Thunder Power EV Patents Affirmed as Invalid by Federal Circuit

  • U.S Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has refused to rehear a decision invalidating three EV patents owned by Hong Kong-based Thunder Power New Energy Vehicle Development Co., Ltd.
  • The patents were previously asserted against Byton North America Corp., a subsidiary of another Chinese-based EV company called Nanjing Byton.

The U.S Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit last month refused to rehear an appeal brought by the Hong Kong-based electric vehicle (EV) company Thunder Power New Energy Vehicle Development Co., Ltd. In refusing the rehearing, the Federal Circuit continued to affirm the findings of a lower court that three EV patents owned by Thunder Power are directed to patent ineligible subject matter and are therefore invalid. The Thunder Power patents appear headed for cancellation – the same fate as four previously invalidated EV patents owned by ChargePoint (see our earlier coverage of the ChargePoint patents here). Continue reading “Thunder Power EV Patents Affirmed as Invalid by Federal Circuit”

Federal Circuit: Four ChargePoint Patents Assserted Against SemaConnect Are Invalid

  • The Federal Circuit upheld an earlier decision by a federal court in Maryland that found four ChargePoint patents to be invalid for claiming inventions that are not eligible for patent protection.
  • The Federal Circuit decision is a victory for electric vehicle charging station manufacturer SemaConnect, who was sued for allegedly infringing the four ChargePoint patents in December 2017.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled last Thursday that four patents owned by ChargePoint, Inc., are invalid. The patents are directed to a networked electric vehicle charging station (EVCS) and were previously held invalid by a federal court in Maryland for claiming inventions that are ineligible for patent protection. ChargePoint had appealed that holding to the Federal Circuit. Continue reading “Federal Circuit: Four ChargePoint Patents Assserted Against SemaConnect Are Invalid”

The Coming EV Revolution

This post was co-authored by Brad Thompson and Nicole Candelori.

“Disruption” is a term that tends to be used casually when attempting to describe an industry or technological change on the horizon. Although the term may be overused in many contexts, it is hard to formulate a better word to describe the looming disruption that is certain to emanate from the increased adoption of electric vehicles (EVs).

There are numerous projections as to the anticipated volume and rate of movement away from internal combustion engines (ICEs) and towards EVs. According to one of those projections – a 2018 Bloomberg New Energy Finance report – global EV sales are expected to increase almost tenfold in just eight years: from 1.1 million in 2017 to 11 million in 2025, and later to 30 million in 2030. [1] Regardless of whether this forecast proves to be accurate on the timeline predicted, one trend line is undeniable: EVs are coming, and at some point relatively soon, the ICE will soon become a dying breed of vehicle transportation on the road. Continue reading “The Coming EV Revolution”

Federal Circuit to Decide Validity of ChargePoint Patents

  • Oral arguments were heard last Thursday at the Federal Circuit for a patent dispute between electric vehicle charging station rivals ChargePoint, Inc. and SemaConnect, Inc.
  • The Federal Circuit is reviewing an earlier decision by a federal court in Maryland that found four ChargePoint patents to be invalid for claiming inventions that are not eligible for patent protection.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit is poised to decide the validity of four key ChargePoint, Inc., patents after hearing oral arguments last Thursday. The patents at issue are directed to a networked electric vehicle charging station (EVCS) and were previously held invalid by a federal court in Maryland for claiming inventions that are ineligible for patent protection. ChargePoint appealed that holding to the Federal Circuit. Continue reading “Federal Circuit to Decide Validity of ChargePoint Patents”

EVelozcity Loses Bid to Disqualify Part of Faraday’s Legal Team

  • While defending against allegations of trade secret misappropriation, EVelozcity attempted to disqualify part of Faraday’s legal team for a conflict of interest. That attempt fell short when the court ruled that EVelozcity had not shared confidential information with the allegedly-conflicted attorneys.

As discussed in our previous post, the artificial intelligence electric vehicle developer Faraday&Future, Inc. filed a lawsuit in January against rival startup EVelozcity, Inc. for misappropriation of trade secrets. Several senior members of the EVelozcity team were formerly employed by Faraday, and Faraday accused those former employees of stealing trade secrets on their way out the door. EVelozcity responded to these accusations with two motions to the court. Continue reading “EVelozcity Loses Bid to Disqualify Part of Faraday’s Legal Team”

Breaking Down the Faraday Future Trade Secret Case

  • The artificial intelligence electric vehicle developer Faraday&Future has sued rival EVelozcity for misappropriation of trade secrets.
  • EVelozcity was formed by the former CFO of Faraday and allegedly recruited several Faraday employees to defect and bring substantial amounts of confidential Faraday data with them.

In January, the artificial intelligence electric vehicle developer Faraday&Future, Inc. filed a lawsuit against rival startup EVelozcity, Inc. for misappropriation of trade secrets. Faraday has reportedly invested more than $1 billion to develop a vehicle called FF 91, which is scheduled to begin production late this year. Continue reading “Breaking Down the Faraday Future Trade Secret Case”

SemaConnect Wins Dismissal of ChargePoint’s Patent Lawsuit

  • A federal court dismissed claims of patent infringement brought by ChargePoint, Inc. against a rival in the EV charging station market, SemaConnect, Inc. The court found ChargePoint’s asserted patents to claim inventions that are ineligible for patent protection and thus unenforceable against SemaConnect.
  • ChargePoint has appealed the decision to the U.S Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which will hear arguments between the parties.

Electric vehicle (EV) charging station provider SemaConnect Inc. won dismissal of a patent infringement lawsuit brought in federal court in Maryland. The lawsuit, brought by ChargePoint Inc., was thrown out after the court found that all four of ChargePoint’s asserted patents claim inventions that are ineligible for patent protection. Specifically, the court found that the patents claim nothing more than an “abstract idea” as their invention.

SemaConnect CEO Mahi Reddy called the result a “vindication of our effort to support open standards and interoperability of charging networks and stations.” He added that “this outcome is also a big win for the charging industry, the electric vehicle industry, and utilities.” Continue reading “SemaConnect Wins Dismissal of ChargePoint’s Patent Lawsuit”

EV Charging Company to Rival: Your Patents Aren’t Valid

  • In a battle over EV charging station technology, a patent defendant has argued that the plaintiff’s technology is ineligible for patent protection and that the entire case should be dismissed from federal court.

Electric vehicle (EV) charging station provider SemaConnect, Inc., has requested that a patent lawsuit be dismissed because the asserted patents are invalid. The patents are owned by rival ChargePoint, Inc., an EV charging company that appears to have brought the lawsuit against SemaConnect after being shut out of a major installation contract. The contract was offered by Electrify America, the VW subsidiary that has pledged to spend $2 billion on EV infrastructure. You can find our earlier post on this case here. Continue reading “EV Charging Company to Rival: Your Patents Aren’t Valid”

EV Charging Station Company Loses Partnership Bid, Sues Winner

  • As part of its diesel emissions settlement with the U.S. government, Volkswagen Group of America has pledged to spend $2 billion on electric vehicle infrastructure and education.
  • A provider of electric vehicle charging stations appears to have lost its bid to partner with Volkswagen and promptly sued the winning bidder for patent infringement.

ChargePoint, Inc., a leading provider of Electric Vehicle (EV) charging stations, appears to have lost a bid to provide charging stations to Electrify America and promptly sued the winning bidder for patent infringement. In a lawsuit filed December 15, 2017, in federal court in Maryland, ChargePoint accused SemaConnect, Inc. of infringing four patents directed to networked charging station technology. Continue reading “EV Charging Station Company Loses Partnership Bid, Sues Winner”

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The opinions expressed on this blog are those of the author and are not to be construed as legal advice.

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