KLARQUIST NEWS
Klarquist Obtains Appeals Court Affirmance for Operation Technology, Inc. (ETAP) of District Court Opinion Invalidating 138 Patent Claims
Operation Technology, Inc. (ETAP) achieved a summary affirmance at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit today. The appeals court affirmed an opinion by the Honorable John A. Kronstadt, U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, finding invalid all the patent claims asserted by Power Analytics Corp. against ETAP.
The patents are in the field of modeling electrical systems. Judge Kronstadt had found all asserted claims—138 claims in four patents—invalid under the abstractness exclusion to patent eligibility under section 101 of the Patent Act. The claims are invalid in part because none exceeded “the abstract idea of evaluating and reacting to prediction deviations.” The Federal Circuit’s ruling affirms that Judge Kronstadt correctly found the asserted patent claims invalid.
ETAP, founded in 1986 by Dr. Farrokh Shokooh, is a technology leader in modeling, design, analysis, optimization, monitoring, control, and automation software for electrical power systems.
Klarquist attorneys Salumeh R. Loesch, Garth A. Winn, Kristin L. Cleveland, Klaus H. Hamm, Sarah E. Jelsema, and John D. Vandenberg represent ETAP in this action. Also representing ETAP are David W. Kesselman and Trevor V. Stockinger of Kesselman Brantly Stockinger LLP. Joining the motion and appeal was co-defendant Schneider Electric USA, Inc., represented by attorneys from Jenner & Block LLP including Reginald J. Hill and Benjamin J. Bradford.
View the Federal Circuit’s summary affirmance and Judge Kronstandt’s July 13, 2017, Order and decision.