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European IP Bulletin, Issue 34, September 2006 - Designs
DESIGNS
8. Honda Giren Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (also trading as Honda Motor Co. LTD)
On 30 August 2006, OHIM rejected the application for a declaration of invalidity of Registered Community Design No 163290-0002.
The applicant, Honda GIKEN KOGYO Kabushiki Kaisha (also trading as Honda Motor Co. Ltd), requested the invalidation of the registered design (owned by Kwang Motor Co.) on the basis of Art 25(1)(b) Council Regulation (EC) No 6/2002 alleging that it did not fulfil the requirements of novelty and individual character as set out in Articles 4, 5 and 6. In particular, the applicant claimed that excluding the parts that were not visible in normal use of the engine and the features having a shape solely dictated by the technical features of the product, the design was identical to a prior art design and produced the same overall impression on the informed user.
The Invalidity Division of OHIM held that:
- regarding novelty, according to Art 4(2) of Regulation 6/2002, features of a complex product which were not visible during its normal use, were to be left aside when considering novelty and individual character
- regarding individual character, the degree of freedom of the designer was limited because the internal combustion had to fulfil its function. However, the general impression of the design differed from the prior design
In a related case, the Invalidity Division of OHIM further declared the Registered Community Design No 000171178-0005 invalid due to lack of individual character.
In this application, the applicant, Honda Motor, requested the invalidation of a Registered Community Design owned by Wuxi Kipor Power Co. Ltd since it lacked both novelty and individual character. In particular, the applicant claimed that the characteristic feature of the design in suit was the approximately cubic shape of the generator housing and the flattened section/bevel formed on the upper corners, and there was conspicuous division into sections of bright and dark. Although these features had individual character, they were identical to the applicant’s known generators.
The Invalidity Division of OHIM held that:
- in respect of novelty, in contrast with the prior design, the Registered Community Design was for a generator mounted on wheels and the upper corners of the cubic form were rounded, whereas they were slanted in the prior design. Therefore, the design fulfilled the requirement of novelty
- in respect of individual character, the variation in the shape of the corners and the mounting did not alter the fact that both designs produced the same overall impression on the informed users. The design lacked individual character
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