Patents protect technical inventions. A patent owner can lay claim to an invention and bar others from producing, selling or using the invention without his or her prior authorization. A patent owner may transfer this right to others, either by selling the patent or concluding licensing agreements. A patent is valid only for a certain country or region and only for a certain period of time. Patents can be filed, for example, at the German Patent and Trademark Office (GPTO) or at the European Patent Office (EPO).

Utility models are often referred to as "small patents" and, similar to the patent, protect technical inventions. In contrast to patents, utility models can only be registered in a relatively small number of countries and usually involve the following: a shorter period of protection, less stringent requirements with regards to the "inventive step", and a lesser range of protectionable matter (method claims are excluded from the scope of protection). Since the utility model is registered by the patent office without an substantive examination, filing a utility model can often be a less expensive means of attaining protection, while still achieving the same rights as offered by a granted patent. 

Trademarks protect special designations for goods and/or services. All marks that can be represented in graphic form may claim protection as two-dimensional trademarks as long as they serve to differentiate a certain group of goods and/or services from those of competing market players (e.g. word marks or company logos). However, there are also other types of marks, such as three-dimensional trademarks (e.g. the Mercedes star) and acoustic trademarks (e.g. jingles). Trademark law is closely linked with general legal systematics as they apply to names and designations; a special branch of this is internet domain law.

Design patents protect designs (i.e. the styling of an object in form and color), be they of crafted, artistic or industrial origin. In contrast to copyright law, the protection of a design does not usually begin "automatically" at the time of a design’s creation, but after completing the filing and registration procedures at the proper office. Designs trigger feelings and thus facilitate the positioning of a product on the market. This is equally true for simple consumer goods such as ballpoint pens as it is for complex products such as printing machines, spare parts for vehicles and entire production facilities.