¶ 15.05.041 Color Drawing(s)/Photograph(s) Submitted
Color photographs or drawings have been submitted in this application. If replacement drawings are submitted, any showing of color in a black and white drawing is limited to the symbols used to line a surface to show color (MPEP § 608.02) and must comply with the written description requirements of 35 U.S.C. 112. Additionally, lining entire surfaces of a design to show color(s) may interfere with a clear showing of the design as required by 35 U.S.C. 112 because surface shading cannot be used simultaneously to define the contours of those surfaces. However, a surface may be partially lined for color with a description that the color extends across the entire surface; this technique would allow for the use of shading on the rest of the surface showing the contours of the design (37 CFR 1.152 ). In the alternative, a separate view, properly shaded to show the contours of the design but omitting the color(s), may be submitted if identified as shown only for clarity of illustration. Photographs and ink drawings are not permitted to be combined as drawings in one application.
In any drawing lined for color, the following descriptive statement must be inserted in the specification (the specific colors may be identified for clarity):
--The drawing is lined for color.--
However, some designs disclosed in color photographs/drawings cannot be depicted in black and white drawings lined for color. For example, a design may include multiple shades of a single color which cannot be accurately represented by the single symbol for a specific color. Or, the color may be a shade other than a true primary or secondary color as represented by the drafting symbols and lining the drawing with one of the drafting symbols would not be an exact representation of the design as originally disclosed.
Examiner Note:
Use this form paragraph when color drawing(s) or photograph(s) have been submitted in an application.