Q: Does a utility patent prevent others from creating a tutorial or sewing pattern of a similar object?
Does a utility patent prevent others from creating or selling sewing patterns or tutorials resulting in a similar item for personal use, or does it only prevent others from creating similar physical items?
A:
Under the relevant patent law (35 USC Section 271) it is illegal to make, use, offer to sell, or sell a patented device. It is also illegal to actively induce infringement of the patent.
So under the right facts, there can be liability for providing instructions that are tailored to produce an infringing item.
There is another related theory called contributory infringement when someone sells a component for use in a patented product but not the whole product and the component is not a staple item but a specialized item with no substantial non-infringing use.
Ideally when you seek to patent the product, you consider whether templates or jigs may be made to support creation of infringing items and you seek to patent these items too. This is not always possible but it makes life a bit simpler when seeking to enforce the patent rights.
I hope this helps.
Kevin E Flynn
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