Military Control over Intellectual Property

Abstract

Army uniforms have several specific functions, including: to identify the wearer as belonging to a certain nation; to protect during battles; and to signify rank and status. Accordingly, the uniform is of national significance and by law its design cannot be copied without authorisation. The design of the uniform is protected as a part of the nation’s intellectual property (IP). Each new version of the design must be described in detail, entered into an IP system, numbered and sealed. Thereafter it is referred to as a ‘sealed pattern’. However, it cannot be found in the usual national IP registers. By meticulous and often time-consuming searches through archival documents, evidence of a separate IP system has come to light, a system held by the Army’s administration in collaboration with the Australian Government Clothing Factory. Together, they influenced not only the specifications of the uniform’s design, but also the use of specified fabrics, buttons and the like, and the production methods to be used in the manufacturing process. This gave the Army and Clothing Factory the power to dictate processes to any subcontractors involved in the production and the system became a gateway to the introduction of innovation in segments of the Australian clothing industry.