Can I copyright/patent a very unique property floor plan?

Hoping some experts here might be able to advise.

I have a very unique property floor plan with exact dimensions.
Can I copyright/patent this? If so, how?

Thanks all.

Comments

  • +12

    Thought it would be a Jar Jar Binks post from the subject.

    • +3

      Jar Jar Binks is gone - He disabled his account…

      • +1

        Wow, really?!

        • +5

          He is leading the black lives matter movement now.

          • +2

            @kahn: This one got an audible chuckle

        • +1

          I always thought you were related jjjaar..

          • +1

            @elgrande: Lol no, not at all. But I feel like I know jjb what with all the floor plans and all

      • +8

        Forum will never be the same

        • He may not be here to tell us anymore but I still see him posting that he owns a Porsche.

          Never forget.

      • +1

        Interesting..

    • +4

      if it was, he would be posting it for a "friend"

  • +2

    Why would you want to do this?

  • +4

    Unless you are the designer of the floor plan then I’d say no.

    • +5

      This. If you are some schmo that got an architect to do it for you, than it is his work.

      • -1

        That would depend on your agreement with the architect.
        As a default position the person who commissions the work owns the copyright - but that can be modified by agreement.

        • +4

          The default position is the opposite.

          The general rule is the creator of the work will own copyright in materials, so copyright in a drawing such as a house plan will be owned by the person who drew it, even if the drawing depicts another person’s ideas.
          …If you engage an architect or builder to create house plans for you, they will own the copyright, unless you have made an agreement stating otherwise. However, you will have a licence to use the plans for the purposes for which they were made
          - https://www.copyright.org.au/ACC_Prod/ACC/Information_Sheets…

          • -1

            @Thrift: Well, yes - that is broadly true, except when we are talking about a commissioned work, in which case it is the commissioner who generally holds the right, subject to agreement.
            http://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/ca1968133/s35.html#:~:text=(1)%20This%20section%20has%20effect,by%20virtue%20of%20this%20Part.

            • @Almost Banned: Which part of Section 35 applies?

              2) Subject to this section, the author of a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work is the owner of any copyright subsisting in the work by virtue of this Part.

              For the three exceptions:
              4) N/A because not related to a newspaper, magazine, or periodical
              5) N/A because not creating a photo or portrait
              6) N/A because not an employee of the commissioner

  • +5

    Copyright is used to protect creative work and a patent is for an invention. Which one is yours?

  • +8

    Share and we can tell you whether it will be worth it or not..

    Anyways - isn't OZB all about sharing??

  • +5

    Copyright Council's "House Plans & Copyright" fact sheet: https://www.copyright.org.au/ACC_Prod/ACC/Information_Sheets…

  • Ideas, styles and techniques are not protected by copyright, it is the form in which a particular
    plan expresses an idea or style that is protected.

  • What’s unique about it?

    • +7

      PERFECT square
      never been done.

      • -1

        Trump, is that you?

  • +3

    Copyright applies anyway, you don't need to register for it. If someone copies you can potentially sue.

    However if you give it to an architect or draftsperson to draw up properly then they are also contributing creatively and will have claim to copyright of their work, unless you both agree in a contract that you own the copyright in their work on the project. Most government contracts with private firms must explicitly assign intellectual property rights to the government agency.

    I am probably not explaining this correctly though. Read that fact sheet linked above.

    • Yeah you are stating what everyone above you has already said.

      • Didn't see that? Some comments above were after mine.

  • A studio floor plan where the bedroom is the kitchen which is the bathroom. In Sydney roughly $650K…. It has been done before sorry.

    • more like a 3 bedroom with there own bathroms, mini kitchen and entrance, so u can rent it to 30 people

  • How unique can it be? It’s probably been done before it is similar enough to an existing plan it would be hard to copyright.

    Then, whos to stop someone making a similar plan to yours? It’ll cost more than it’s worth to get CoMpenZationZ.

  • +1

    Already been done
    https://youtu.be/6W62JTgPe9A

  • +1

    It's been designed beyond three-dimensional space, so it is worth protecting. https://youtu.be/jq5mCWZUF5U?t=11

  • I think we need a Paint diagram to make a final judgement…

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