Patent Infringement

Contents
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What Is Patent Infringement? Types of Patent Infringement Basic Features of Patent Infringement How to Judge Patent Infringement? Several Cases of Patent Infringement

What Is Patent Infringement?

Patent infringement is the commission of a prohibited act with

respect to a patented invention without permission from the patent

holder. It occurs when someone violates the patent rights an inventor has in

his invention by making, using or selling the invention without the

patent owners permission (or if the patent has been licensed), in a way not permitted by the license.

Types of Patent Infringement

1. Direct Infringement
It directly states that the third party has willfully or intentionally stole the technology from the inventor without his prior permission. It occurs when someone directly makes, uses or sells the patented invention within the United States.

2. Indirect Infringement
It refers to the unfair practice that does not give a clear indication that the patent is bought and sold in the market. It occurs, for instance, when a device is claimed in a patent and a third party supplies a product which can only be reasonably used to make the claimed device.

Direct or Indirect Infringement?

Direct Infringement
manufacture patented technology; use patented technology; offer patented technology for sale; sell patented technology; import patented technology; pass off the patented.

Indirect Infringement
sell parts that can only be realistically used for a patented invention; sell an invention with instructions on using a certain method that infringes on a method patent; license an invention that is covered by anothers patent; sell material components that have been especially made for use in a patented invention and have no other commercial use.

These behaviors happen during the term of the patent and within the country that issued the patent.

Basic Features of Patent Infringement

1. Objects of Infringement

The patents must be valid!

2. Infringement behavior

The infringers must infringe with the purpose of operation or production!

3. Violation of legal rules

The behavior is carried out without the permission of patentees!

Possible Consequences of Patent Infringement

1. A huge barrier for independent innovation; 2. Great challenge to the social civilization and sanctity of the law. 3. A damage to the economic laws and law of value. 4. An illegal behavior that destroys the fair and orderly market competitive order.

What consequences can we expect from patent infringement?

How to Judge Patent Infringement?

Compare Patent Claims

5 Principles
Doctrine of Equivalents Doctrine of Complete Coverage Doctrine of Compromise Doctrine of Estoppel

Doctrine of Superfluity

How to Judge Patent Infringement?

A determination of patent infringement involves a two-step process:

1. The claims are analyzed by studying

all the relevant patent documents; 2. The claims must read on the accused device or process. In a word, the claims are tested to see whether they describe the accused infringement.

About Patent Claims

Defines the scope of protection
A preamble that recites the class of the invention, and optionally its primary properties, purpose, or field.

The utmost important both during prosecution and litigation

A "transitional" phrase that characterizes the elements that follow.

The possible parts contained in a claim may be:

A set of "limitations" that together describe the invention.

Optionally, a purpose clause that further describes the overall operation of the Invention.

Legal Responsibilities That Infringers Will Take

When patent infringement happens, the patentee may sue for relief in the appropriate Federal court.

Administrative Responsibility

Legal Responsibilities

Civil Responsibility

Criminal Responsibility

Remedies of Patent Infringement

Monetary Relief
1. Compensatory damages -- a patent owner may recover lost profits or infringement

Equitable Relief
1. Preliminary injunctions 2. Permanent injunctions

Cost & Attorneys Fees

Costs are typically recoverable and in rare cases where there has been willful infringement , so are attorneys fees.

2. Increased damages
-- up to three times the compensatory damages can be recovered in cases of willful or deliberate infringement

Several Cases of Patent Infringement

Time: 2011 Event: Huawei filed lawsuits in Germany, France and Hungary against ZTE for infringing a series of its patents relating to data card and LTE technologies.

Time: 2010 Event: Apple filed a lawsuit against HTC for infringing on 20 Apple patents related to the iPhones user interface, underlying architecture and hardware.

Time: 2009 Event: Nokia sued Apple for violation of 10 patents it holds on several wireless technologies.

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