On December 8, 2022, the 18th session of the Intellectual Property Advisory Office for exporters completes its work.
The head of the company producing soft toys for children turned to the advisory office with a question about the possibility of patenting a guide for the development of skills in making soft stuffed toys for children of primary and secondary school age.
The answer was based on the norms of the Law of the Republic of Belarus "On Patents for Inventions, Utility Models, Industrial Designs" (hereinafter – the Law).
In accordance with the legislation, the following titles are not considered inventions:
discoveries, as well as scientific theories and mathematical methods;
solutions concerning only the appearance of the product and aimed at satisfying aesthetic needs;
plans, rules and methods of intellectual activity, games or business activities,
programs for electronic computer machines;
simple presentation of information.
At the same time, as it turned out during the consultation, the guide contains a description of a needlework kit that can be patented as a utility model if it meets such criteria as novelty and industrial applicability.
There is no doubt about the compliance of the specified kit described in the draft of the guide prepared for publication with such a criterion as "industrial applicability", since the company has released a trial batch of the needlework kit. At the same time, the consultantee received additional information regarding the so-called exception to lack of novelty. In accordance with Article 3 of the Law, such disclosure of information related to the utility model by the author, the applicant or any person who received this information directly or indirectly from them, in which information about the essence of the utility model became publicly available, is not recognized as a circumstance preventing the recognition of the patentability of the utility model, if the application for the grant of a utility model patent (further, unless otherwise specified, an application for a utility model) is filed with the patent authority no later than twelve months from the date of disclosure of information. At the same time, the obligation to prove this fact lies with the applicant.
As for such a criterion as novelty, it can be determined only as a result of a patent search, which was proposed to the head of the enterprise.
