For more detailed information, you can refer to the official U.S. Copyright Office guide on Useful Articles or the Legal Information Institute's definition .
Would qualify as a protectable work on its own if fixed in another medium. ZamillaMserthzip
The "Useful Article Doctrine" determines whether artistic elements of a functional object can be protected by copyright. For more detailed information, you can refer to
Industrial Design: Reinterpreting the Useful Article Doctrine For more detailed information
: It prevents individuals from using copyright—which has a much longer duration—to gain a monopoly over functional items that should instead be protected by utility patents .