I. Legal Basis

Article 2, paragraph 4 of the Patent Law stipulates: "Design means, with respect to an overall or partial product, any new design of the shape, the pattern, or their combination, or the combination of the color with shape or pattern, which is rich in an aesthetic appeal and is fit for industrial application."
Based on the above, partial design refers to a new design made for a specific part of a product that is aesthetically pleasing and suitable for industrial application.

II. The Significance and Background of Protecting Partial Design

For a long time, the protection of the design of products in China focused on the protection of the overall design of the products. However, with the development of the industry, especially assembling and manufacturing enterprises, product design was becoming increasingly sophisticated, and the concept of carriers of the designs was gradually weakening. The overall design of mature products became more and more difficult to innovate, and partial design came out as an important form of innovative design. The demand for protecting partial design by innovative designers has become stronger and stronger. For example, in a series of products of an enterprise, a certain aesthetically pleasing and innovative part can reflect the characteristics and brand image of the series of products, forming industrial value. In addition, in the protection of information products such as GUI product design, if it must be tied to the overall product, it shall limit the development of product design and protection.

Therefore, in response to the requests of increasing innovative designers and given that the protection of partial design has been allowed in many other countries, the China Patent Law was amended in 2021, clearly stipulating in Article 2 of paragraph 4 that partial design is eligible. Accordingly, since June 1, 2021, applicants can submit applications to the China Patent Office to protect the partial design of products. In addition, as of January 20, 2024, the amended Implement Regulations of the China Patent Law and the amended Guidelines for Patent Examination have also come into effect. Based on the laws and regulations, the examiners of the China Patent Office can now conduct examinations of applications for partial design.

III. Tips for Partial Design Applications

The protection of partial design provides innovative entities with a broader protection scope, but it has certain differences from traditional protection of overall design. Therefore, there are many special considerations to be taken into account in the registration and application for partial designs. To better protect the patent rights of innovative entities by using this legal basis as a weapon, it is worth paying attention to the following tips:

i. Scenarios that are illegible for partial design protection 

Please note that the following scenarios cannot be registered as partial designs:

1. Partial designs that cannot form a relatively independent area on the product or constitute a relatively complete design unit. For example, a turning line on a cup handle, or irregular portions randomly taken from an eyeglass lens.

2. Partial designs that only consist of 2D patterns on the surface of the product or a combination of patterns and colors. For example, patterns on the surface of a motorcycle.

3. The designs of individual components in a set of products should be protected as overall design, rather than partial design. Therefore, the designs of individual components in a set of products cannot include partial designs.

ii. Tips for Preparing Applications

In addition to the general filing requirements for the overall design (including the preparation of drawings, naming of drawings, filling of the brief description, the review of the design patent application, etc.), there are some other specific requirements for the registration application of partial designs:

1. Design patent application form

If the application is filed for a partial design, it should be indicated in the patent application form.

2. Production of drawings

When applying for a patent for partial design, it is necessary to submit the overall product view and indicate the content of the part to be protected using a combination of solid and broken lines or alternative acceptable methods, for example, using rendered drawings and covering the non-protected parts with a semi-transparent layer of a single color.

Additionally, if there is no clear boundary between the part to be protected and the parts not to be protected, a dot-dashed line should be used to indicate the boundary.
If the specific part to be protected includes three-dimensional shapes, a perspective view that clearly shows the part to be protected should also be submitted.

3. Product name

When applying for a patent of the partial design, the product name should clearly indicate the specific part to be protected and its overall product, for example, "car door," "camera lens of a mobile phone." For parts without a specific name, specific terms such as location or main body can be used to describe or define the part to be protected, for example, "front part of a truck," "main body of a camera."

4. Use of the product

The use of the product should specify both the overall product's use and the use of the specific part to be protected.

5. Feature of the Design

To apply for a patent for partial design, the feature of the design should focus solely on the design of the specific part to be protected. The designated drawing or photograph that best illustrates the feature of the design of this design should include the specific part for which protection is requested.

6. Unity

If a design application includes both an overall design and multiple partial designs, the China Patent Office will probably allege that the overall design and the partial designs are dissimilar, not complying with the provisions of Article 31, paragraph 2 of the Patent Law. In such a case, only the similar designs can be retained, while the dissimilar designs should be removed and submitted as divisional applications. 

Therefore, depending on the specific cases, the overall design and multiple partial designs of the same product should be properly applied separately, and generally, they cannot be included in one single design application.

7. Multiple unconnected parts of one design 

The multiple unconnected parts of the same design that are not functionally relevant or related in design cannot be considered as a single design for a product and should not be included in a single application. Instead, each part should be separately applied based on the specific circumstances of the case.