Purdue Research Foundation wins SiC Patent challenge
US Patent Office denies STMicroelectronics' challenge to Purdue University patent
US Patent Office denies STMicroelectronics' challenge to patentability of Purdue University patent
On 23rd June 2022, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board at the US Patent and Trademark Office denied STMicroelectronics' challenge to the patentability of a Purdue University patent involving SiC semiconductors.
US 7,498,633 covers groundbreaking technology invented by Purdue’s James Cooper and his graduate student/postdoc Asmita Saha. The denied petition was filed by STMicroelectronics in response to Purdue’s patent infringement lawsuit and was an attempt to invalidate the patent and, thereby, stop the litigation.
"This is a great victory for Purdue," said Ken Waite, chief patent counsel and director of intellectual property at the Purdue Research Foundation Office of Technology Commercialisation. "It means that the patent office has examined the prior art cited by STMicro and has ruled that it does not even raise a legitimate question of patentability. This is an excellent result, as the majority of such requests are granted by the patent office, resulting in a proceeding that can, and often does, invalidate a granted US patent."
Brooke Beier is senior vice president of commercialisation at the Purdue Research Foundation. She said the Office of Technology Commercialisation serves as a great steward for intellectual property created by researchers at all Purdue University campuses.
"We take managing and protecting Purdue IP very seriously throughout the process from the initial invention disclosure by Purdue researchers through vetting, marketing, licensing it to established companies and startups and beyond," she said. "We follow the letter of the law through each step, holding ourselves and others accountable."
