A company called Commonwealth Research Group LLC (Commonwealth) filed a patent infringement suit last month against a number of technology companies, accusing them of infringing a patent relating to an energy saving system for electronic devices.

The complaint (commonwealth_complaint.pdf), filed in federal court in Delaware, asserts U.S. Patent No. 6,026,493 (’493 Patent) against Samsung, Toshiba, NXP Semiconductors and Renesas Technology.

The ’493 Patent is directed to electronic circuitry that conserves energy by turning off or reducing power to selected chip components.  A disclosed embodiment involving powering a tape recorder is shown below.  The embodiment comprises a circuit having two relays (12, 18).

In its normal position, the second relay (18) supplies continuous power to the power bus.  The first relay (12) is designed to lock open as long as power is maintained on the power bus.   

Tape sensor prongs (27) momentarily connect on a passing cassette tape (26) to energize the second relay (18).  When the second relay (18) is energized, the power bus loses power, and the first relay (12) returns to the normal position with no power supplied to the tape recorder (14).

It is unclear from the complaint who or what Commonwealth is.  The complaint does not say anything about the company except that it is a Virginia corporation that owns all rights to the ’493 Patent. 

The only other information I could find on the internet was through a search of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office assignments database, which lists a Washington, DC address for Commonwealth. 

Commonwealth has requested a preliminary and permanent injunction, which would require the company to explain how it’s been harmed by the alleged infringement.  More details are likely to come out at that time.

Litepanels, LTD, a UK company, and Litepanels, Inc., a Los Angeles-based corporation (collectively ”Litepanels”), make LED lighting systems for use in film and TV production. 

Last month Litepanels sued Dot Line Corp. (Dot Line) and Infocus Camera & Imaging, LLC (ICI) in federal court in Tyler, Texas, alleging infringement of U.S. Patent Nos. 6,948,823 (’823 Patent) and 7,604,361 (’361 Patent) (litepanels_complaint.pdf). 

The ’823 Patent is entitled “Wide area lighting apparatus and effects system” and is directed to a camera mountable lighting frame (302) having multiple lamp segments (306) arranged in a radial pattern around a center hole (303).  Each lamp segment 306 comprises a plurality of LEDs (305).

The portable frame could be circular (as picture above) or rectangular.  When the portable frame is mounted to a movable camera, the frame follows the movements of the camera.

The ’361 Patent is a continuation-in-part of the ’823 Patent and is entitled “Versatile lighting apparatus and associated kit.”  It is directed to an LED light panel with a self-contained battery unit that provides power to the light elements but not to the camera.

Litepanels previously asserted the ’823 Patent against Sony, which quickly settled the case about a month after the complaint was filed.

Three new light emitting diode (LED) patent infringement suits were filed last month, all in the Eastern District of Texas in Marshall.

In the first case, Japanese LED maker Nichia Corporation (Nichia) has accused Chinese solar products company Jiawei North America Inc. (Jiawei) of infringing four patents relating to LED technology.

According to Nichia’s bare bones complaint (nichia_complaint.pdf), Jiawei is infringing U.S. Patent Nos. 5,998,925 (’925 Patent), 7,026,756 (’756 Patent), 7,531,960 (’960 Patent) and 6,870,191 (’191 Patent).  The ’925, ’756 and ’960 Patents are members of the same patent family.

The three related patents describe a light emitting diode (100) that minimizes deterioration in emission light intensity by including a phosphor in the coating resin (101) that covers the light emitting component (102).  The ’756 Patent claims a garnet fluorescent material activated with cerium as the phosphor.

According to the ’756 Patent, incorporating a phosphor in the LED reduces deterioration:

the phosphor used in the light emitting device has excellent resistance against light so that the fluorescent properties thereof experience less change even when used over an extended period of time while being exposed to light of high intensity.  This makes it possible to reduce the degradation of characteristics during long period of use and reduce deterioration due to light of high intensity emitted by the light emitting component . . . to provide a light emitting device which experiences less color shift and less luminance decrease.

In two lawsuits filed the same day, Light Transformation Technologies LLC (LTT), exclusive licensee of U.S. Patent No. 6,543,911 (’911 Patent), has accused a host of lighting and electronics companies of infringing the ’911 Patent.

One complaint (ltt_complaint1.pdf) lists 15 defendants including LEDdynamics, Philips, Osram Sylvania and Volkswagen.  The other complaint (ltt_complaint2.pdf) names Alliance Electronics and several others. 

The accused products include lenses, optics, lighting products and automobile lights that either allegedly infringe the ’911 Patent or are designed for use with allegedly infringing products. 

The ’911 Patent is entitled “Highly efficient luminaire having optical transformer providing precalculated angular intensity distribution and method therefore.”  The central innovation of the ’911 Patent is an integrated omnidirectional light transformer (100) that includes an optical window (110) and a support (120).   

The light transformer (100) may have an aspherical reflective surface (130) and be incorporated into lighting assembly or luminaire (300) along with a light source (310), a shell (320), a connector (330) and a printed circuit board (340).  The light source (310), which may be an LED, emits light rays (350, 352) that are reflected in accordance with the curvature of the reflective surface (130). 

According to the ’911 Patent, this design results in luminaire (300) having a luminous intensity higher at lower angles, and all light emitted by the light source will be directed in a predetermined pattern. 

In particular, the luminaire 300 can redirect the light so that illuminance at a long range distance (i.e. at the lower observation angles) will be equal to illuminance at a short range distance (i.e. at the higher observation angles).  Therefore, as a driver in a car approaches the luminaire 300, the driver can perceive light of equal intensity at long distances and at short distances from the luminaire 300.

In previous posts (e.g., here and here), I’ve written about Columbia Professor Emeritus and LED innovator Gertrude Neumark Rothschild’s string of successful settlement agreements and patent licensing deals. 

Earlier this month, Mitsubishi became the latest potential infringement target to take a license, when the Japanese conglomerate chose to settle out of court with Ms. Rothschild. 

According to IPLaw360, Rothschild granted Mitsubishi certain rights to U.S. Patent No. 5,252,499, entitled “Wide band-gap semiconductors having low bipolar resistivity and method of formation.”

The ’499 patent is directed to methods of doping semiconductors, which means adding impurities to increase the number of free charge carriers.  Rothschild’s patented technology has had a major impact on LEDs by making production of green, blue and other short wavelength LEDs more economically viable.

The announcement of the Mitsubishi settlement comes at about the same time that Rothschild dropped her ITC charges against Toshiba and Panasonic upon reaching agreements with those companies (see info on the Toshiba ITC termination order here and the Panasonic order here).

According to her attorney, quoted here by CNBC, Rothschild has reached settlements or licensing agreements with more than 40 companies generating more than $27 million.  Some of those companies include LG Electronices, Motorola, Samsung, Sharp, Sony and Philips.

I’ve written before in this space about retired Columbia University Professor and LED innovator Gertrude Neumark Rothschild and her success litigating and licensing her patents (see, e.g., previous post here).  That success continues as four more defendants targeted by Rothschild in the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) settled recently.

The biggest name is Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications (Sony), whose settlement with Rothschild was given final approval by the ITC in August when the commission decided not to review an administrative law judge’s (ALJ) inital determination terminating the investigation with respect to Sony.

Also, in an initial determination (ID) made public last month, an ALJ granted motions by Tyntek Corp., Tekcore Corp. and Arima Optoelectronics seeking orders terminating the ITC investigations into their allegedly infringing products (Tyntek ID, Tekcore ID, Arima ID).

The settlements come in two consolidated ITC actions in which Rothschild alleged that about three dozen LED and consumer electronics makers infringe U.S. Patent No. 5,252,499 (’499 patent), which relates to methods of making LEDs capable of emitting shorter wavelength light (see previous posts on these actions here and here).

The ’499 patent is directed to methods of doping semiconductors, which means adding impurities to increase the number of free charge carriers.  Rothschild’s patented technology has had a major impact on LEDs by making production of green, blue and other short wavelength LEDs more economically viable. 

In a previous post, I discussed a patent suit between P3 International (P3), a New York consumer electronics company, and SmartLabs Inc. (SmartLabs), UPM Marketing Inc.  and UPM Technology USA, inc. (collectively “UPM”). 

In that case, P3 alleged that UPM’s plug-in energy meters infringe U.S. Patent No. 6,095,850 (’850 patent).

P3 makes the Kill A Watt electric power meter, which allows consumers to determine how much energy particular appliances are using.   

P3 is the exclusive licensee of the ’850 patent, which covers the Kill A Watt meter.  The ’850 patent is directed to an electric adapter (1) having a plug (2) on its rear side which can be plugged into an electric socket (7). 

The adaptor has an outlet socket with three holes (3a, 3b, 3c) on the front and a display (4) to show electrical parameters of the appliance being monitored.

The parties recently filed a stipulation to dismiss the lawsuit, and Judge Denise L. Cote signed the stipulation (p3_stipulation.pdf) last month.  

The parties had previously agreed to narrow the issues in the case to only validity and enforceability of the ’850 patent.  This efficient approach apparently led to early resolution of the dispute.

In a previous post, I discussed a patent infringement action in the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) between Philips Lumileds Lighting Co. (Philips) and Taiwanese LED maker Epistar Corp. (Epistar) involving U.S. Patent No. 5,008,718 (’718 Patent). 

In that case, Philips alleged that Epistar and United Epitaxy Company (UEC) infringed the ’718 Patent by selling certain AlGaInP LEDs.  The ’718 Patent is directed to an LED with a transparent window layer on top of the active semiconductor layers.

That post reported on a Federal Circuit decision reversing both an ITC limited exclusion order excluding Epistar’s LEDs from entry into the U.S. and an ITC ruling that Epistar couldn’t challenge the validity of the ’718 Patent.  

Philips recently moved to withdraw its complaint and terminate the investigation because the ’718 patent would expire on December 18, 2009, before the ITC could conduct further proceedings in the case.

An ITC administrative law judge (ALJ) granted the motion, and earlier this month the ITC issued a Notice of its determination not to review the ALJ’s decision to terminate the investigation.

Though the ITC case is over, a lawsuit between Philips and Epistar in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California remains pending, and Philips noted in its motion that it is not waiving any of its rights in that suit.