1. Guangsheng Company initiated a million-million-claims litigation intended for patent cooperation?
Recently, the Patent Re-examination Board of the State Intellectual Property Office (hereinafter referred to as the Patent Re-examination Board) held a name for Tianjin Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Samsung) for Guangzhou Hirose Digital Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Hirose Co., Ltd.). The audio-decoding invention patent (hereinafter referred to as the involved patent) made a review decision on the request for invalidation of the patent right and declared that the patent right was invalid.
The review decision of the Patent Re-examination Board once again triggered public concern about a batch of claims involving several hundred million yuan in 2017. In 2017, Samsung Samsung, Qingdao Hisense Electric Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Hisense Corporation) and Skyworth Group were considered. Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Skyworth Corporation) constitutes infringement of its own patents related to 'audio decoding' technology, and Hirose Company sued several of these companies in multiple courts, claiming several million yuan. The amount claimed for a series of cases is huge and it is The first batch of domestic lawsuits involving 'audio decoding' technical standard necessary patents caused a great sensation at the time. In the course of the lawsuit, Samsung filed a patent requisition request to the Patent Reexamination Board for one of the patents.
According to the industry analysts, as a strategic core resource of a company, patents are not only a reflection of corporate technological innovation achievements, but also a way for companies to seek commercial value. The reason why Guangsheng Company initiated an infringement lawsuit may be to strive for more reasonable and more favorable results. The patent licensing fees. Therefore, in the case of such necessary standard patent disputes, China's TV manufacturers should, depending on the situation, either actively respond to the lawsuit, or take the initiative to seek cooperation with the right holder. However, more importantly, TV manufacturers We must adhere to technological innovation, have an advantage in technology, and actively participate in the formulation of industry standards to gain more say.
Standard-essential patents cause disputes
According to public information, DRA is a digital audio coding technology developed by Guanghan Company. The patent involved is a standard essential patent of the current national standard “Technical Specification for Multichannel Digital Audio Codec” (referred to as DRA audio standard). 2007 On August 17, Guangsheng Company submitted the patent application for the case to the State Intellectual Property Office and was authorized on May 20, 2009 (patent number: ZL200710141661.6).
Since then, Guangsheng Company has discovered that many companies such as Skyworth and Gome Electrical Appliance Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Gome) have produced and sold multiple models of television products that were suspected of falling into the patent involved and another part of their ownership. The scope of claims of the invention patent (Patent No.: ZL200810003464.2) of the audio decoding and decoding system. In July 2017, Guangsheng Company produced and sold the Skyworth Co., Ltd., Shenzhen Skyworth-RGB Electronics Co., Ltd., Gome, and promised sales. The imported more than 100 television products infringed their patent rights on the grounds that the three companies were sued to the Beijing Intellectual Property Court and asked the court to order the three defendants to immediately stop the infringement and compensate economic losses totaling RMB 192.2 million.
Subsequently, Guangsheng Company sued Qingdao Hisense Electric Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Hisense Corporation), Hisense Group Co., Ltd., and Shenzhen Suning Yunshang Sales Co., Ltd. to the Shenzhen Intermediate People's Government of Guangdong Province on the ground that the above two patent rights were infringed. The People's Court (hereinafter referred to as the Shenzhen Intermediate Court); Subsequently, Guangsheng Company used the above two patents and another patent named 'Method and Apparatus for Decoding Audio Signals' as a grounds of infringement on the grounds that Samsung, Gaochuang (Suzhou) Electronics Co., Ltd. sued to the Guangzhou Intellectual Property Court.
After being filed for infringement litigation, Samsung counterattacked. On August 7, 2017, Samsung filed a patent invalidation request against the Patent Reexamination Board for the patent involved. On February 28, 2018, the Patent Reexamination Board reviewed the patent involved. Decided that all patents involved in the case were invalid.
It is worth mentioning that Skyworth’s patent for the “Audio Decoding and Decoding System”, another standard-essential patent held by Guang Sheng Company, also filed a patent invalidation request with the Patent Reexamination Board. The case will be heard in the near future. .
What effect does it have to observe
The company’s official website shows that its goal is to become the first Chinese company to rely on intellectual property operations to achieve profitability. In the opinion of an insider who is engaged in research related to audio decoding, he holds the core patents and trademarks of the DRA standard. People and external licensees, and the licensing of television terminals with manufacturers is a way to achieve the above goals.
“Before, Skyworth and Hisense were the partners of Guangsheng Company. At this time, the two parties abandon their cooperation and may have expired due to the original cooperation. However, the two parties did not reach a consensus on the new licensing agreement. For example, There may be disagreements between the two parties on patent licensing fees. ' In the case of initiating a number of motives involving DRA standards necessary patent infringement litigation, Li Junhui, a special researcher at China University of Political Science and Law Intellectual Property Research Center, has analyzed.
'For Guangyu Company, an important patent right was declared invalid, not only means Guangsheng Company will be in a passive position in the patent infringement lawsuit with Skyworth, Samsung and Hisense, and For companies that have reached a patent licensing agreement, the patent license fees may also be subject to new variables. 'Li Junhui analyzed that according to the relevant provisions of the Chinese patent law, if the patent right was declared invalid, the court would invalidate the patent right before it was announced. The determination of a patent infringement made and executed, the mediation statement, the decision on the handling of patent infringement disputes that have been performed or enforced, and the patent implementation license contract and patent assignment contract that have been performed are not retroactive. However, the patentee’s Any damages caused to others by malicious people shall be compensated.
Strengthen technological innovation to avoid disputes
In fact, in recent years, infringement disputes involving standard-essential patents are not uncommon. On May 25, 2016, Huawei Company sued the Shenzhen Intermediate Court for infringement of its 4G standard patent by South Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. The defendant was ordered to immediately stop the infringement. On January 11, 2018, the Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court made a first-instance ruling on the case and determined that Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. in South Korea infringed on Huawei’s patent rights. At the same time, the court stated that after stopping the infringement judgment, The two parties can still implement the license negotiation. In July 2015, Xi'an Xidian Jietong Wireless Network Communication Co., Ltd. infringed a standard-essential patent in the WAPI field by Sony Mobile Communications Products (China) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as the Sony Corporation). The right to sue Sony Corp. to the Beijing Intellectual Property Court, claiming more than RMB 33.53 million. In March 2017, the Beijing Intellectual Property Court made a first-instance ruling on the case and found that the company was infringing and ordered the company to compensate the plaintiff for RMB 9.1 million. yuan.
As is known to all, companies involved in infringements of standard essential patents are usually more involved, the trial period is longer, the claims are often huge and the technical fields involved are complex, and the judgment results will have a very big impact on the related companies. Therefore, In this type of dispute, both the defendant and the defendant could not be sloppy. Then, in the face of such disputes, how should China's TV terminal companies solve the 'difficulties'?
In the eyes of the above-mentioned persons in the industry, achieving a patent license agreement that maximizes the interests of both parties is the key direction that the right holder and the authorized party should jointly consider. When the TV manufacturer negotiates with the right holder to determine the standard necessary patent license fee, it can use its own technology. Development and target market expansion needs to selectively accept patent holders' non-standard essential patent licenses, even standard essential patents and non-standard essential patent packaging licenses. Sometimes the overall cost of the 'package agreement' may not be too high.
In addition, in Li Junhui's view, with the upgrading of technology, audio decoding standards are not static. To avoid such disputes, TV manufacturers should enhance their independent innovation capabilities and increase investment in R&D of core technologies. On the other hand, It is also necessary to continuously participate in the innovation of audio decoding standards and the development of standards in the industry.
2. Uber's new patent for automatic driving: Flashing light and noise can interact with people;
According to the foreign media The Verge reports, over the years, human drivers have been very good at communicating intentions to people around them, which is usually for pedestrians, cyclists and other drivers to know what they mean. But what happens when it comes to self-driving cars? How will the future car 'talk' with the world around it?
Uber believes that it may have reached a solution. In a recent patent application, the online tour giant proposed to provide equipment for self-driving cars to effectively convey information to pedestrians and others around them. Uber suggested A blinking arrow will appear on the rearview mirror. The projector will display a virtual crosswalk in front of the car and a 'virtual driver' will appear on the windshield to indicate the correct direction of the pedestrian.
Sean Chin, a product designer at Uber Advanced Technology Group, said that patent applications have not yet been approved by the U.S. Patent Office. However, Uber's product team is also exploring how autonomous vehicles can communicate through 'vehicle sounds'. Uber's patent applications appear to be focused When the car gives pedestrians directions for when to walk and where to go. But Chin said that its ultimate goal is to convey the intention of the car so that pedestrians can make their own decisions.
Uber is not the only company engaged in research and development of self-driving car communications. Google owns a patent that includes a series of ideas, including lighting the 'walk' or 'walk' signs on the car body. San Francisco-based startup Drive .ai is studying LED signs on vehicles, communicating using pictures of text and emoticons. The company is also studying advanced versions of its auditory feedback so that cars can 'observe the situation' and issue 'more socially appropriate' sounds.
3. The latest patent shows that Apple or push no key keyboard;
Mashable Chinese station reported on March 17
In the past, the iPhone was the focus of Apple's promotion, but Apple is continuing to develop computers and tablets. The latest patent applications hint at the interesting new features of these products in the future.
Patently Apple first exposed the patent. The technology described in the patent can make the screen keyboard (such as iPad keyboard) feel like a real keyboard.
According to the picture in the patent application, Apple conceived a touch screen device that can display a keyboard or other buttons, such as music and volume control buttons. The device can perceive each keystroke and provide tactile feedback, thereby bringing a real keyboard experience .
This technology has a wide range of applications. The patent image shows that this keyboard technology can be used for notebooks, desktops or iPads.
Apple said that this kind of keyboard is more advantageous than the physical keyboard because the keyboard can be adjusted according to user preferences or customized according to different application scenarios.
At present, this technology is still in the patent stage. It is not clear when the actual product will enter the market. However, this technology may be applied to Apple's rumored new products, including the lower price of Macbook Air and two new iPad. And with the recent impact of keyboard patents, Apple's future keyboard technology is very exciting. Mashable Chinese station
4.LG will launch a new patent that will integrate eye tracking technology for VR heads;
LG's development plan in the VR field has always been closely following the pace of the era, but LG did not rush to market VR and AR head display, the main reason is that LG is still constantly improving the device function. Recently, LG released A new patent shows the integration of eye tracking technology for new devices.
It is reported that the new patent is called 'Personal immersive display device and driving method of origin', which describes in detail the head-mounted device equipped with a built-in camera, and this camera can track the position of the user's pupil. In simple terms, we wear VR, The distance between the eye and the screen has been fixed, and it is difficult to recognize the distance between the scenes in the video to switch the eyes. This will increase the sense of vertigo. Because, in reality, the human eyes can instantly switch between the distance and the eye, according to the distance. Automatic adjustment. If eye tracking is added to the VR, it can capture the focus of our gaze and create a more natural depth of field environment that helps reduce motion sickness.
With eye-tracking technology, VR and AR equipment can achieve local rendering, real-time point-of-view rendering, rendering your eyes wherever you go, keeping eye blur, fuzzy, and the same real human eye experience. In an ordinary VR experience, the VR picture sometimes becomes distorted due to the movement of your eyeball. If there is an eye tracking function intervening at this time to perform real-time tracking, this distortion can be repaired.
In addition, LG's device is said to carry two OLED displays with a minimum resolution of 1440x1280 pixels and a refresh rate of 90Hz. This patent also mentions 500ppi, so the device should be able to achieve a clear image. With the help of eye tracking technology , The brightness of the display can be adjusted according to the user's gaze point.
In fact, eye-tracking technology is a key technology for VR/AR. VR needs to create immersiveness for users, and AR should create a virtual and realistic sense of reality. The application of eye-tracking technology can exactly meet their needs. Sohu Science and technology
5. A watch is too small? Apple's new patent allows you to freely switch between multiple Apple watches
The development of smart watches, in addition to daily viewing time, can also be used to record fitness data and sleep conditions in addition to alarm clocks. There are many people who like to buy blocks of watches for health data recorded during fitness, and another watch for daily leisure. , Working life. But smart watches now smartly bind a mobile phone, and the data cannot be transferred when the watch is changed.
A new Apple patent has solved this problem well. The patent shows that when we take off the watch from one hand and put another watch on it, the news from the first watch will be transmitted to the second watch. And the second watch will synchronize the data of the first watch.
The patent solves the problem of synchronization of data between two watches and connection with a mobile phone device to receive messages when frequently changing smart watches.
At present, the patent has been applied for, and it may be applied to the next generation of Apple Watch. Does this feature prompt you to buy two Apple Watch? Android China