American Power Conversion, Eaton settle patent litigation

West Kingston, RI; Pittsburgh, PA— American Power Conversion (APC) and Eaton Corp. report that they’ve formally agreed to settle ongoing patent litigation currently pending in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina and the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware.

Besides settling outstanding patent litigation between them, APC and Eaton, agreed to cross-license multiple patents involved in the litigation. They also agreed to a 10-year covenant prohibiting the two firms from filing any added patent infringement lawsuits against each other. This restriction relates to products based on U.S. patent claims involving electronic hardware that performs double conversion for power electronics.

The two companies expect to have a definitive agreement in place by mid-March 2005. Neither company will pay the other any monetary compensation in connection with this settlement. They state their settlement reflects and enhances the strength and value of the intellectual property portfolios of both companies in the field of uninterruptible power supplies.

APC manufactures global, end-to-end infrastructure availability solutions. APC says its products and services improve the availability, manageability, and performance of sensitive electronic, network, communication, and industrial equipment.

Eaton produces fluid power systems and services for industrial, mobile, and aircraft equipment; electrical systems and components for power quality, distribution and control; automotive engine air management systems, powertrain solutions and specialty controls for performance, fuel economy and safety; and intelligent truck drivetrain systems for safety and fuel economy.

Control Engineering Daily News DeskJim Montague, news editorjmontague@reedbusiness.com

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