- Motorola Solutions, Inc. v. Stellar LLCInstitutedPTAB · Feb 13, 2025 · IPR2024-01206 · APJ Brian J Mcnamara · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claims 1–13, finding a reasonable likelihood that the challenged claims would have been obvious under the asserted Yerazunis- and Ely-based grounds.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Discretionary denial › Fintiv (parallel litigation)Denied
“validity repeats all of the assertions in this Petition.” Prelim. Resp. 13. Thus, a significant portion of the resources consumed in preparing for trial would likely be useful in this proceeding. On November 11, 2024, Petitioner offered a stipulation, stating that, upon institution of this proceeding, Petitioner “will not pursue as to the challenged claims any ground raised or that reasonably could have been raised during the IPR” in the parallel litigation. See Ex. 1043 (filed in this proceeding Nov. 27, 2024). Petitioner’s stipulation applies to the following proceedings, which includes this proceeding: IPR2024-01205, challenging claims 1–20 of U.S. Patent No. 7,593,034; IPR2024-01206, challenging claims 1–13 of U.S. Patent No. 9,485,471; IPR2024-01207, challenging claims 1–22 of U.S. Patent No. 9,912,914. As all the claims of the ’471 patent are challenged in this proceeding, Petitioner’s stipulation applies to the entirety of the ’471 patent. In view of Petitioner’s stipulation, the substantial number of issues to be addressed in the District Court, Patent Owner’s acknowledgement that Petitioner’s expert report in the parallel litigation repeats the assertions in this Petition, and the potential reduction of issues to be tried in the parallel litigation, our weighing of the factors is against exercising discretion to deny institution. As discussed below, we also recognize that Petitioner’s contentions have merit. In consideration of the above, we decline to exercise discretion to deny institution. We now address the substantive issue presented in the Petition.” slip op. at 6
- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“(“Petition” or “Pet.”), to institute an inter partes review (“IPR”) of claims 1– 13 (the “challenged claims”) of U.S. Patent No. 9,485,471 B2 (“the ’471 patent”). 35 U.S.C. § 311. Stellar LLC (“Patent Owner”) filed a Preliminary Response, Paper 8 (“Prelim. Resp.”), contending that the Petition should be denied as to all challenged claims. We have jurisdiction under 35 U.S.C. § 6. 35 U.S. C. § 314 provides that an inter partes review may not be instituted unless the information presented in the Petition “shows that there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” A decision to institute under § 314 may not institute on fewer than all claims challenged in the petition. SAS Inst., Inc. v. Iancu, 138 S. Ct. 1348, 1359–60 (2018). In addition, per Board practice, if the Board institutes trial, it will institute “on all of the challenged claims and on all grounds of unpatentability asserted for each claim.” See 37 C.F.R. § 42.108(a). Having considered the arguments and the associated evidence presented in the Petition and the Preliminary Response, for the reasons described below, we institute inter partes review.” slip op. at 2
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundDecided for petitioner
“Patent Owner’s arguments that an ordinarily skilled artisan would not have had reason to combine the teachings of Yerazunis and Fiore are similar to its substantive arguments that the references fail to disclose the limitations of the claims. We address these arguments in the context of the claim limitations separately below. We note that Petitioner does not rely on Fiore as disclosing all the claim limitations, and instead cites Fiore as disclosing a memory management structure applicable to the system disclosed by Yerazunis. In the context of the claimed subject matter, we determine that, for purposes of this Decision, Petitioner has demonstrated a person of ordinary skill would have had reason to apply the memory mapping structure from being overwritten, as taught by Yerazunis.” slip op. at 17
- Skill levelSkill level petitioner adoptedDecided for petitioner
“VIII. LEVEL OF ORDINARY SKILL IN THE ART Petitioner describes a person of ordinary skill in the art (“POSITA” or “ordinarily skilled artisan”) as having “at least a Bachelor’s Degree in electrical engineering, computer science, or computer engineering, or undergraduate training in an equivalent field and at least two years of relevant experience in electronics technology.” Pet. 7 (citing Ex. 1003, Sarhan Decl. ¶¶ 24–25). Petitioner further states that “[a]dditional graduate education could substitute for professional experience, and significant work experience could substitute for formal education.” Id. Patent Owner does not address the qualifications of a person of ordinary skill in the art. See generally Prelim. Resp. The level of ordinary skill in the art usually is evidenced by the references themselves. See Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001); In re GPAC Inc., 57 F.3d 1573, 1579 (Fed. Cir. 1995); In 4 U.S. Patent 7,158,167, issued Jan. 2, 2007 (Ex. 1017) 5 U.S. Patent Publication No. 2002/191952, published Dec. 19, 2002 (Ex. 1009) 6 U.S. Patent Publication No. 2004/008255, published Jan. 15, 2004 (Ex. 1019) 7 EP 1,064,783, published June 4, 2003 (Ex. 1015) 8 U.S. Patent 5,982,418, issued Nov. 9, 1999 (Ex. 1020) description of a person of ordinary is commensurate with the subject matter of the ’471 patent and the references, we apply Petitioner’s description for purposes of tie Decision.” slip op. at 9
§ 103 obviousnessDiscretionary denialcites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 9,485,471 - Motorola Solutions, Inc. v. Stellar LLCInstitutedPTAB · Feb 13, 2025 · IPR2024-01207 · APJ Robert L Kinder · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claims 1–22, finding a reasonable likelihood that at least one claim is unpatentable under the asserted obviousness grounds.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Discretionary denial › Fintiv (parallel litigation)Denied
“validity repeats all of the assertions in this Petition.” Prelim. Resp. 13. Thus, a significant portion of the resources consumed in preparing for trial would likely be useful in this proceeding. On November 11, 2024, Petitioner offered a stipulation, stating that, upon institution on this proceeding, Petitioner “will not pursue as to the challenged claims any ground raised or that reasonably could have been raised during the IPR” in the parallel litigation. See Ex. 1043 (filed in this proceeding Nov. 27, 2024). Petitioner’s stipulation applies to the following proceedings, which includes this proceeding: IPR2024-01205, challenging claims 1–20 of U.S. Patent No. 7,593,034; IPR2024-01206, challenging claims 1–13 of U.S. Patent No. 9,485,471; IPR2024-01207, challenging claims 1–22 of U.S. Patent No. 8,692,882; and IPR2024-01208, challenging claims 1–23 of U.S. Patent” slip op. at 6
- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“Having considered the arguments and the associated evidence presented in the Petition and the Preliminary Response, for the reasons described below, we institute inter partes review.” slip op. at 2
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundInstituted
“At this stage of the proceeding, we are persuaded that Petitioner has established a reasonable likelihood that a person of ordinary skill would have combined the teachings of Yerazunis and Fiore for the reasons arguments do not directly address the specific combination proposed by Petitioner nor the specific motivations provided by Petitioner. For example, as explained further below in our analysis of claim 1, the gun embodiment of Yerazunis does not stop recording video after a triggering event. See Ex. 1017, 17:50–59. Moreover, Fiore’s file-based approach would provide the benefits highlighted by Petitioner regardless of whether Yerazunis stops recording video after a triggering event or continues recording to the next event. Similarly, the argument that Fiore does not selectively write protect data does not address Petitioner’s combination, which relies on Yerazunis, not Fiore, for teaching selectively write protecting data. Patent Owner’s argument also does not explain why a person of ordinary skill would not use Fiore’s file-based approach in implementing Yerazunis’s video recording device. Finally, Patent Owner’s argument that Fiore does not store individual segments within the circular buffer does not address Petitioner’s reliance on Yerazunis’s gun implementation in which individual segments are stored in the circular buffer. See Pet. 28 (“Yerazunis does disclose that in a gun camera embodiment, ‘the head pointer 104 and the tail pointer 102 . . . defining the area(s) of the circular buffer memory, are stored in a table to allow later retrieval of the video data pertaining to each firing of the gun.’” (quoting Ex. 1017, 17:50–56)); see also Pet. 30–32, 38–39.” slip op. at 22
- Obviousness (§103) › Graham factors (scope of art, differences, level of skill)UnpatentableInstituted
“of Yerazunis in combination with Fiore. On this record, Petitioner has demonstrated the similarities in the data recording systems of Yerazunis and Fiore. Petitioner asserts a reasonably sufficient basis for establishing the “specified frame data associated with [the] firing event” to be preserved as the disclosure of a designated segment that is write-protected. Based on the current record, we find Petitioner’s evidence more persuasive than Patent Owner’s assertion that Yerazunis preserves the entire buffer—not designated segments. Again, Petitioner admits Yerazunis does not expressly refer to “indexing write-protected segments as second files” but further establishes with sufficient basis that a person of ordinary skill in the art would understand the tagging features of Yerazunis aligns with the concept of indexing. Further, Petitioner shows that eventually it will be necessitated to locate or retrieve the data, providing further motivation for indexing, which is not only disclosed in Fiore, but demonstrated as well known in the art. See Pet. 28–29. Petitioner demonstrates the combination of Fiore and thus, on the current record, we are not persuaded by Patent Owner’s argument that Yerazunis only preserves post-recording data. Patent Owner further does not provide sufficient basis of reasoning that the “memory designation scheme” of Yerazunis which uses “unused block[s] of memory” establishes there is no write-protected segment. In consideration of the above, we are persuaded for purposes of this Decision that Petitioner has cited sufficient evidence to demonstrate that person of ordinary skill in the art would have had a rational basis to combine the teachings of Yerazunis and Fiore and this combination teaches these limitations of element 4.” slip op. at 33
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnessDiscretionary denialcites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 8,692,882 - Motorola Solutions, Inc. v. Stellar LLCInstitutedPTAB · Feb 13, 2025 · IPR2024-01208 · APJ Brian J Mcnamara · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claims 1–23 on all four §103 grounds, finding a reasonable likelihood of success based on Yerazunis or Ely, with Fiore and Lewellen.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Discretionary denial › Fintiv (parallel litigation)Denied
“exercise our discretion to deny the Petition in favor of the parallel litigation. Prelim. Resp. 5–17. The Board has held that the advanced state of a parallel district court action is a factor that may weigh in favor of denying a petition under § 314(a). See NHK Spring Co. v. Intri-Plex Techs., Inc., IPR2018- 00752, Paper 8 at 20 (PTAB Sept. 12, 2018) (precedential); Trial Practice Guide, 58 & n.2. We consider the following factors to assess “whether efficiency, fairness, and the merits support the exercise of authority to deny institution in view of an earlier trial date in the parallel proceeding”: 1. whether the court granted a stay or evidence exists that one may be granted if a proceeding is instituted; 2. proximity of the court’s trial date to the Board’s projected statutory deadline for a final written decision; 3. investment in the parallel proceeding by the court and the parties; 4. overlap between issues raised in the petition and in the parallel proceeding; 5. whether the petitioner and the defendant in the parallel proceeding are the same party; and 6. other circumstances that impact the Board’s exercise of discretion, including the merits. Apple Inc. v. Fintiv, Inc., IPR2020-00019, Paper 11 at 5–6 (PTAB Mar. 20, 2020) (precedential) (“Fintiv”). In evaluating these factors, we “take[] a” slip op. at 3
- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“(“Petition” or “Pet.”), to institute an inter partes review (“IPR”) of claims 1– 23 (the “challenged claims”) of U.S. Patent No. 9,912,914 B2 (Ex. 1031, “the ’914 patent”). 35 U.S.C. § 311. Stellar LLC (“Patent Owner”) filed a Preliminary Response, Paper 8 (“Prelim. Resp.”), contending that the Petition should be denied as to all challenged claims. We have jurisdiction under 35 U.S.C. § 6, which provides that an inter partes review may not be instituted unless the information presented in the Petition “shows that there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” A decision to institute under § 314 may not institute on fewer than all claims challenged in the petition. SAS Inst., Inc. v. Iancu, 138 S. Ct. 1348, 1359–60 (2018). In addition, per Board practice, if the Board institutes trial, it will institute “on all of the challenged claims and on all grounds of unpatentability asserted for each claim.” See 37 C.F.R. § 42.108(a). Having considered the arguments and the associated evidence presented in the Petition and the Preliminary Response, for the reasons described below, we institute inter partes review.” slip op. at 2
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundDecided for petitioner
“Contentions Concerning Reasons to Combine Teachings of Yerazunis and Fiore Noting that Yerazunis and Fiore both concern recording devices with circular buffers that preserve data before and after a trigger event, Petitioner contends that an ordinarily skilled artisan would have had reason to combine the teachings of the references to incorporate into Yerazunis the benefits Fiore articulates concerning its file-based storage approach in such systems. Pet. 21. Petitioner emphasizes Fiore’s discussion of how implementing a circular buffer as a memory mapped file that indexes event data combines the access speed of the RAM memory with the large capacity of a disk file, making the indexing of data in memory mapped file 110 transparent to the circular buffer’s access objects. Id. at 21–22. Petitioner also emphasizes that an ordinarily skilled artisan would have had a reasonable expectation of success, given Fiore’s detailed disclosure of applying its techniques in a system like that of Yerzunis. Id. at 22 (citing Ex. 1003, Sarhan Decl. ¶¶ 168–172).” slip op. at 16
- Skill levelSkill level petitioner adoptedDecided for petitioner
“VIII. LEVEL OF ORDINARY SKILL IN THE ART Petitioner describes a person of ordinary skill in the art (“POSITA” or “ordinarily skilled artisan”) as having “at least a Bachelor’s Degree in electrical engineering, computer science, or computer engineering, or undergraduate training in an equivalent field and at least two years of relevant experience in electronics technology.” Pet. 7 (citing Ex. 1003, Sarhan Decl. ¶¶ 24–25). Petitioner further states that “[a]dditional graduate education could substitute for professional experience, and significant work experience could substitute for formal education.” Id. Patent Owner does not address the qualifications of a person of ordinary skill in the art. See Prelim. Resp. The level of ordinary skill in the art usually is evidenced by the references themselves. See Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001); In re GPAC Inc., 57 F.3d 1573, 1579 (Fed. Cir. 1995); In re Oelrich, 579 F.2d 86, 91 (CCPA 1978). As Petitioner’s proposed description of a person of ordinary is commensurate with the subject matter” slip op. at 9
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnessDiscretionary denialcites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 9,912,914 - Motorola Solutions, Inc. v. Stellar, LLCInstitutedPTAB · Feb 13, 2025 · IPR2024-01205 · APJ Nabeel U Khan · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted inter partes review of claims 1–20 on all asserted grounds, finding a reasonable likelihood that at least one challenged claim would be shown unpatentable.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Discretionary denial › Fintiv (parallel litigation)Decided for petitioner
“exercise our discretion to deny the Petition in favor of the parallel litigation. Prelim. Resp. 5–18. The Board has held that the advanced state of a parallel district court action is a factor that may weigh in favor of denying a petition under § 314(a). See NHK Spring Co. v. Intri-Plex Techs., Inc., IPR2018- 00752, Paper 8 at 20 (PTAB Sept. 12, 2018) (precedential); Trial Practice Guide, 58 & n.2. We consider the following factors to assess “whether efficiency, fairness, and the merits support the exercise of authority to deny institution in view of an earlier trial date in the parallel proceeding”:” slip op. at 8
- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“information presented in the petition . . . shows that there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” 35 U.S.C. § 314(a) (2018). Having considered the arguments and evidence presented by Petitioner and Patent Owner, we determine that Petitioner has demonstrated a reasonable likelihood of prevailing on at least one of the challenged claims of the ’034 patent and we exercise our discretion to institute inter partes review as to all the challenged claims of the ’034 patent on all the grounds of unpatentability set forth in the Petition.” slip op. at 2
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundInstituted
“At this stage of the proceeding, we are persuaded that Petitioner has established a reasonable likelihood that a person of ordinary skill would have combined the teachings of Yerazunis and Fiore for the reasons provided by Petitioner and summarized above. Several of Patent Owner’s arguments do not directly address the specific combination proposed by Petitioner nor the specific motivation provided by Petitioner. For example, Yerazunis does not stop recording video after a triggering event. See Ex. 1017, 17:50–59. Moreover, Fiore’s file-based approach would provide the benefits highlighted by Petitioner regardless of whether Yerazunis stops recording video after a triggering event or continues recording to the next event. Similarly, the argument that Fiore does not selectively write protect data does not address Petitioner’s combination, which relies on Yerazunis, not Fiore, for teaching selectively write protecting data. Patent Owner’s argument also does not explain why a person of ordinary skill would not use Fiore’s file-based approach in implementing Yerazunis’ video recording device. Finally, Patent Owner’s argument that Fiore does not store individual segments within the circular buffer does not address Petitioner’s reliance on Yerazunis’ gun implementation in which individual segments are stored in the circular buffer. See Pet. 32 (citing Ex. 1017, 3:25–38, 8:26–30, 15:9–13, 17:48–59).” slip op. at 21
- Skill levelSkill level board ownOther
“or undergraduate training in an equivalent field and at least two years of relevant experience in electronics technology.” Pet. 7 (citing Ex. 1003 ¶¶ 24–25). Dr. Sarhan further opines that “[a]dditional graduate education could substitute for professional experience, and significant work experience could substitute for formal education.” Id. (citing Ex. 1003 ¶¶ 24–25). Patent Owner does not contest Petitioner’s proposed level of ordinary skill. See generally Prelim. Resp. For purposes of this Decision, we adopt Petitioner’s proposed level of ordinary skill, which is supported by Dr. Sarhan’s testimony, except that we find that the phrase “at least” in Petitioner’s proposed definition creates a vague, open-ended upper bound for the level of ordinary skill, and we therefore do not adopt that aspect of the proposal.” slip op. at 14
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnessDiscretionary denialcites Phillips · GrahamPatents in suitUS 7,593,034 - PTAB · Jan 22, 2025 · IPR2024-01186 · APJ Brian D Range · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claims 1–20 on all petitioned grounds, finding a reasonable likelihood that claims are obvious over Zhou and Kwatra, with Shi added for certain dependent claims.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“unless the information presented in the petition “shows that there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” The following findings of fact and conclusions of law are not final, but are made for the sole purpose of determining whether Petitioner meets the threshold for initiating review. Any final decision shall be based on the full trial record, including any response timely filed by Patent Owner. Any arguments not raised by Patent Owner in a timely-filed response may be deemed waived. For the reasons stated below, we determine that Petitioner has established a reasonable likelihood that it would prevail with respect to at least one claim. We hereby institute an inter partes review as to claims 1–20 of the ’894 patent based upon Petitioner’s asserted grounds of unpatentability.” slip op. at 2
- Skill levelSkill level petitioner adoptedDecided for petitioner
“Petitioner contends that a person of ordinary skill in the art (POSITA) would have the following characteristics: “a bachelor’s degree in engineering or computer science, or equivalent field, and two years of experience working on image or video processing or digital cameras.” Pet. 6 (citing Ex. 1002 ¶¶ 36–37). Petitioner states that, “[a]lternatively, a POSITA would have four years of experience working on image or video processing or digital cameras.” Id. Petitioner further contends “[a]n advanced graduate degree in the disciplines cited above may make up for the work experience indicated above.” Id. Patent Owner does not dispute the level of ordinary skill in the art. Prelim Resp. 3. For purposes of this Decision, we adopt Petitioner’s proposal as reasonable and consistent with the ’894 patent specification and the prior art. See Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001) (the prior art may reflect an appropriate level of skill in the art).” slip op. at 10
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)No construction neededNot reached
“Petitioner “does not believe any terms require a formal construction.” Pet. 6. Patent Owner agrees “no claim terms presently require construction.” Prelim. Resp. 11–12. We do not discern a need to construe explicitly any claim language at this juncture because doing so would have no effect on our analyses below of Petitioner’s asserted grounds and will not assist in resolving the present controversy between the parties. See Realtime Data, LLC v. Iancu, 912 F.3d 1368, 1375 (Fed. Cir. 2019) (“The Board is required to construe ‘only those terms . . . that are in controversy, and only to the extent necessary to resolve the controversy.’”) (quoting Vivid Techs., Inc. v. Am. Sci. & Eng’g, Inc., 200 F.3d 795, 803 (Fed. Cir. 1999)).” slip op. at 11
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundReasonable expectation foundDecided for petitioner
“Based on the evidence presented, Petitioner adequately establishes that a person having ordinary skill in the art would have had reason to combine the teachings of Zhou and Kwatra with a reasonable expectation of success. Pet. 8–10, 30–35; Ex. 1002 ¶¶ 104–117; Ex. 1004, 1:41–45, 7:41– 42, 7:47–54, 9:64–65, 11:55–67, Fig. 7; Ex. 1005, code (57), 1:17–19, 1:52– 57, 5:64–6:5, 13:23–48, 13:66–14:37, 16:13–32, 17:38–48, 18:54–56, 26:12–21, Fig. 13.” slip op. at 22
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnesscites KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 10,574,894 - PTAB · Jan 22, 2025 · IPR2024-01165 · APJ William V Saindon · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claims 1–21, finding a reasonable likelihood that claim 1 would have been obvious over Zhou and Cai.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“review under 35 U.S.C. § 314(b) and 37 C.F.R. § 42.4(a). The standard for instituting an inter partes review is set forth in 35 U.S.C. § 314(a), which provides that an inter partes review may not be instituted unless “there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” For the reasons provided below, we determine that Petitioner has demonstrated a reasonable likelihood that at least one claim of the ’840 patent is unpatentable, and we institute an inter partes review. 37 C.F.R. § 42.108(a).” slip op. at 2
- Skill levelOther
“B. Level of Ordinary Skill in the Art Petitioner asserts that: A person of ordinary skill in the art (POSITA) in the field of the ’840 patent would have a bachelor’s degree in engineering or computer science, or equivalent field, and two years of experience working on image or video processing, or digital cameras. Alternatively, a POSITA would have four years of experience working on image or video processing, or digital cameras. An advanced graduate degree in the disciplines cited above may make up for the work experience indicated above. Pet. 6 (citing Ex. 1002 ¶ 32). Patent Owner applies the same definition. Prelim. Resp. 9. We use this agreed-upon definition for purposes of this Decision.” slip op. at 7
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)No construction neededOther
“The parties both assert that no terms require a formal construction. Pet. 6–7; Prelim. Resp. 9–10. Reviewing the arguments set before us, we determine that no claims require construction to resolve a dispute between the parties at this time. Realtime, LLC v. Iancu, 912 F.3d 1368, 1375 (Fed. Cir. 2019) (“The Board is required to construe ‘only those terms . . . that are in controversy, and only to the extent necessary to resolve the controversy.’”) (quoting Vivid Techs., Inc. v. Am. Sci. & Eng’g, Inc., 200 F.3d 795, 803 (Fed. Cir. 1999)).” slip op. at 7
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundOther
“b) Reason to Combine & Expectation of Success As explained earlier, Petitioner asserts that it would have been obvious to improve Zhou’s video stabilization techniques by using the techniques in Cai for using future frames to characterize the video as having zero motion or not. Pet. 36. Patent Owner first argues that neither reference “offers any hint or suggestion of combining such reactive systems to create a proactive stabilization solution.” Prelim. Resp. 17; see also id. at 17–19 (similar). Patent Owner has not offered a claim construction, or otherwise explained, how the claims require a “proactive stabilization solution.” Thus, this argument is unpersuasive. Patent Owner next argues that Zhou and Cai are technically incompatible. Id. at 20–23. In particular, Patent Owner argues that Zhou “uses buffering to adjust stabilization strength,” whereas Cai uses buffering “for trajectory adjustment and distinguishing jitter from zero-motion or lowspeed movements.” Id. at 21–22 (emphasis removed). On this record, however, we are not provided with sufficient technical reasoning explaining how using the buffer for one purpose precludes its use for another purpose. Patent Owner cites its declarant, Dr. Foroosh, but his testimony merely repeats Patent Owner’s arguments without any meaningful elucidation. Id. at 22 (citing Ex. 2001 ¶ 70); 37 C.F.R. § 42.65(a) (“Expert testimony that does not disclose the underlying facts or data on which the opinion is based is entitled to little or no weight.”); Xerox Corp. v. Bytemark, Inc., IPR2022- 00624, Paper 9 at 15 (PTAB Aug. 24, 2022) (precedential). On this record, we are shown no technical impediment with using the buffer in Zhou for distinguishing non-zero motion by looking ahead some number of frames, as proposed in the Petition.” slip op. at 12
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnesscites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 10,958,840 - PTAB · Jan 22, 2025 · IPR2024-01164 · APJ William V Saindon · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claims 1–21, finding a reasonable likelihood that claim 1 would have been obvious over Bell and Shi.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“5. Conclusion for the Bell & Shi Ground In summary, we determine on this limited record that Petitioner has shown sufficiently that Shi discloses the low-light high-pass parameter of claim 1 and that there would have been a reason to combine Bell and Shi. We adopt Petitioner’s remaining unchallenged assertions regarding claim 1 as our own. We are not persuaded by Patent Owner’s objective indicia analysis, which is lacking a showing of nexus. In conclusion, we determine that Petitioner has demonstrated a reasonable likelihood of success in showing that the subject matter of claim 1 of the ’840 patent would have been obvious in view of Bell and Shi. No issue unique to any of the other claims in this ground is raised at this time.” slip op. at 17
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)Term construed board ownOther
“Looking to the claim language itself, we note that the claim mentions “low-light high-pass parameter” once, in the context of listing it as one of three alternative things covered by the claim. Ex. 1001, 30:35–38. We find the specification of the ’840 patent discusses the low-light high-pass parameter in two paragraphs. Id. at 21:59–22:21. In these passages, the ’840 patent states that the low-light high-pass parameter may be “a parameter that controls the amount/strength of smoothing performed to generate the smoothed trajectory.” Id. at 21:59–61. The parameter may take a value corresponding to the amount of motion blur compensation to be used. Id. at 22:8–21. Thus, the specification states that the low-light high-pass parameter is used to control the amount of motion blur compensation.” slip op. at 8
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundReasonable expectation foundOther
“Patent Owner then argues that Bell and Shi are incompatible techniques and would not be combined. Prelim. Resp. 19–20. In particular, Patent Owner argues that Bell preemptively adjusts for future motion, whereas Shi reacts only after blur is detected. Id. at 20. On this record, this argument is unpersuasive because Patent Owner has not sufficiently explained the alleged technical incompatibility. Patent Owner’s position relies on the testimony of Dr. Foroosh, but we do not credit his testimony here because it merely mirrors what Patent Owner has argued, without technical explanation. Ex. 2001 ¶ 65; 37 C.F.R. § 42.65(a) (“Expert testimony that does not disclose the underlying facts or data on which the opinion is based is entitled to little or no weight”); Xerox Corp. v. Bytemark, Inc., IPR2022-00624, Paper 9 at 15 (PTAB Aug. 24, 2022) (precedential). In contrast, both Bell and Shi look at future frames for motion smoothing. Ex. 1006, 10:10–16 (describing Bell’s “look-ahead buffer”); Ex. 1007, 1:61– 65 (describing Shi’s “use [of] future frames”). Thus, on this record, we are not persuaded that there is a technical incompatibility in the manner Patent Owner alleges.” slip op. at 14
- Obviousness (§103) › Objective indicia / secondary considerations › NexusObjective indicia no nexusOther
“Prelim. Resp. 23–31. Patent Owner’s position is underpinned by its evidence purporting to show its “dominant position in the U.S. action camera market,” based on its “HyperSmooth technology” that it asserts “has garnered widespread industry recognition.” See generally id. However, even if we were to accept Patent Owner’s argument that it has a revolutionary and successful product, that does not mean that all claims of its patents would have been non-obvious. For us to give substantial weight to objective indicia of non-obviousness, a proponent must establish a nexus between the evidence and the merits of the claimed invention. ClassCo, Inc., v. Apple, Inc., 838 F.3d 1214, 1220 (Fed. Cir. 2016). “[T]here is no nexus unless the evidence presented is ‘reasonably commensurate with the scope of the claims.’” Id. (quoting Rambus Inc. v. Rea, 731 F.3d 1248, 1257 (Fed. Cir. 2013)); see also Wyers v. Master Lock Co., 616 F.3d 1231, 1246 (Fed. Cir. 2010) (“For objective evidence of secondary considerations to be accorded substantial weight, its proponent must establish a nexus between the evidence and the merits of the claimed invention.”) (cleaned up). Patent Owner here has not attempted a nexus analysis in its Preliminary Response. At best, it improperly incorporates by reference a claim chart (Exhibit 2016) served in the related ITC proceeding. Prelim. Resp. 25; 37 C.F.R. § 42.6(a)(3) (“Arguments must not be incorporated by reference from one document into another document.”). Even then, the claim chart appears to admit that claim 1 does not read on Patent Owner’s technology. Ex. 2016, 30.2 On this record, we cannot determine whether, or the extent to which, Patent Owner’s assertions of non-obviousness are due to the claimed invention because of the failure to show nexus to the subject matter of the claims.” slip op. at 16
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnesscites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 10,958,840 - PTAB · Jan 7, 2025 · IPR2024-01052 · APJ Brian D Range · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claims 1–20 on all four asserted obviousness grounds, finding a reasonable likelihood of success and insufficient nexus for GoPro’s objective-indicia evidence.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“Under 35 U.S.C. § 314(a), an inter partes review may not be instituted unless the information presented in the petition “shows that there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” The following findings of fact and conclusions of law are not final but are made solely to determine whether Petitioner meets the threshold for initiating review. Any final decision shall be based on the full trial record, including any response timely filed by Patent Owner. Any arguments not raised by Patent Owner in a timely-filed response may be deemed waived. For the reasons stated below, we determine that Petitioner has established a reasonable likelihood that it would prevail with respect to at least one claim. We hereby institute an inter partes review as to claims 1–20 of the ’832 patent based upon Petitioner’s asserted grounds of unpatentability.” slip op. at 2
- Skill levelSkill level petitioner adoptedDecided for petitioner
“Petitioner contends that a person of ordinary skill in the art would have the following characteristics: “a bachelor’s degree in engineering or computer science, or equivalent field, and two years of experience working on image or video processing or digital cameras[; a]lternatively, . . . four years of experience working on image or video processing or digital 7 Objective evidence of nonobviousness is presently asserted. Prelim. Resp. 23–30. cameras.” Pet. 6 (citing Ex. 1002 ¶¶ 36–38). Petitioner further contends “[a]n advanced graduate degree in the disciplines cited above may make up for the work experience indicated above.” Id. Patent Owner does not dispute the level of ordinary skill in the art. Prelim Resp. 3. For purposes of this Decision, we adopt Petitioner’s proposal as reasonable and consistent with the ’832 patent specification and the prior art. See Okajima v. Bourdeau, 261 F.3d 1350, 1355 (Fed. Cir. 2001) (the prior art may reflect an appropriate level of skill in the art).” slip op. at 12
- Claim Construction › Intrinsic evidence (Phillips canons) › Plain and ordinary meaning to a POSITATerm construed petitioner constructionDecided for petitioner
“any viewing window determined for frames of a video is sufficient to be a function of progress merely because they are frames of a video that can be played back.” Prelim. Resp. 14. This argument is unpersuasive because it does not consider the entire context of claim 1. The relevant recitation requires more than just playback; instead, the recitation requires determining “a viewing window for the visual content as a function of progress through the progress length based on the rotational positions of the image capture device as the function of progress through the capture duration.” Ex. 1001, 28:44–48 (emphases added). The recitation as a whole requires making a specific determination for the viewing window at different points in time. Patent Owner also argues that “Petitioner’s theory would improperly render the limitation superfluous” because the claim elsewhere requires that visual content be viewable as a function of progress. Prelim. Resp. 14–15. Similarly, Patent Owner argues that the claims already require obtaining rotational positions as a function of progress. Id. at 20–21. We disagree that the limitation is superfluous. Aside from playback or obtaining rotational information, claims 1 and 11 also require that the viewing window be determined for different times within the video. In other words, if the viewing window were determined only once and this single determination were applied to every frame of an entire video, this would not meet the recitation, even if the video could be played back. slip op. at 18
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundReasonable expectation foundDecided for petitioner
“Based on the evidence presented, Petitioner adequately establishes that a person having ordinary skill in the art would have had reason to combine the teachings of Thomason and Pacurariu with a reasonable expectation of success. Ex. 1002 ¶¶ 76–81, 89–92; Ex. 1004 ¶¶ 4, 8, 9, 27, 29, 35; Ex. 1005 ¶¶ 26, 41, 46, 51–52, 55–57, Figs. 6–7. Pecurariu and Thomason are in the same field of endeavor, and we agree with Petitioner, on this record, that a person having ordinary skill in the art would have understood that Pecurariu’s teachings would have predictably improved Thomason. Patent Owner argues that Petitioner does not adequately establish reason to combine with rational underpinning. Prelim. Resp. 5–10. In particular, Patent Owner quotes the Petition at pages 23–24 and argues that these statements regarding reason to combine are unexplained and conclusory. Id. at 6–7. On the present record, we disagree with Patent Owner. Petitioner’s statements regarding reason to combine must be considered in view of the context provided by the entire Petition including Petitioner’s discussion of the teachings of Thomason and Pacurariu individually. See, e.g., Pet. 8–46. Similarly, the opinions of Dr. Katsaggelos regarding reason to combine (see, e.g., Ex. 1002 ¶¶ 89–92, 95, 104, 112, 115) must be considered given the complete context of Dr. Katsaggelos’s discussion of the cited art and technology. Id. ¶¶ 47–115. As explained above, Petitioner and Dr. Katsaggelos explain the references’ teachings and, based on these teachings, assert that a person having skill in the art would have had reason to combine with reasonable expectation of success based on those teachings. Reason to combine may properly come from the references themselves. KSR Int’l Co., 550 U.S. at 418 (explaining reason to combine may come from “interrelated teachings of multiple patents). On this record and based on the teachings of these references and the great similarity of the references’ technology, as we discuss above and, in more detail, below, Petitioner has a reasonable likelihood in showing that a person having skill in the art would have had reason to combine the teachings of the references with a reasonable expectation of success.” slip op. at 34
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnesscites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 11,336,832 - PTAB · Jan 7, 2025 · IPR2024-00984 · APJ Nabeel U Khan · IPR · Institution
The Board instituted IPR on claims 1, 6, and 7 on all petitioned grounds, finding a reasonable likelihood of prevailing on the Meulen and Chao obviousness ground.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted
“An inter partes review may not be instituted “unless . . . the information presented in the petition . . . shows that there is a reasonable likelihood that the petitioner would prevail with respect to at least 1 of the claims challenged in the petition.” 35 U.S.C. § 314(a) (2018). Having considered the arguments and evidence presented by Petitioner and Patent Owner, we determine that Petitioner has demonstrated a reasonable likelihood of prevailing on at least one of the challenged claims of the ’413 patent. We institute inter partes review as to all the challenged claims of the ’413 patent on all the grounds of unpatentability set forth in the Petition.” slip op. at 2
- Skill levelSkill level petitioner adoptedDecided for petitioner
“relevant field “would have a bachelor’s degree in engineering or computer science, or equivalent field, and two years of experience working on image or video processing, or digital cameras,” or alternatively “would have four years of experience working on image or video processing, or digital cameras.” Pet. 6. Petitioner further argues that an “advanced graduate degree” may “make up for the work experience.” Id. (citing Ex. 1002 ¶¶ 33–34). At this stage of the proceeding, “Patent Owner applies Petitioner’s proposed level of skill.” Prelim. Resp. 3. For purposes of this Decision, we adopt Petitioner’s proposed level of ordinary skill because it is consistent with the level of skill in the art at the time of the invention as reflected by the ’413 patent and the cited prior art.” slip op. at 8
- Claim Construction › Threshold & procedure › Whether a term needs construction (O2 Micro)No construction neededOther
“Petitioner argues that no claim terms “require a formal construction” and that “Petitioner interprets the challenged claims based on the breadth of GoPro’s infringement allegations.” Pet. 6 at n2. Patent Owner asserts that several claim terms are disputed in the parallel ITC litigation, but “none of them need to be resolved by the Board.” Prelim. Resp. 4 (citing Ex. 2001 ¶ 34). We determine that, at this stage of the proceeding, no explicit constructions are required to resolve the dispute between the parties. A final determination as to claim construction will be made at the close of the proceeding, after any hearing, based on all the evidence of record. The parties are expected to assert all their claim construction arguments and evidence in the Petition, Patent Owner’s Response, Petitioner’s Reply, Patent Owner’s Sur-reply, or otherwise during trial, as permitted by our rules.” slip op. at 9
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation foundReasonable expectation foundInstituted
“persuaded, at this stage of the proceeding, by Petitioner’s arguments for the reasons summarized above. Specifically, we agree that the combination of Meulen and Chao teaches non-uniform pixel shifting. Contrary to Patent Owner’s argument, we agree with Petitioner that by teaching image scaling, Meulen teaches that pixels are shifted based on a scaling factor from the input to output positions. Further, we also agree that by disclosing stretching or shrinking of its background elements Chao also teaches pixel shifting. Petitioner argues that because Meulen mentions scaling of images without providing the details of how to perform scaling, a person of ordinary 1002 ¶ 262). Based on the teachings of these references and the similarity of the references’ technology, we determine Petitioner has established a reason to combine Meulen and Chao with a reasonable expectation of success in doing so.” slip op. at 19
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnesscites Phillips · KSR · GrahamPatents in suitUS 10,015,413 - Motorola Mobility LLC v. Largan Precision Co., Ltd.Institution deniedPTAB · Jan 3, 2025 · IPR2024-00689 · APJ Norman H Beamer · IPR · Institution
The Board denied institution because Petitioner did not show a reasonable likelihood that claims 1–34 were obvious over Fukaya or Cai.
RulingsInstitution decision- PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)Institution denied meritsDenied
“3. Analysis Petitioner has not shown a reasonable likelihood that a person of ordinary skill, as of the August 2014 priority date of the ’845 patent, would have been motivated to modify the Fukaya seven-lens system to change the bi-convex/bi-concave design of the sixth and seventh lenses to a double gullwing/meniscus design. Redesigning a lens system is extraordinarily complicated, requiring protracted trial-and-error experimentation with nearly an infinite number of possible solutions in a highly multidimensional space. Ex. 1010, 11; Ex. 1011, 169. We conclude that Petitioner and its expert navigate along one path out of many to the particular redesign they propose using improper result-oriented hindsight as a guide.” slip op. at 23
- PTAB / AIA Trials › Discretionary denial › §325(d) same art / argumentsDecided for petitioner
“paragraph) (“Becton Dickinson”). The Becton Dickinson factors apply when a petition relies on art or arguments previously presented to the Office during any proceeding pertaining to the challenged patent, including reexamination, reissue, and AIA post-grant proceedings. Advanced Bionics, LLC v. MED-EL Elektromedizinische Geräte GmbH, IPR2019- 01469, Paper 6, 8–10 (PTAB Feb. 13, 2020) (precedential). Advanced Bionics explains how the Becton Dickinson factors fit into a two-part framework that examines: (1) whether the same or substantially the same art previously was presented to the Office or whether the same or substantially the same arguments previously were presented to the Office; and (2) if either condition of first part of the framework is satisfied, whether the petitioner has demonstrated that the Office erred in a manner material to the patentability of challenged claims. If a condition in the first part of the framework is satisfied and the petitioner fails to make a showing of material error, the Director generally will exercise discretion not to institute inter partes review. Id. at 8–9. Here, as discussed above, the same art that Petitioner relies on — Fukaya and Tsai/Cai — was previously presented to the Office. Thus, Patent Owner has shown that the first part of the Advanced Bionics framework is satisfied. Turning to the second part of the Advanced Bionics framework, we determine that Petitioner has demonstrated that the Office erred in a manner material to the patentability of the challenged claims.” slip op. at 12
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successMotivation not foundNot shown unpatentable
“3. Analysis Petitioner has not shown a reasonable likelihood that a person of ordinary skill, as of the August 2014 priority date of the ’845 patent, would have been motivated to modify the Fukaya seven-lens system to change the bi-convex/bi-concave design of the sixth and seventh lenses to a double gullwing/meniscus design. Redesigning a lens system is extraordinarily complicated, requiring protracted trial-and-error experimentation with nearly an infinite number of possible solutions in a highly multidimensional space. Ex. 1010, 11; Ex. 1011, 169. We conclude that Petitioner and its expert navigate along one path out of many to the particular redesign they propose using improper result-oriented hindsight as a guide. Petitioner’s expert’s recitation of the at least 25 steps taken to journey from the original Fukaya design to the modified design is instructive: (i) inputting into lens design software the original Fukaya lens parameters; (ii) evaluating its off-axis performance; (iii) increasing the number of analysis field points; (iv) deciding to focus on lenses 5–7, which requires that all aspherics be varied; (v) modifying lens 6 aspherics; (vi) adding CARD operands in the merit function to change the curvature radius values on the lens surfaces; (vii) adding FTGT operands to control spacing between the lenses and lens thicknesses; (viii) adjusting CENY to set the field height; (ix) using a 20x20 rectangular grid of rays for the spot rms part of the merit function; (x) making all aspherics and conics variable, except on the objectside surface of the seventh lens; (xi) increasing the f-number to 2; (xii) increasing sampling to 40x40; (xiii) targeting a positive curvature on the image-side surface of lens 6 with the CVGT 0 operand; (xiv) increasing FTGT to 0.2 on lens 7; (xv) increasing the focal length of lens 6 to 3mm; (xvi) targeting a positive curvature on the object side of lens 7 with the CVGT 0 operand; (xvii) reducing the power of lens 7; (xviii) increasing the target focal length on lens 6; (xix) releasing the focal length constraint on lens 7; (xx) releasing the focal length constraints on lenses 5 and 6; (xxi) reducing f-number in steps to 1.65; (xxii) adding DIMX operands; (xxiii) freezing the conics on surfaces 10 and 14; (xxiv) adding FCGT and FCGS commands to limit field curvature; (xxv) adding LONAs into the merit function — thus “resulting” in the Fukaya lens system with a meniscus-gullwing lens pair for lenses 6 and 7.5 Ex. 1001 ¶¶ 82–85. We are not persuaded that this exercise is sufficiently free of hindsight motivation. For purposes of this Decision, we accept that gullwing/meniscus designs were well-known as of the priority date.6 However, the fact that such designs were available and could have been used does not mean that they would have been used. Belden Inc. v. Berk–Tek LLC, 805 F.3d 1064, 1073 (Fed. Cir. 2015). We agree with Patent Owner that there is no evidence that that Fukaya was in need of any improvements to its compactness, aberrations, or chief ray angle. Prelim. Resp. 27. As Patent Owner establishes, the original Fukaya track length is actually shorter than the track length of the redesigned lens systems proposed by Petitioner, aberrations are properly corrected in the unmodified Fukaya lens system, and Petitioner’s redesign provides only minimally improved off-axis relative illumination. Id. at 27–33.” slip op. at 23
- Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of success › HindsightDecided for patent owner
“ordinary skill, as of the August 2014 priority date of the ’845 patent, would have been motivated to modify the Fukaya seven-lens system to change the bi-convex/bi-concave design of the sixth and seventh lenses to a double gullwing/meniscus design. Redesigning a lens system is extraordinarily complicated, requiring protracted trial-and-error experimentation with nearly an infinite number of possible solutions in a highly multidimensional space. Ex. 1010, 11; Ex. 1011, 169. We conclude that Petitioner and its expert navigate along one path out of many to the particular redesign they propose using improper result-oriented hindsight as a guide. Petitioner’s expert’s recitation of the at least 25 steps taken to journey from the original Fukaya design to the modified design is instructive: (i) inputting into lens design software the original Fukaya lens parameters; (ii) evaluating its off-axis performance; (iii) increasing the number of analysis field points; (iv) deciding to focus on lenses 5–7, which requires that all aspherics be varied; (v) modifying lens 6 aspherics; (vi) adding CARD operands in the merit function to change the curvature radius values on the lens surfaces; (vii) adding FTGT operands to control spacing between the lenses and lens thicknesses; (viii) adjusting CENY to set the field height; (ix) using a 20x20 rectangular grid of rays for the spot rms part of the merit function; (x) making all aspherics and conics variable, except on the objectside surface of the seventh lens; (xi) increasing the f-number to 2; (xii) increasing sampling to 40x40; (xiii) targeting a positive curvature on the image-side surface of lens 6 with the CVGT 0 operand; (xiv) increasing FTGT to 0.2 on lens 7; (xv) increasing the focal length of lens 6 to 3mm; (xvi) targeting a positive curvature on the object side of lens 7 with the CVGT 0 operand; (xvii) reducing the power of lens 7; (xviii) increasing the target focal length on lens 6; (xix) releasing the focal length constraint on lens 7; (xx) releasing the focal length constraints on lenses 5 and 6; (xxi) reducing f-number in steps to 1.65; (xxii) adding DIMX operands; (xxiii) freezing the conics on surfaces 10 and 14; (xxiv) adding FCGT and FCGS commands to limit field curvature; (xxv) adding LONAs into the merit function — thus “resulting” in the Fukaya lens system with a meniscus-gullwing lens pair for lenses 6 and 7.5 Ex. 1001 ¶¶ 82–85. We are not persuaded that this exercise is sufficiently free of hindsight motivation. For purposes of this Decision, we accept that gullwing/meniscus designs were well-known as of the priority date.6 However, the fact that such designs were available and could have been used does not mean that they would have been used. Belden Inc. v. Berk–Tek LLC, 805 F.3d 1064, 1073 (Fed. Cir. 2015). We agree with Patent Owner that there is no evidence that that Fukaya was in need of any improvements to its compactness, aberrations, or chief ray angle. Prelim. Resp. 27. As Patent Owner establishes, the original Fukaya track length is actually shorter than the track length of the redesigned lens systems proposed by Petitioner, aberrations are properly corrected in the unmodified Fukaya lens system, and Petitioner’s redesign provides only minimally improved off-axis relative illumination. Id. at 27–33.” slip op. at 23
Claim construction§ 103 obviousnessDiscretionary denialcites GrahamPatents in suitUS 9,366,845
Holdings, summaries, rulings, issues, outcomes, winners and claim constructions shown for a decision were generated by a large language model reading the opinion. They are a guide to the decision, not the decision. Confirm every one against the court's own text before relying on it. Outcomes read from the patent owner’s side. Party names are extracted from the decision and are missing on about 900 short Director denials and scans, which carry the trial number instead.