Design Registration: An Overview

Various industrial designs are registered and protected through the process of Design Registration in India. The entire procedure of the Design Registration is governed under the Designs Act-2000 and the corresponding Designs Rules-2001.

‘Design’ refers to the unique aspects of shape, figure, blueprints or decorations or composition of lines or hues or combination thereof given to an article, which may be 2 dimensional or 3 dimensional or in both formats, by any manufacturing procedure or mode. The process involved in the creation of the design may be manual, mechanical, automated or chemical, separate or all-inclusive, by which the finished article appeal to and can be identified solely by the eye. However, this does not contain any mode or a standard or construction or anything which is in the material a merely mechanical device. Besides, it does not include any registered trademark, as defined in Section 2(v) of the Trade and Merchandise Marks Act, 1958, as well as a property mark or artistic work as defined under Section 2(c) of the Copyright Act, 1957.

The Purpose of obtaining the design registration under the Designs Act is to safeguard a novel or an innovative design so created which is to be applied to a specific article under the manufacturing process through an Industrial Process or mode. At times, we see that the buying behaviour of the customers towards some articles for consumption is inclined not only by their actual product quality but also by the design of their appearance, e.g., a mobile phone or goggles. The main objective of obtaining a design Registration is to make sure that the particular artisan, creator, craftsman, engineer or the designer of that design having a unique appearance is not deprived and deceived of his bonafide reward by some copycats, who might tend to use his design to their goods.

Why need a Design registration?

A unique industrial design points towards the conception of new and innovative features of a product, which are easily identified by the distinctive shape, formation, patterns, beautification and combination of such shapes or shades applied. Anexceptional design in its completed stage appeals to the eye at first sight. It projects a very positive influence over the customers in themarket. Here are some of the key reasons why a business entity needs a Design Registration:

- To get effectual and well-situated legal shield for safeguard of unique designs in India from being imitated or misused.  
- To promote and develop creativity and originality.  
- It is mandatory compliance for all the companies located in the WTO Member nations who have signed the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) Agreement.

Advantages  
 

Following are some advantages that an owner can avail after getting registration for a design in India:

- Exclusive rights over the new and original design  
- An asset of the proprietor/owner  
- Can initiate a legal proceeding in case of infringement by a third-party  
- Serve as a prima facie evidence in an infringement suit  
- Right to sell, transfer and license the design with ease

Documents Required  
 

The following documents are to be submitted to get design registration:

- A certified copy of the original or certified copies of extracts from the disclaimer  
- Affidavits  
- Declaration  
- Other public documents can be made available on payment of a fee.  
- The affidavit should be in paragraph form and should contain a declaration of truth and verifiability. 

However, the controller may regulate the cost involved in design registration according to the fourth schedule.