Toyota Motor Corp, the world’s biggest seller of autos powered by a combination of gasoline and electricity, faces a patent-infringement claim that may result in a US import ban on its Prius and other hybrid models.
Closely held Paice LLC filed a complaint yesterday with the US International Trade Commission in Washington, claiming Toyota is infringing its patent. The company seeks an order to ban imports of Toyota products using its invention.
Paice won a jury verdict in 2005 that the Prius and hybrid Highlander and Lexus RX400h sport-utility vehicles used Paice inventions related to drivetrains.
The new ITC complaint claims the hybrid Camry, third-generation Prius, Lexus HS250h sedan and Lexus RX450h SUV infringe the same patent.
“Given the momentum Toyota hybrids have in the marketplace, I don’t foresee a situation where their hybrid sales stop,” said Ed Kim, an analyst at AutoPacific Inc in Tustin, California.
“Toyota has been pretty good about looking ahead, so it would be surprising if they hadn’t foreseen and prepared for something like
If Paice's claim is valid, then it is reprehensible for Toyota to have infringed again on the same patent that was previously litigated. Lawsuits seem to be the only means of changing the ways of powerful repeat offenders.
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