Goodix challenges validity of Synaptics’ patent infringement claims

Chinese fingerprint technology manufacturer Goodix announced it has filed multiple offensive administrative trials via petitions for inter partes review (IPR) before the United States Patent and Trademark Office to challenge the validity of Synaptics asserted claims that Goodix’s technologies infringed on four of its patents.

The petitions, which relate to U.S. Patents Nos. 7,868,874, 8,338,724, 8,558,811, and 8,952,916, were held before the U.S. International Trade Commission (“ITC”) and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in complaints that Synaptics filed this past April.

Through its filed offensive IPR petitions, the company claims it has presented evidence that all asserted Synaptics patents, including all asserted claims and all claims that Synaptics has not asserted against Goodix, cover well-known and established technologies that were developed and published by third companies several years before Synaptics’ belated patent filings.

Goodix submitted evidence to the U.S. Patent Office Court including various publications and patents by MIT Media Lab, Mitsubishi Electronics and others, which may provide independent invalidity grounds against each Synaptics’ patent claim.

“Goodix launched its offensive IPR trial attacks against Synaptics patents because Goodix’s evidence filed at the U.S. Patent Office Court overwhelmingly demonstrates that the Synaptics patents merely claim well-known technologies and are invalid,” said David Zhang, founder and CEO of Goodix. “Goodix is a technology leader in its own industry and will vigorously defend itself in the highly competitive U.S. market and other market places around the world to ensure Goodix’s fair opportunities to collaborate with other technology leaders to bring the very best mobile computing technologies to the consumers.”

Zhang said Goodix will continue to pursue all offenses and defenses available to Goodix because Synaptics’ infringement claims are baseless and are without merit.

Previously reported, Goodix announced it is expanding its U.S. operations into Silicon Valley and Southern California in an effort to better support the growing demand for its line of human interface and fingerprint authentication products for biometrics, mobile payments and touchscreen markets.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  Goodix  |  patents  |  Synaptics  |  touch sensor