What is an article of manufacture under United States patent law?

For a patent application to be granted in the United States the subject of the patent application must fall into at least one of the principle categories of subject matter eligible for a patent. The four principal categories are a process (also termed a method), a machine, an article of manufacture and a composition of matter.

An article of manufacture is a tangible object produced from raw or prepared materials by giving to these materials new forms, qualities, properties, or combinations, whether by hand labor or by machinery. Articles of manufacture may have parts, but any interaction among the parts is usually static. This distinguishes articles of manufacture from machines, which have moving parts. Examples of articles of manufacture are ceramics, (such as heat resistant tiles, or dinner plates), cast metal articles (such as hammers, crowbars, chairs, shovels), clothing (such as gloves, shoes), and office supplies (such as envelopes and pencils).

An article of manufacture may be protected by a utility patent, a design patent or both a utility and a design patent, depending on the nature of the article of manufacture. In fact, articles of manufacture are the only subject mater for which a design patent may be granted.

Natural objects are not eligible for patent protection as articles of manufacture, even if the natural objection is combined with other chemicals. For instance adding a preservative to a fruit does not then make the fruit eligible for patent protection as an article of manufacture because adding the preservative does not produce from the raw material an article for use which possesses a new or distinctive form, quality, or property. Adding a preservative to a fruit merely makes the fruit rot slower, it does not change the general character of the fruit.

Electrical signals are not eligible for patent protection as an article of manufacture because intangible, incorporeal, transitory entities are not articles of manufacture.

Computer Fonts may be eligible for patent protection as articles of manufacture. Traditional typesetting fonts were blocks of wood or metal with symbols carved on them and the United States Patent Office granted patents on typesetting fonts as article of manufacture, provided the fonts met the other requirements for patentability. With the advent of computers, fonts are now stored as data in computers. Because the United States Patent Office has traditionally granted patents on typeset fonts, patents on computer fonts continue to be granted despite the fact computer fonts are arguably electric signals.

Computer Icons may be eligible for patent protection as articles of manufacture. The claims of the patent application must be carefully drafted and include certain disclaimers must , but computer icons may be granted a design patent as an article of manufacture.

When a patent application is filed, it is important to consider all the subject matter which potentially may be patented. If a patent application is filed for a machine, and the machine produces an article of manufacture both the machine and the article of manufacture must be included in the claims of the patent to be protected by the patent. For instance if a machine that produced reinforced concrete blocks was claimed in a patent, and the the concrete blocks were not claimed, than producing the concrete blocks by some other means would not infringe upon the patent. Merely mentioning an article of manufacture in the claims of a patent application does not impart patent protection on the article.

If you have more questions about articles of manufacture, it is best to consult with a patent attorney.