An industrial design is the ornamental or aesthetic aspect of an article. The Design may consist of three-dimensional features, such as the shape or surface of an article, or of two-dimensional features, such as patterns, lines or color or any composition thereof. Examples of industrial designs may be the shape of a table or the shape and ornamentation of a spoon.

To be eligible for registration, your design must be new which means that it must not be the same as any design which has already been disclosed and made available to the public anywhere in the world. However, you have a grace period of one year preceding the filing date where you may market your design without it losing “novelty” and you may still apply for registration. The protection you receive is only for the appearance of the product and not how it works.