Annual Technical Report 2002 on Industrial Design Information Activities submitted by Canada (SCIT/ATR/ID/2002/CA)
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The expression "industrial designs" covers industrial designs and models. Offices which issue design patents should report their design patent information activities in this series of Annual Technical Reports.
I. Evolution of registration activities
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Industrial Design Applications
Year.............Residents......Non-residents..................Total............% change
1998.............661...............2,420................................3,081
1999.............709...............2,524................................3,233............4.93%
2000.............751...............2,665................................3,416............5.66%
2001.............640...............2,058................................2,698..........-21.1%
2002.............752...............2,641................................3,393...........25.76%
Industrial Design Registrations
Year............Residents.......Non-residents..................Total.............% change
1998.............675...............2,032................................2,707
1999.............678...............2,328................................3,006...........11.04%
2000.............511...............2,250................................2,761...........-8.15%
2001.............479...............2,366................................2,845............3.04%
2002.............499...............1,679................................2,178..........-23.44%
II. Matters concerning the generation, reproduction, and distribution of industrial design documents and of secondary sources of industrial design information, i.e., official gazettes
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Industrial design documents are classified according to the Canadian industrial design classification system which closely follows the Locarno classification. Ongoing reclassification activities continue to take place in refining the various art classes.
The Locarno classification system is not currently used by CIPO, but is being reviewed as part of the Industrial Design Division’s continuous improvement.
Bibliographic data and processing for search purposes
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The Canadian industrial design prior art search file comprises approximately 100,000 registered designs.
Since the launch of ‘DesignPlus’, all designs registered since June 2002 are stored electronically in ‘DesignPlus’. For searching by the public there are ‘DesignPlus’ workstations located in the Client Service Centre search room.
Industrial designs registered prior to June 2002 are stored in paper (including document files and index cards), microfiche and CD-rom formats. They are available for public searching through the Client Service Centre.
The Industrial Design Division maintains a searchable record of registered industrial designs as follows:
Electronic search file: Designs registered since June 2002 in the ‘DesignPlus’ system include the application as registered (owner name/address, title, description, agent and/or representative for service in Canada), drawings, and bibliographic data (filing date, priority date, registration date, classification). Registrations are searchable by registration number, title, agent name, owner name, and by class.
Paper drawings search file: For designs registered prior to June 2002 this paper file includes the drawings with bibliographic data such as filing date, registration date, classification, title, owner’s name. The paper drawings are arranged by class according to the Canadian industrial design classification system.
Microfiche / CD-rom search file: This search file includes microfiche and more recently, CD copies of the registration certificate, the application as registered, assignments and maintenance documents. It is maintained in numerical order by registration number.
Paper correspondence file: This search file includes a complete file document history including prosecution and correspondence. These files are maintained in numerical order by application number.
Index cards: An alphabetical index card system arranged by owner, assignee and licensee is maintained as a means of obtaining the registration number of a particular design.
Updating
The Canadian industrial design prior art search file is updated on a daily basis.
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The Industrial Design Division within the Copyright and Industrial Design Branch of CIPO manages the industrial design product line. The primary function is the granting of exclusive industrial design rights and the maintenance of the Canadian Register of Industrial Designs. The Division also provides registration documents for use in civil proceedings and criminal investigations, furnishes information to the public by making the registers accessible, answers detailed questions, distributes information materials, advises on appropriate legislative change, and manages new and revised regulations.
The industrial design search files are located in the Client Service Centre search room at CIPO Headquarters at 50 Victoria Street, Gatineau, Québec. K1A 0C9.
Collection management, preservation
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The CIPO Internet website was first established in 1995, and has continued with major enhancements since 1999. These enhancements included the use of the website for major consultations on new intellectual property legislation, the posting of new industrial design regulations and office practice notices and the provision of electronic filing services.
The Industrial Design Guide and procedures manual can be found under the Industrial Design link of the CIPO website.
The CIPO Client Service Centre provides general information to clients interested in applying for industrial design registration as well as assisting clients to perform searches in the prior art.
Industrial design examination staff are available to provide additional guidance and assistance to the public interested in searching the prior art.
VII. Matters concerning mutual exchange of industrial design documentation and information
There is no mutual exchange of industrial design documentation and information at this time. However, information exchange with respect to classification issues and other matters of mutual interest continue to be exchanged with counterparts from the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Discussions are continuing with the USPTO with respect to the potential exchange of registered designs between Offices over the Internet.
VIII. Matters concerning education and training including technical assistance to developing countries
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The Information Branch of CIPO is responsible for coordinating and carrying out activities related to promoting the benefits of intellectual property and disseminating the associated technological and business information to Canadians. Like other product lines of CIPO, Industrial Design provides input on publications (paper or web) destined for clients pertaining to industrial design. For example, in April 2002 updates were made to IP information sheets for dissemination to clients of the Canada Business Service Centre.
May 2002: A 2-day visit at CIPO from China. The key agenda item was industrial design, but there were questions regarding the other forms of IP as well.
IX. Other relevant matters