Toyota Responds to Paice ITC Filing

[msirach]

Official statement from Toyota

Mike Sirach-CleanMPG - CleanMPG - September 5, 2009

How many more will come out of hiding to get a piece of the "Hybrid Pie?" --Ed.

An official news statement was released yesterday in response to the lawsuit filed with the International Trade Commission (ITC).

PAICE has been pursuing patent litigation against Toyota for several years in the U.S. District Court in Texas. It has already presented its claims to a Texas jury. After trial, the District Court denied PAICE’s request for an injunction barring sale of hybrids. PAICE apparently seeks to bypass the District Court ruling by asking the International Trade Commission (ITC) to exclude the importation of Toyota hybrids.

Toyota itself has many patents on the hybrid technology and believes that it has strong defenses against all of PAICE’s claims and that it will prevail in the ITC proceeding.

Due to the pending litigation, they were unable to comment further.

A little info about Paice LLC can be found at their website.

[jpleong]

Paice's website: http://www.paice.net/

Paice is pursuing arrangements with automakers and automotive suppliers to accelerate the adoption of its technology in automobiles, light trucks and commercial vehicles.

By muddling them in lawsuits? Sounds like BP and Exxon's claims of how they are moving beyond petroleum... Yeah. Right.

JP

[ALS]

I don't think Paice has a snow balls chance in hell as they say of winning anything.

Look at the dates on their so called patents. There is only one 1994 before Toyota rolled out the Prius. The rest are the old lets make one up and sue someone for using it when the time comes. Hybrid Vehicle 1994? Hey Volvo built the ECC 1992 and holds several Patents for the Turbine/Electric Hybrid. The original Patent for gas turbine type of Hybrid was filled in 1970.

I hope Paice can show all their development costs documentation and working prototypes they had back in 1992-1994.

This is the old harass them until they pay up con game. Good for Toyota to stand up to low life scum bags like this.

Paice Patent being used for the law suit

In fact the Patent that effects the Prius was granted in August 1990.
uspto.gov PN4951769

Another Patent that applies to the Prius.
uspto.gov PN4593779

Funny how a company that is so cutting edge in Hybrid design has an absolute total piece of garbage web site.

This was the best piece of information on the whole site.
Remember the Prius was first sold in December 1997 in Japan.

Theodore Louckes
Technical Advisor
Mr. Louckes joined Paice in 1998 as COO to lead development of its first Hyperdrive demonstration system. He is a distinguished, 40-year General Motors Corp. veteran who is best-known for his leadership on the development of the first overhead cam, 4-valve engine for American passenger cars and the introduction of the world’s first air bag system.

Added from court papers and legal opinions on the Paice web site under news.

Moreover, since Paice does not actually manufacture any goods, the court concluded that there was no threat that Paice would lose name recognition or market share without an injunction. Id. slip op. at 9.

[SentraSE-R]

If Paice doesn't have a leg to stand on, then why does this article say it already won a 2005 jury trial against Toyota for patent infringement?

[jdhog]

Paice needs to take a hike if you ask me. Crooks.

[msirach]

They don't seem to have any credibility.

[hobbit]

Not when the paice.net website says:
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...
well, now...
.
_H*

[msirach]

Did you go to http://www.paice.net/ ?

It just worked but there is not much there.