Hypothetic situation in design patent application

[registereduser]

Hypothetically, I invent a design for a car. There is a variant which has fifth wheel. In specifications, could I mark:

With or without this wheel depends on using fuel cell or gas.

What I worry about is by indicate what kind of power system, it is no longer an ornamental design.

Please advise.

 

[divgradcurl]

Hypothetically, I invent a design for a car. There is a variant which has fifth wheel. In specifications, could I mark:

With or without this wheel depends on using fuel cell or gas.

What I worry about is by indicate what kind of power system, it is no longer an ornamental design.

Please advise.

Your intuition is correct. If the fifth wheel is truly ornamental, then the type of power system is irrelevant. How you actually build or market the car is irrelevant to the design patent. If the fifth wheel is a required piece of a car with a fuel cell, for example, then it is not ornamental, it is functional, and should be the subject of a utility patent.

 

[registereduser]

Thanks, it does make me clearer.