PROPOSALS FOR CHANGES TO THE NICE CLASSIFICATION
COUNTRY / ORGANISATION: Germany / German Patent and Trade Mark Office
DATE: October 2014
Class
05
Basic
No.
Action
Add
New/Modified entry
transplants
Remarks
see explanation below
USPTO Comment
The USPTO believes that the term “transplants” is indefinite
because it is broad enough to include “Medical services in
the nature of organ transplants” in Class 44, for example.
The definition of transplant is “the procedure involved in
such a transfer”; and “the organ or tissue transplanted.”
www.collinsdictionary.com. “Surgical implants [living
tissue]” (Basic No. 050397) in Class 5 covers the living
organ or tissue transplanted. Basic Nos. 050397 and 100208
were already modified at the 24th Session to read “Surgical
implants comprised of living tissues” and “Surgical implants
comprised of artificial materials,” respectively. In addition,
the term “transplants” may be broad enough to encompass
plant grafts in Class 31. Another definition of transplant
includes botanical grafting in its definition - “the grafting of
a tissue from one place to another, just as in botany a bud
from one plant might be grafted onto the stem of another.
The transplanting of tissue can be from one part of the
patient to another (autologous transplantation), as in the case
of a skin graft using the patient's own skin; or from one
patient to another (allogenic transplantation), as in the case
of transplanting a donor kidney into a recipient.”
http://www.rxlist.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=6290
LP
1.1
2
Class
10
10
Basic
No.
Action
Add
Add
New/Modified entry
brain pacemakers
subcutaneous drug delivery
devices [subdermal implants]
Remarks
see explanation below
see explanation below
USPTO Comment
LP
The USPTO has no objection to this proposed entry, in
principle, but would capitalize the first letter in the word
“brain.” The definition of brain pacemaker is – “brain
pacemakers are used to treat people who suffer from
epilepsy, Parkinson's disease, major depression and other
diseases. The pacemaker is a medical device that is
implanted into the brain to send electrical signals into the
tissue.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_pacemaker
1.2
The USPTO has no objection to the first part of this
proposed entry, “Subcutaneous drug delivery devices” in
Class 10, if the first letter of the word “subcutaneous” is
capitalized. However, the wording in between the brackets
is problematic because “subdermal implants” have a
secondary meaning. See definition below.
1.3
A subdermal implant refers to a kind of body jewelry that
is placed underneath the skin, therefore allowing the body to
heal over the implant and creating a raised design. Such
implants fall under the broad category of body modification.
Many people who have subdermal implants use them in
conjunction with other types of body modification to create
a desired, dramatic effect.[1] This process is also known as a
3-D implant, or pocketing.[2]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subdermal_implant
3
Class
Basic
No.
Action
New/Modified entry
Remarks
USPTO Comment
LP
10
Add
biodegradable bone fixation
implants
see explanation below
The USPTO believes that this proposed entry is indefinite
because it is unclear if the biodegradable implants are made
of living tissue or artificial materials. The definition of
“tissue” is “part of the body of a living thing that is made of
similar cells, like the cardiac tissue of your heart” http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/tissue.
“Biodegradable bone fixation implants made of artificial
materials” or Biodegradable bone fixation fasteners made of
artificial materials” would be acceptable to the USPTO in
Class 10, for example.
Add
chargers for electronic cigarettes
Class 9 seems more appropriate than
class 34, since we have here an
electronic device.
The USPTO has no objection to this proposed entry, in
principle, but would capitalize the first letter of the word
“chargers.”
2
09
The USPTO disagrees with this proposed entry because it is
unclear if “Banknotes” are goods in trade. One definition of
“bank note” is “a piece of paper money (especially one
issued by a central bank).
http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/bank_note#word=ba
nk%20note. Another definition is “a promissory note issued
by a central bank” https://www.ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=bank%2
0note.
“Paper for use in the manufacture of banknotes” or
“Commemorative banknotes” would be acceptable to the
USPTO in Class 16. “Issuing of banknotes” would be
considered a service in Class 36, analogous to “Issuing of
travellers’ checks [cheques]” (Basic No. 360020).
3
16
Add
banknotes
"Surgical implants" are in class 5 if they are comprised of living tissues and in class 10 if they are comprised of artificial materials. Nice Classification intends
to cover all surgical implants with these two entries. Most implants fall – in practice – in class 10. A problem is that this ruling is rather abstract. Furthermore,
it is not absolutely clear what is meant by "living tissues".
1.4
4
Our proposal aims at giving some examples for surgical implants. This could fill the existing classification with more life. Also, examiners and trade mark
applicants would have some specimens of what could be acceptable wordings.