Invalidity appeal · Board of Appeal · 2026-04-28
R1318/2025-3
Contested design: 004731347-0007
Outcome
The appeal is dismissed, and the design holder must bear the costs and fees incurred by the invalidity applicant in the invalidity and appeal proceedings.
Show verbatim operative text
1. Dismisses the appeal. 2. Orders the design holder to bear the costs and fees incurred by the invalidity applicant in the invalidity and appeal proceedings.
CostsHolder ordered to pay costs
Parties
Applicant · invalidity challenger
Airtechnic - Chatzoudis Etaireia Periorismenis Euthynisvia PDF extraction
GR
Nea Chalkidona, Athens, Greece
Represented by
Holder · RCD owner
D. Ellinas Factory Products Ltdvia PDF extraction
CY
Limassol, Cyprus
Represented by
Konstantina Diola
Prior art cited (2)
air-conditioning grille shown in an ECOTHERMIKI leaflet extract
ECOTHERMIKI leaflet
linear bar grille / air-conditioning grille
Air Master Equipments Emirates LLC catalogue 'LINEAR BAR GRILLES'
Legal grounds invoked
Argument summary
- ›The design holder appealed, arguing that disclosure of D2 was not objectively proven, that the Invalidity Division overlooked important visual differences, and that the decision lacked sufficient reasoning.
- ›The invalidity applicant replied that the Air Master catalogue and file metadata proved pre-filing disclosure of D2, that the registered views controlled the comparison, and that the first-instance reasoning was adequate.
- ›The Board held that the 2011 Air Master catalogue established disclosure of D2 under Article 7(1) and that the holder had not shown why specialised EU circles could not reasonably have known it.
- ›Comparing the registered design with D2, the Board found the common elongated rectangular frame, three grille sections, two vertical bars, and thin parallel slats decisive; differences in section width and slat count were minor.
- ›The appeal was dismissed; the invalidity finding for lack of individual character was confirmed and the design holder was ordered to bear the invalidity and appeal costs.
Deciding panel
- ChairG. Humphreys Bacon
- RapporteurC. Bartos
- MemberA. Pohlmann
- RegistrarK. Zajfert
Decision files
| Language | Type | Source link |
|---|---|---|
| deDeutsch (de) | machine translated | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
| esespañol (es) | machine translated | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
| frfrançais (fr) | machine translated | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
| ititaliano (it) | machine translated | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
| enEnglish | original | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
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