Utility models are implements of work or objects to be utilized or parts of such implements or objects in so far as they are useful for the work or employment for which they are intended on account of a new configuration, a new arrangement or a new component device, and are industrially applicable.
- Novelty
The implement or object or the parts of the one or other as specified in the definition shall not be considered new if, on the date of the filing of the application for registration with the organization, they have been described in publications or if they have been publicly used on the territory of a member state.
The novelty will not be denied if during 12 months preceding the filing date, the invention has been the subject of a disclosure resulting from the following;
An obvious violation committed against the applicant or his predecessor in title;
The fact that the applicant or his predecessor in title has displayed it at an official or officially recognized international exhibition.
- Industrial Applicability
A utility model is considered industrially applicable if it can be made or used in any kind of industry. The term “industry” shall be understood in its broadest sense to cover handicraft, agriculture, fishery and services.
- Subject Matter Not Qualifying for Utility Model Protection
The following may not be registered as a utility model:
- A utility model that is contrary to public policy or morality, public health, the national economy or national defence, provided that the exploitation of the said model shall not be considered contrary to public policy or morality merely because it is prohibited by law or regulation.
- No utility model may be protected if it has already been the subject of a patent or a utility model registration based on a prior application or an application validly claiming an earlier priority.