The design and its product(s)
All applications must indicate what product(s) the design applies to.
When you file your application you'll be asked to indicate the name of the product(s) which the design is intended to be applied to or incorporated in. The specification of products should be worded in such a way as to clearly indicate their nature, and so that the product(s) can only be classified in one class of the Locarno classification.
The Locarno Classification is an international classification for industrial designs. EUIPO, in collaboration with EU IP Offices, has developed a search tool called Eurolocarno, which automatically classifies your product into the correct classes and subclasses. It is based on, and has the same structure as, the Locarno Classification and is available in all the official EU languages.
International classification for industrial designs
EurolocarnoWhy should you use this tool?
There are two reasons:
- If you choose a term from those listed in the Eurolocarno tool we guarantee that we will accept it. This will also greatly speed up and simplify the registration procedure. You can do so directly in our efiling.
- The classification serves administrative purposes only, allowing the registered Community design database to be searched. Neither the indication of products nor the classification affects the scope of protection of a Community design as such. In other words, the terminology that you use to describe your product will not play a role in determining the protection that you will obtain through your RCD.
Multiple applications
If you want to file several designs in the same application and thereby take advantage of the bulk discount, the product classification plays a key role, since all the designs you want to protect must belong to the same Locarno class. This is what is referred to as the 'unity of class requirement'.
However, the designs do not have to belong to the same subclass. For instance, a multiple application is acceptable if it contains one design with 'Motor vehicles' as the indication of the product and one design with 'Vehicle interiors' as the indication of the product. In this case both terms are covered by Class 12 of the Locarno Classification but the subclasses are 08 and 16 respectively.
Ornamentation
There is one exception to the unity of class requirement within a multiple application: ornamentation.
Ornamentation is a decorative element that can be applied to a product without affecting its contours. Ornamentations are classified in Class 32-00 of the Locarno classification. They can be combined in a multiple application with another class.
