Design patents protect ornamental features that determine how manufactured products look. The scope of protection is limited to an included drawing depicting the protected features. Design patents apply to shape and proportions, surface ornamentation, or both. These categories are relevant to packaging for several reasons. Packaging appearance is at the core of shelf-impact, or its ability to arrest attention among competing offerings. Also, the sense of touch can be engaged, adding to consumer appeal. And the more unique and intricate the packaging's ornamental features, the less vulnerable it is to counterfeiting.
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