Invalidity · first instance · 2026-06-17
000111041
Contested design: 000286620-0010
Outcome
The application for a declaration of invalidity of registered EU design No 000286620-0010 is rejected; the applicant bears the holder's costs fixed at EUR 400.
Show verbatim operative text(de)
1. Der Antrag auf Nichtigerklärung des eingetragenen EU-Geschmacksmusters Nr. 000286620-0010 wird zurückgewiesen. 2. Die Antragstellerin trägt die Kosten des Inhabers, die auf 400 EUR festgesetzt werden.
CostsApplicant ordered to pay costs of €400
Parties
Applicant · invalidity challenger
Scaba GmbHvia PDF extraction
Germany (DE)
Dresden, Deutschland
Represented by
Holder · RCD owner
Wolfgang Rixenvia PDF extraction
Germany (DE)
Solingen, Deutschland
Represented by
Prior art cited (6)
Aluminum profile (cross-section), holder's own earlier EU design
EU design No 000222070-0003 · EUIPO eSearch register · disclosed 2004-11-16
Undated product page screenshot of item Industrietechnik GmbH aluminum profile ('Muster item.pdf')
product.item24.de (undated, no URL)
German Gebrauchsmuster cross-section showing basic aluminum profile shape (1986 design)
DE 36 29 369 A1 · Deutsches Patent- und Markenamt · disclosed 1988-03-03
European patent relating to profile slot geometry for screw threads
EP 1 710 452 B1 · European Patent Office · disclosed 2006-10-11
German Gebrauchsmuster describing aluminum profile with slotted nut and support structure
G 94 15 356.6 · Deutsches Patent- und Markenamt · disclosed 1995-01-12
Paletti-Katalog 2001 showing profile designs
Paletti (catalogue) · disclosed 2001-01-01
Legal grounds invoked
Argument summary
- ›Applicant (Scaba) sought invalidity of the aluminum profile cross-section design for lack of novelty and individual character over the holder's own earlier EU design 000222070-0003 (published two months before filing), citing additional prior art from 1986–2003; also argued all features are solely technically dictated (Art. 8(1)) because profile slots, wing-protrusions and grooves serve purely functional purposes for screw/thread insertion.
- ›Holder invoked the 12-month grace period (Art.7(2) UGMV) to exclude EU design 000222070-0003 from the comparison; relied on a final judgment of the Hamburg Court of Appeal (OLG Hamburg, 21/01/2021) rejecting the same invalidity grounds; argued the wing-shaped ('Öhrchen') features are not exclusively technically determined and contribute an aesthetic element.
- ›The Division found the grace period applies and excludes EU design 000222070-0003 from the prior art assessment; found that older cited designs (DE 36 29 369 A1, G 94 15 356.6) were admitted as disclosed but not formally invoked in the application form for novelty/IC; found Art. 8(1) inapplicable because the wing-like flap protrusions in the profile slot are an arbitrary aesthetic design choice and not exclusively technically mandated.
- ›Application rejected on all grounds; contested design remains valid; applicant bears costs of EUR 400.
Deciding panel
- MemberIvan PRANDZHEV
- MemberWolfgang SCHRAMEK
- MemberThorsten ICKENROTH
Decision files
| Language | Type | Source link |
|---|---|---|
| enEnglish (en) | machine translated | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
| deGerman | original | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
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