Hybrid patent wars

In the US, Ford is under investigation by the International Trade Commission following a patent infringement complaint by Paice LLC (the name an acronym for Power-Assisted Internal Combustion Engines), a hydrid technology company based in Maryland which owns what are rated as four of the most influential hybrid technology patents, and the Abell Foundation, a charity that supports progressive start-up businesses and which co-owns the patents. They allege that the vehicle manyfacturer is importing hybrid electric vehicles and components that infringe their patents. Section 337 of the Tariff Act 1930 prohibits the import of infringing products, and is often used by patentees as an alternative to litigation - although Paice have been down that road too a couple of years ago, and their claims were thrown out.
The investigation could result in Ford being prevented from shipping Mexico-made cars into the USA. As if making cars in Mexico was not already controversial enough!
Paice worked with Ford between 1999 and 2004, providing (according to Automotive News) "detailed modeling and component design" - which seems to fall rather a long way short of creating anything for which a patent might be granted. Perhaps the argument is that Paice's work had its own patented technology embedded in it: in any event, Ford eventually decided not to take a licence to use Paice's technology - and instead struck a deal with Toyota to use its technology. Paice has also been embroiled in litigation with Toyota, which it claims received its technology from Ford, and in 2010 Ford reached a settlement with Paice over that technology. Hyundai and Kia are also accused of infringements by Paice. Ford has also filed 25 legal challenges to Paice patents in the US Patent and Trademark Office.
Hybrid vehicle technology is going the same way as mobile phones - soon the companies involved will be spending more time suing each other for patent infringements than making cars.
Griffith Hack report http://db8fgso3tb3n4.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Griffith-Hack-Dec-2010-Report.pdf
Automotive News http://www.autonews.com/article/20170308/OEM/170309777/ford-faces-another-legal-challenge-over-hybrid-technology-patent
Paice press statement http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170308006138/en/Paice-Ford-Hybrids-Mexico-Banned-U.S

German court bans Airscarf seat heating in Mercedes cars

Reuters reports that Mercedes has been banned from selling cars equipped with its Airscarf heating system, which blows warm air round your neck - useful if you are in a convertible and don't have a real scarf, presumably. Safer, perhaps, because a real scarf could become caught in a wheel. The device infinrges a patent. Strangely (and to the car maker's apparent consternation) although lower courts had sided with Mercedes, the Bundesgerichtshof found against them on appeal. Perhaps it shouldn't be too surprising, as that's why we have appeal courts.

No judgment available yet on the BGH website, at least not that I can find, but if I find it later I will post a link.

'via Blog this'

US court rules Ford’s Sync system did not infringe patent

World Intellectual Property Review reports that a jury at the US District Court for the Western District of Washington has given Ford a double victory in its dispute with Eagle Harbor Holdings, ruling that Ford did not infringe four patents owned by EHH and that its trade secrets were misappropriated.
The four patents owned by the technology licensing company cover technology used in a car computer system. EHH claimed that Ford’s Sync computer system, used in its Focus and C-Max models, infringed its patents. Ford counterclaimed for invalidity and also alleged that its trade secrets had been misappropriated.
To of the patents were held to be invalid, and the other two were not infringed.
The trade secrets claim revolved around a Ford document which had been in the possession of MediusTech, a subsdiary of EHH, when it was working as an adviser for Navox, a technology company that worked with Ford to develop the Sync system. Ford said EHH knew the information in the document was confidential, but used it to obtain a patent.

All Our Patent Are Belong To You (Tesla Motors)

I'm not sure about the precise meaning of that strange phrase, but this statement makes clear that what the American electric-car maker is doing is making its technology fairly freely available. Fairly freely? Well, probably on the advice of a cautious lawyer, Mr Musk has announced that anyone can use the patented technology without restriction, in good faith. Those three words could provide an awful lot of escape routes.

The blog post in which Mr Musk made the announcement speaks about 'open-source', though to be fair only as a metaphor for what the company is doing. I don't think the concept of open-source works literally except in the software licensing field, where the source code is usually (in the sort of licensing models with which we are most familiar, at any rate) as closed as can possibly be. The general idea reads over quite well, though, and one has to applaud Tesla's openness. At least, I do.

Why do this? Because it's an emerging technology that requires a huge infrastructure - in particular, charging points. The greater the parc of electric vehicles, and the more manufacturers there are involved to share the costs, the more likely the infrastructure is to be built and the more viable electric cars will be.