Nvidia didn’t respond to a request for comment by our deadline af...
Nvidia didn’t respond to a request for comment by our deadline after Minneapolis-based Scanner Technologies filed a patent infringement suit against the graphics chip maker in an eastern Tex. federal court. Scanner accused Nvidia of “willful and deliberate infringement”…
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of U.S. Patents 7,079,678 and 7,085,411 covering methods of 3-D inspection that allow ball grid array (BGA) devices to be manufactured more precisely and efficiently. BGA is a type of surface- mount packaging used in integrated circuits. The BGA devices in question are components in graphics cards, motherboards, computers, videogame consoles, cellphones and other handheld devices sold in the U.S., Scanner said. The first patent, granted to Scanner on July 18, discloses a patented process for a step in the manufacture of a BGA device. The other patent, assigned to Scanner on Aug. 1, concerns a way to make a BGA device. Scanner CEO Elwin Beaty was listed as one of the inventors of each patented technology. The company accused Nvidia of selling infringing BGA devices throughout the U.S. The suit also claimed Nvidia induced others to infringe. In addition to requesting preliminary and permanent injunctions, Scanner asked the court to award it “reasonable” royalties on infringing products, treble damages and attorney’s fees. Beaty said his company “has been developing, manufacturing and selling vision equipment for the semiconductor industry since 1990 [and] we believe that it is critical to protect our patented innovations, and accordingly took these actions today.”