, then it may not be an issue. You can complete this step on your own for free with the help of several public databases, such as Google Patents, Espace, and Patentscope. Hiring a patent search firm to search for your design will cost anywhere from $300-1,000. A legal firm undertaking the search for you will likely charge between $500 - 1,000. This fee, however, is generally rolled into the entire cost of the design patent application.

Developing the Design Patent Drawings

The design patent relies heavily upon detailed drawings to demonstrate the unique characteristics of the design. You should not attempt to develop the design patent drawings yourself. You should consider hiring a professional designer to develop these drawings. They must be to scale and adequately demonstrate the design elements to the satisfaction of the USPTO examiner. As such, you should hire a professional draftsman or designer to develop drawing or rendered images of the invention. Make certain to employ a draftsman who fully understands the requirements and specifications for patent drawings. Generally, the cost for patent drawings ranges from $500 - $1,000, depending upon the complexity of the drawings.

Preparing the Design Patent Application

Once you have conducted a thorough patent search and are confident that no conflicting designs exist, you will need to draft the design patent application. Luckily, if you are going to employ the services of a legal professional to assist you in filing the design patent, most patent lawyers include the price of conducting a thorough patent search in the total price of drafting and filing the design patent application documents. Generally, the total price for searching for designs and drafting the complete design application is between $1,500 and $5,000. The costs may vary this much for the same services depending upon the size and reputation of the firm employed. It is certainly true that some attorneys are more competent in their legal services than others. With that said, the price of the attorney does not necessarily ensure competence, or that the design patent application will be accepted. As such, I encourage you to be cautious when selecting a legal professional for help. Do not simply rely on the costs charged by the legal professional. This may be deceptive.

Filing the Patent Application with the USPTO

As previously stated, you must file the patent application with the USPTO. There are several fees applicable depending upon the stage of filing and purpose. The fees for filing a design patent application with the USPTO is split up based upon the size of the entity filing the application. A “large entity” is defined as any entity that does not qualify as a small entity. A “small entity” is a business is a person or entity with less than 500 employees or any nonprofit. A “micro-entity” is defined as meeting the small-entity requirements, plus the entity cannot be named in more than 4 other patent applications, and does not exceed a gross income limited posted at http://www.uspto.gov/patents/law/micro_entity.jsp.

Unfortunately, the application filing fee is only the beginning of costs associated with a design patent.

Basic filing fee - Design
200.00
100.00
50.00

If the original design application is denied, the applicant will need to make file a continued prosecution application or CPA.

Basic filing fee - Design CPA
200.00
100.00
50.00

If a granted patent is, through error, deemed wholly or partly inoperative or invalid, by reason of a defective specification or drawing, or by reason of the patentee claiming more or less than he had a right to claim in the patent, the patent holder can seek for re-issue of the patent pursuant to the original application with necessary corrections. The fee schedule is:

Basic filing fee - Reissue (Design CPA)
300.00
150.00
75.00

If, for some reason, the design application exceeds 50 pages, the fee schedule is increased as follows:

Design Application Size Fee - for each additional 50 sheets that exceeds 100 sheets
400.00
200.00
100.00

In addition to the Patent Application fee, the USPTO also charges a patent search fee, as follows:

Design Search Fee or
Design CPA Search Fee
160.00
80.00
40.00


Next, the USPTO charges a design patent examination fee as follows:

Design Examination Fee or
Design CPA Examination Fee
600.00
300.00
150.00


The examination process is generally long and drawn out. If you do not wish to wait, you can pay for expedited examination as follows:

Request for expedited examination of a design application
900.00
450.00
225.00


If you find yourself needing examining for re-issuance or continued prosecution in connection with resistance, the fee is as follows:

Reissue Examination Fee or
Reissue (Design CPA) Examination Fee
2,200.00
1,100.00
550.00


Once the design patent application is received, searched, and examined, the USPTO will make a decision on whether to grant patent rights. This often involves a back-and-forth between the USPTO and the applicant. If the patent is granted the USPTO with send a Notice of Allowance. At this point, you simply need to file the request for issuance of the patent and application fee. Note: You may need to make any minor additions (such as corrections to the drawings) required by the USPTO. The fee schedule for post-allowance issuance is as follows:

Design issue fee
700.00
350.00
175.00


There are various other specify-purpose fees applicable to filings with the USPTO. The fee schedule can be found at https://www.uspto.gov/learning-and-resources/fees-and-payment/uspto-fee-schedule.

What is Included within the Design Patent Application

One factor that determines the costs charged by a legal professional for preparing a design patent application is what goes into the filing. Just as is the case with utility patents, some design patents are more complicated than others. A complicated design patent will require more time to prepare and the cost will likely be higher.

The primary components of a design patent include:

• Description or Specification - The description gives a brief overview of what the design patent covers. It includes a Preamble, stating the name of the applicant, title of the design, and a brief description of the nature and intended use of the article in which the design is embodied. It will include a cross-reference to related applications (unless included in the application data sheet). If applicable, it will include a statement regarding federally sponsored research or development. It will include a description of the figure or figures of the drawing (discussed below). It will include a feature description of the drawn figure. Finally, it will include a single claim (discussed below).

• Claim - The claim is nestled within the specification. It is a statement of the unique design elements of the covered design. The claim will normally make reference to the drawings showing the characteristic shapes, including length-width-height ratios, curvature, indentations, and distinct appearance.

• Drawings - As previously discussed, the drawings are perhaps the most critical aspect to a successful design patent application. You will need to make certain that there is adequate detail in the drawings or renderings to demonstrate the claimed uniqueness of the design.

Related Topics

• Intellectual Property Law (Intro)
• What is Intellectual Property?
• What is the purpose in granting intellectual property rights?
• What is required to capture or secure intellectual property rights?
• California Labor Code 2870
• What are Trade Secrets?
• Non-Disclosure Agreement
• Patents or patent rights?
• Letters Patent
• Primary types of patents?
• What Can I Patent?
• Requirements for a valid patent?
• Can your Invention be Patented?
• What is a Patentability Search?
• When is a Patentability Search Necessary?
• Why is a Patent Search Important?
• Requirements for a design patent?
• How to Do a Design Patent Search
• Cost of a Design Patent
• Requirements for a utility patent?
• Why Do You Need a Utility Patent?
• Plant Patent?
• Process for securing patent rights?
• Patent Search
• Basics of Doing a Patent Search
• 5 Rules for Effective Patent Searches
• What are Patent Databases?
• Tools for Patent Searches
• DIY Patent Search
• Understanding Patent Keyword Searches
• Patent Searches for Software
• Doing a European Patent Search
• WIPO Patent Search
• Cost of Doing a Patent Search
• Patent Search vs Patent Analysis
• Structure of a Patent
• Patent Filing Date
• Patent Attorney
• Do You Need a Patent Lawyer?
• Applying for Design patent
• Provisional Patent?
• Applying for Provisional Patent
• Doing a Provisional Patent Search
• How to Draw Up a Provisional Patent
• Converting a Provisional Patent to a Non-Provisional Patent
• What Does Patent Pending Mean?
• Process for enforcing ones patent rights?
• Patent Infringement
• Patent Troll
• What is a Trademark?
• Types of trademark?
• Requirements to capture trademark rights?
• Distinctiveness requirement for a Trademark?
• Determining whether a trademark is sufficient distinctive?
• What is Federal Trademark Registration?
• Conducting Trademark Search
• Should I Conduct a Trademark Search?
• Trademark Application
• Drawing a Trademark
• Filing for federal trademark registration?
• Protections of trademark rights under state law?
• Primary reasons for rejecting a trademark application?
• Common trademark designations?
• Trademark infringement?
• Enforce trademark rights?
• Demonstrate infringement of a trademark?
• What is a copyright?
  
• Digital Millennium Copyright Act or DMCA Explained
• Basics of Copyright Law
• What are the rights of a holder of a copyright?
• What are the elements of a copyright?
• How long is the period of copyright protection?
• What is the process for registering a copyright?
• Who may claim and secure copyright protection?
• What are infringement and the process for enforcing a copyright?
• What are the defenses available against a claim of copyright infringement?
• Public Domain Works
• Licensing Agreement
• End User License Agreement
• What is Fair Use of copyright?
• What is the First Sale Doctrine?
• What international protections exist for intellectual property rights?
• Paris Convention