Novelty (related to Prior designs)
(Conclusion) Novelty should be found. (Applicant won.)
A combination of common points between the applied design and the prior design does not have a significant design effect on the determination on similarity.
In the additional consideration of several differences between them, when the whole of the designs in the present case is observed, the aesthetic appearance of the designs is not similar from the viewpoint of the consumer.
<Writer: Hideki Takaishi (Attorney-at-law licensed in Japan and California)>
https://www.ip.courts.go.jp/app/files/hanrei_en/030/000030.pdf