Overview
(September 29, 2020, Washington, DC) — Steptoe has scored another patent litigation success for Autel Robotics USA in a dispute over drone technology. On September 21, 2020 the US Patent & Trademark Office's Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) issued a final determination in an inter partes review involving Autel and petitioner, SZ DJI Technology Co. (DJI), the world's largest maker of consumer drones.
The case involved a dispute over Autel’s US Patent No. 9,260,184 (184 Patent), which relates to a novel lock mechanism for propeller blades used in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) or drones. The lock mechanism includes a twist-lock feature that allows for convenient and rapid attachment and detachment of propeller blades. The lock mechanism also includes a mistake-proof design that prevents installation of a propeller on the wrong drive shaft.
DJI filed a petition challenging the validity of claims in the 184 patent, contending that they were obvious in view of certain prior art references. The Steptoe team filed a motion to amend the challenged claims, and argued that the proposed claims were patentable in light of the prior art cited by DJI. DJI asserted that the proposed claims were unpatentable in light of the prior art. Although historically it has been extremely difficult for litigants to succeed on motions to amend claims, the PTAB sided with Autel, found the proposed claims patentable, and granted Autel's motion to amend.
Steptoe partner John Abramic argued the case at the trial before the PTAB. Along with Abramic, the Steptoe team representing Autel in this matter included Tim Bickham, Matt Bathon, Kate Johnson, and Gretchen Miller.
About Steptoe
In more than 100 years of practice, Steptoe has earned an international reputation for vigorous representation of clients before governmental agencies, successful advocacy in litigation and arbitration, and creative and practical advice in structuring business transactions. Steptoe has more than 500 lawyers and other professional staff across offices in Beijing, Brussels, Chicago, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Washington. For more information, visit www.steptoe.com.
