Utility Patents in Fashion Industry
What is Utility Patents?
Utility patent may be granted to anyone who invents or discovers:
- Any new and useful process, machine, article of manufacture or composition of matter or any new or useful improvement.
It is an exclusive right to an invention which permits the holder of the rights to restrict others from using and commercially exploiting the invention without his authorization for a limited period of time.
These patents are even called with some other names such as ‘petty patents’ or ‘innovation patents’ or ‘minor patents’ or ‘small patents’.
Benefits of Utility Patents:
A utility patent is eligible for any beneficial innovation, which is unknown i.e. Not already known and not obvious. These patents are granted for a period 20 years from the filing date and it provides exclusivity which might provide a designer a competitive benefit.
The benefits related to the utility patents include increasing the valuation of the patented invention helping the inventor to gain economic value out of his invention.
Utility Patents in Fashion Industry:
A fashion designer would want a utility patent if they have invented something new and useful, think of a collapsible shoe, a wrinkle-free garment, or a handbag with an interchangeable liner. Utility patents are not heavily utilized in the fashion industry but there are still few examples of utility patents in the fashion industry such as:
The US Patent Number. US7713891B1- Titled: Flame Resistant Fabrics and Process for Making.
The is a great example of a Utility Patent in the fashion Industry, as this invention deals with a process for imparting flame resistance and the flame-resistant fabrics. The process for imparting flame-resistant properties involves treating a target fabric with one or more flame retardant chemicals (and, preferably, a softening agent) and then curing the treated fabric to durably affix the flame retardant to the fabric.
The main objective of this invention was to produce a chemical composition and the method relates to a process for treating fabric to make it flame resistant.
Conclusion:
The growing need for Intellectual property protection has created an awakening in the eyes of individuals or companies to protect their inventions. This Utility Patent helps the inventor of any industry or any field to protect the newly created invention and gain tremendous benefits out the same. In India the concept of Utility Patents is not so open as compared to the USA. These types of patents are not heavily utilized in fashion industries but have been useful to some others. As cited in the example above the invention related to Flame Resistant Fabrics is a great example of utility patents in the fashion industry. On a hole, the concept related to utility patents is still developing in the fashion industry.