Find out if your design is new, before you file or launch.
A single earlier design that looks the same can block your registration or put your launch at risk. Our design searchers compare your product against registered designs worldwide and against unregistered prior art, then our attorneys tell you whether it is new, what conflicts exist and how to protect it.
- Visual and classification search across the world’s design registers
- Unregistered prior art from catalogues, online stores and trade shows
- Attorney opinion on novelty, conflicts and where to file
Request a design search
Send images of your design and your target markets. A specialist replies within one business day with scope, timeline and fees.
The designs an examiner, or a competitor, will compare yours with.
A design search looks for earlier designs that look the same as, or create the same overall impression as, your product: registered designs and design patents, published applications, and unregistered designs shown in catalogues, online stores and trade shows. Because designs are judged visually, the search combines classification, image tools and expert visual comparison.
Run before filing, it tells you whether your design is new and how to draw it for the strongest protection. Run before launch, it tells you whether your product could infringe someone else’s registered design.
At a glance
- Compares
- Shape, configuration, pattern and ornament
- Searches
- Registered and unregistered designs worldwide
- Methods
- Locarno class, image search, visual comparison
- Best time
- Before filing and before any public disclosure
- Acting for
- Designers, brands, manufacturers and counsel
- You receive
- Visual search report with attorney opinion
The right search for the decision ahead.
Each search is scoped to your goal, your product category and the countries that matter to you.
Novelty and registrability search
Checks whether your design is new and has individual character compared with designs already registered or made public, before you file.
- Registered designs in the offices you plan to file in
- Hague international registrations
- Unregistered designs from catalogues, stores and shows
- Locarno class and product indication analysis
- Closest designs compared view by view
- Opinion on registrability and suggested changes
Design clearance before launch
Checks whether your product could infringe someone else’s registered design in the markets where you will sell it.
- In-force registered designs and design patents only
- Searched country by country for your launch markets
- Overall impression compared with each conflict
- Risk rating for each conflicting design
- Design-around suggestions where risk is high
- Expiry and renewal status checked
Invalidity search
Finds earlier designs that can be used to invalidate or narrow a competitor’s registered design.
- Prior designs dated before the filing or priority date
- Registered and unregistered sources worldwide
- Evidence of publication dates preserved
- View-by-view comparison charts
- Support for invalidity actions and defences
- Input for settlement or licensing talks
Infringement and copy search
Finds products on the market that copy or come close to your registered design.
- Online marketplaces and brand websites
- Trade show and catalogue sources
- Comparison against your registered views
- Evidence captured with dates
- Seller and manufacturer identification where possible
- Input for takedowns, notices and enforcement
Design watch
Monitors new design filings and publications so you see similar designs as soon as they appear.
- New filings in your Locarno classes
- Competitor applicants tracked
- Alerts within the opposition or observation period
- Monthly or quarterly reports
- Early warning of copies
- Input for oppositions and invalidity actions
Design landscape
Maps registered designs in a product category to show trends, crowded areas and space for new designs.
- Filings by competitor, country and year
- Visual clusters of similar designs
- Crowded and open design areas
- Design trends over time
- Input for new product design briefs
- Filing strategy recommendations
Every close design, side by side with yours.
Results are presented visually, ranked by similarity, with the registration details you need to act on them.
A simplified, fictional example. Real reports show every registered view of each design, with full bibliographic data and a view-by-view comparison of the closest results.
Registered designs, and everything else that is public.
Novelty is lost to any earlier public design, not only registered ones. We search both.
WIPO Hague and Global Design Database
International registrations and national collections in one search.
USPTO
US design patents and published applications.
EUIPO
Registered Community designs covering the whole EU.
CNIPA
Chinese design patents, one of the largest collections.
JPO and KIPO
Japanese and Korean design registrations.
Indian Design Registry
Designs registered under the Designs Act, 2000.
Online marketplaces and websites
Products sold online, with archived pages for dates.
Catalogues and trade shows
Printed and digital catalogues and exhibition materials.
Utility patent drawings
Patent figures that can disclose a product’s appearance.
Four methods, one visual judgement.
Designs are hard to search with words alone. We combine four methods, then a trained eye decides what really matters.
Locarno classification
Designs are searched by their Locarno class and sub-class, and by each office’s own product indications.
- Main and neighbouring classes covered
- Product indication terms in several languages
- Office-specific classification systems
- Adjusted for how each office classifies
Visual and image similarity
Image-based search tools find designs that look alike, even when they are classified differently.
- Image search across major registers
- Searches on each key view of the design
- Shape and silhouette matching
- Manual review of every candidate
Feature-by-feature comparison
Our analysts compare the closest designs view by view, the way an examiner or court judges overall impression.
- Front, side, top and perspective views
- Distinctive features identified
- Design freedom in the category considered
- Overall impression assessed
Applicant and designer search
Searches by competitor, applicant and designer find related filings that class searches can miss.
- Competitor portfolios reviewed
- Design families and priorities linked
- Related utility patents noted
- New applicants in the category flagged
From your images to a clear answer.
A structured process keeps the search focused on your product and the markets that matter.
- 01
Design review
Images, product type and key features agreed.
- 02
Strategy
Classes, offices and unregistered sources chosen.
- 03
Search
Class, image and applicant searches run.
- 04
Visual comparison
Closest designs compared view by view.
- 05
Attorney opinion
Novelty, conflicts and risk assessed.
- 06
Report and advice
Findings, filing route and design changes discussed.
Search and file before the design appears at a trade fair, online or in front of buyers. Disclosure can destroy novelty in many countries, and a search done early leaves time to adjust the design.
Request a design searchA visual report you can act on.
Clear for designers and product teams, rigorous enough for your attorneys.
What the report includes
Visual, ranked and referenced.
- Summary of your design and its key features
- Classes, offices and sources searched
- Closest designs ranked by similarity
- All registered views of each close design
- View-by-view comparison with your design
- Registration, status and expiry details
- Unregistered prior art with dates
- Attorney opinion on novelty and conflict risk
What it helps you decide
File, change, launch or act.
- Whether to file, and in which countries
- How to draw the design for the best scope
- Which features to emphasise or change
- Whether a launch carries design risk
- How to design around a conflict
- Which competitor designs to challenge
- Whether a copy is close enough to act on
- How to argue novelty if an office objects
For everyone who creates or sells designed products.
From global brands with seasonal ranges to start-ups with their first product.
Global brands and manufacturers
Clearance and novelty checks across product ranges and markets.
Law firms and IP counsel
White-label design searches for your clients, delivered in your format.
Industrial and product designers
Confirm a design is new before it goes to the client or to tooling.
Fashion and luxury houses
Fast searches for seasonal collections and accessories.
E-commerce sellers
Check designs before listing in new markets.
Start-ups
Protect a first product and avoid costly conflicts at launch.
Searches judged with a designer’s eye.
Design searches succeed on visual judgement. Our searchers are trained in design practice, and every report is reviewed by an attorney.
Visual expertise
Searchers trained to judge overall impression, not just keywords.
Attorney-reviewed opinion
Novelty and conflict risk assessed by qualified practitioners.
Global registers
Hague, US, EU, China, Japan, Korea, India and more.
Unregistered prior art
Online stores, catalogues and trade shows searched too.
Filing guidance
Advice on views, broken lines and where to file.
Confidentiality
Unreleased designs protected under strict NDA.
Questions about design searches.
Answers to what designers, brands and counsel ask us most.
Have a new design?
Send us the images and your target markets. We will reply with a scope and quote within one business day.
Request a design search01What is a design patent search?
A search for earlier designs, registered or simply made public, that look the same as or create the same overall impression as your design. It tells you whether your design is new and whether it conflicts with designs owned by others.
02How is a design search different from a utility patent search?
A design search compares visual appearance: shape, configuration, pattern and ornament. A utility patent search compares technical features and function. Design searches rely much more on images and visual judgement.
03Do you search unregistered designs?
Yes. Novelty can be destroyed by any earlier public design, so we also search online stores, catalogues, trade show materials and archived web pages where relevant.
04What is the Locarno Classification?
An international system that groups designs by product type. We use it, together with each office’s own product indications and image search, to find relevant designs.
05What images should I send?
Clear images of the design from several angles, such as front, back, sides, top and perspective. Sketches or CAD renderings are fine. Everything is kept under NDA.
06Can I search after filing?
Yes. A search after filing helps you prepare for objections or oppositions. But searching before filing is best, because you can still change the design or the drawings.
07Can you check if my product infringes someone else’s design?
Yes. A design clearance search looks at in-force registered designs in your launch markets and rates the risk of each conflict.
08How long does a design search take?
It depends on the product category, the number of countries and the type of search. We confirm a timeline and fee before work starts, with fast options for launch deadlines.
Know your design is new before anyone else sees it.
Send us images of your design and your target markets. A specialist will reply within one business day.