PTO Obviousness Ruling Sustained Based On Post-KSR Application Of Common Sense And Flexible Analysis

In a merged re-examination proceeding that proceeded in parallel with district court infringement litigation, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed the decision of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (the Board), ruling that the subject patent is invalid for obviousness, notwithstanding an earlier jury verdict to the contrary. In re Translogic Technology, Inc., Case No. 06-1192 (Fed. Cir., Oct. 12, 2007) (Rader, J.).

In a consolidated re-examination proceeding (stemming from a series of five third-party requests filed by Hitachi, the defendant in an infringement litigation), the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) ultimately found the claims obvious in light of two different combinations of prior art references. Translogic appealed.