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Insights
Intellectual property expertise
Registered IP rights
Patents
Technological innovation is protected by patent rights
Registered designs
Aesthetic and visual features are protected by registered designs
Registered trade marks
Branding is protected by registered trade marks
Advisory services
Software patents
Software patents require a particular skill set
Startup IP strategy
Strategic insight and execution are essential
Portfolio building
A robust vision and strategy provides direction
Client outcomes
Commercial launch IP
Protection decided before you launch
Venture-ready IP
A position your next round can stand on
Exit-worthy IP
Portfolios that shine under diligence
Litigation-grade IP
Strength that settles disputes cleanly
Case studies
Fox Factory: textbook patent execution
View Case Study
Rockstar IP: don't hate the player
View Case Study
Overseas associates
Overseas associates
Overseas associate hub
Australian patent application procedure
Australian design application procedure
Australian trade mark application procedure
Practice news
Support and sufficiency in Australia aligning more with European norms
Excess claim fees in Australia from 1 October 2024
Grace period of 12 months from 10 March 2022 for Australian registered designs
Validity of Australian registered trade marks hinges on suitable ownership
Automotive
About
Where we work
Ballarat
PO Box 1858, Bakery Hill VIC 3354, Australia
Melbourne
The Commons, 55 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia
Sydney
The Commons, 39 Martin Place, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia
Brisbane
Hub Australia, 200 Adelaide Street, Brisbane QLD 4000, Australia
Who we work for
Startups
The right advice at the right time
Corporate
Solutions that scale with you
Enterprise
Managing IP at scale
Our company
Ownership structure
Freedom to be clear and responsive
Founding principles
Established to deliver big-firm quality with bespoke execution
Corporate
Boutique scale, big-picture thinking
Company announcements
EUREKA turns five!
Hello world
Insights
Ideas, research and perspectives on intellectual property
Patents
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Designs
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Trade marks
Registered IP rights are the core of our business
Software patents
Navigating computer-implemented inventions
Startup IP strategy
Making the right decisions upfront
Portfolio building
Engineer your portfolio strategically
Automotive
Motorsport to marine, we share your enthusiasm
Overseas associates
Procedural details and substantive requirements
About
Who we are and our approach
Contact
Tell us what you’re building and we can advise
Software patenting trends across Australia, United States Europe
Article
Contact
Automotive
is pure passion
Fox Factory: textbook patent execution
Case Study
Automotive IP
Article
·
October 17, 2021
Australia's right-of-repair spare parts defence for registered designs
Anyone can sell copies of registered spare parts for repairs in Australia, but not for cosmetic upgrades. How the s72 defence works for owners and sellers.
AUTOMOTIVE IP FAQ
Automotive IP questions
Should I claim the software, the hardware it controls, or both?
Usually both, as an integrated system. Claims to the whole vehicle or control modules is most supportive of patent eligibility. The right mix of claims depends on who is most likely to copy you: a competing manufacturer, a parts supplier or an aftermarket software provider.
Can software in a vehicle be patented in Australia?
Yes. Australian law asks whether an invention is a "manner of manufacture". Software that changes how a vehicle, vessel or device physically behaves is usually on firmer ground than software that automates a business process on a generic computer. Traction control that adjusts torque delivery, a sway-control system for a towed caravan, or firmware that runs a motor controller more efficiently are the kinds of inventions that are patent eligible in Australia and major jurisdictions.
Can I register a design for a dashboard display or companion app interface?
A screen display can be registered as a design when it is shown as part of a physical product, such as a vehicle display unit, rather than as a standalone interface. The US grants design patents for graphical user interfaces shown on a display, and the EU now expressly protects designs for non-physical products, including interfaces. The framework in Australia is not yet settled, but expected and applicants are filing accordingly.
How does Australia's spare parts defence affect my design registrations?
Australia's Designs Act includes a defence for using a registered design on a component part to repair a complex product, such as a vehicle, so that its overall appearance is restored. A registered design for a body panel or light housing may therefore not stop replacement parts sold for genuine repair. The defence doesn't extend to parts used to change or upgrade a vehicle's appearance, and it doesn't cover standalone accessories. If the defence is raised, the design owner must show the other party knew, or ought reasonably to have known, that the use wasn't for repair. For manufacturers, this shapes which parts are worth registering and how enforcement is approached.
Do I need licences for the connectivity standards built into my vehicle?
Cellular connectivity such as 4G and 5G is covered by standard-essential patents, which their owners have committed to license on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms. In the automotive sector, many of these are licensed at the vehicle level through patent pools. Other standards, such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, have their own arrangements, ranging from royalty-bearing licensing programmes to royalty-free membership schemes. Whether you need a licence, and who in your supply chain carries it, depends on the components you use and how your supply contracts allocate the obligation.
How do I protect a feature that runs across the vehicle, a phone app and the cloud?
Connected features are often split across a vehicle, a rider's phone and a remote server, each operated by a different party. This is where skill comes to the fore in preparing patent claims that can be meaningfully enforced against your actual competitor (rather than their customers or suppliers of enabling technology).
Should I patent our vehicle firmware or keep it as a trade secret?
This depends upon on how visible the technology is, and how easily reverse engineered or independently invented the technology is. If a competitor can buy your product, read the firmware or observe its behaviour and work out how it's done, secrecy offers little protection and a patent is usually the better tool. If the value sits in something that stays hidden, such as calibration data, tuning parameters or server-side logic, confidentiality can last indefinitely at lower cost. The calculus of patent versus trade secret can be quite involved but is ultimately a commercial decision. Many businesses use a balance of patent and trade secrets.
Does vehicular electronics expose us to patents from outside the automotive industry?
This is certainly a possibility. As vehicles add connectivity, displays, sensors and apps, they move into territory long occupied by telecommunications, consumer electronics and software companies with large patent portfolios. Some of those owners actively license into the vehicle sector. That doesn't mean every feature carries risk. It does mean freedom-to-operate searching should look beyond traditional vehicle patents. A targeted search before launch, focused on the features you're adding and the markets you're selling into, is proportionate for most business.
How do over-the-air updates and connected features affect patent strategy?
Two things change. First, the product keeps evolving after sale. Claims should capture the underlying function rather than one version of the code, or a routine update can step around them. Second, every update you publish is a disclosure. Release notes, app store listings and owner forum posts can all become prior art against your own later filings. Australia and the US give inventors a 12-month grace period for their own disclosures, but Europe and many other jurisdictions do not, so the safest habit is to file before a feature is announced. A release checklist that asks "is anything here new?" goes a long way.
Who owns the IP when we work with a manufacturer, supplier or contract engineer?
Without a written agreement, the answer may surprise you. In Australia, a contractor or consultant generally owns the inventions they create, even if you paid for the work, and the work was very much embedded within your existing projects. This can catch companies out, underscoring the need for written engagements that cover IP, even when the work is fairly mundane. It might just yield valuable inventions. A robust agreement separates what IP each party brings to the collaboration, cleanly demarcated from IP that is co-created together, deals with improvements, and settles who can file patents and, and who owns the rights, and any other terms you may agree.
Is design registration worth it for vehicles and accessories with short model cycles?
Yes. Design registration is relatively quick and inexpensive, and in Australia a design is registered without upfront substantive examination. By comparison, many fashion designers find it worthwhile registering their designs, which are more in number and are often only current for a season. Protection lasts up to ten years, which comfortably outlives most model cycles. That makes designs well suited to bodywork, hulls, caravan exteriors, fittings and accessories where visual appearance is part of the appeal.
If AI tools helped develop our product, can we still patent it?
Yes. Patent Offices and the courts in many countries including Australia are taking the view the that inventors are named as natural persons, but AI tooling is used to generate options, run simulations or write code. And none of this prevents a patent being validly filed and issued.
VEHICULAR AND MOBILITY STRATEGY
Cornering the market
with new mobility formats
Structure your portfolio with multiple layers of protection to make your ctageory impenetrable to competitors.
Case Study
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August 10, 2026
Onewheel: patenting for category ownership
Future Motion, Inc uses a layered utility and design patents strategy to own the Onewheel category.
