nCap Licensing v. Apple

CourtDistrict Court, D. Utah
DecidedJune 7, 2019
Docket2:17-cv-00905
StatusUnknown

This text of nCap Licensing v. Apple (nCap Licensing v. Apple) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Utah primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
nCap Licensing v. Apple, (D. Utah 2019).

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF UTAH

MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER DENYING APPLE’S MOTION nCAP LICENSING, LLC; FOR PARTIAL SUMMARY JUDGMENT nCAP TELECOMMUNICATIONS, LLC; AND DENYING nCAP’S nCAP MEDICAL, LLC; CROSS-MOTION FOR CLAIM CONSTRUCTION Plaintiffs, v. 2:17-cv-905

APPLE INC., Chief District Judge Robert J. Shelby

Defendants. Magistrate Judge Brooke C. Wells

This is a patent infringement case. Plaintiffs nCAP Licensing, LLC; nCAP Telecommunications, LLC; and nCAP Medical, LLC (collectively nCAP) bring suit against Defendant Apple, Inc. nCAP alleges several of Apple’s devices infringe on nCAP’s patent for antennas and antenna enhancers.1 Before the court are Apple’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment of Invalidity and Non-Infringement, as well as nCAP’s Cross-Motion for Claim Construction.2 After the benefit of oral argument and supplemental briefing,3 the court DENIES, as premature, Apple’s request that the court invalidate nCAP’s patent as indefinite. Even though it adopts Apple’s claim construction, it DENIES as premature Apple’s request for partial summary judgment. Accordingly, the court DENIES Apple’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment, and nCAP’s Cross-Motion for Claim Construction.

1 See generally Dkt. 60 (First Amended Complaint). 2 See Dkts. 134, 129. 3 See Dkts. 227, 228, 231. BACKGROUND The Patent Office issued to nCAP the patent in dispute, U.S. Patent No. 9,088,071 (Patent #071).+ Claims 1-11 of Patent #071 describe antennas; whereas Claims 12-15 describe antenna enhancers.* An antenna is a device that converts an electrical signal into electromagnetic radiation to transmit information through space, or that converts electromagnetic radiation into an electrical signal.© An antenna enhancer element is a device that, when placed near an antenna, enables that antenna to propagate, emit, or absorb electromagnetic radiation more efficiently than that same antenna in a stand-alone configuration. ’ The patented antennas and antenna enhancers use conductive particle based material (CPBM).® This material consists of conductive particles suspended in a semi-conductive or non-conductive binder.? For example, CPBM may consist rata get ee EP cry ES A sey a □ ne ie Neelam es BE a ete OM aR . . . . . ee of silver particles suspended in a semi-conductive or non- igen Ss ees rere Ma noe Roast Set thes . . rt 4 ee _“ ~ | conductive paint or gel that cures, thus fixing the silver Ressperir arden alee actin ob eR a acess pnts es age . ok ei ic asad particles relative to each other.!? A microscopic image of [ee oe Re Se at □□ Se CCPBM is shown in Figure A.!! SN | oa |e | ame [66] 1% | See |e Figure A

4 See generally Dkt. 130 (Joint Appendix) at Appx. 00001—23. Hereinafter, all citations to “Appx.” refer to the Joint Appendix at Docket 130. 5 Appx. 00022-23. ® Appx. 00013 at 1:32-39. T Appx. 00014 at 3:65-67, 4:1-4; Appx. 00015 at 6:5-9, 6:20-26; Appx. 00017 at 10:47-S0. 8 Appx. 00013 at 1:59-62, 2:1-3. ° Appx. 00013 at 1:60-62, 2:4-5; Appx. 00014 at 4:20-67; Appx. 00015 at 5:1-45. 10 See supra note 9. Figure A is reproduced from Figure 1 of the Patent. Appx. 00003.

The parties dispute the proper construction of the claim term “antenna enhancer element.”12 That disputed claim term is contained in independent Claim 12 of the #071 Patent. Claim 12 states, What is claimed is . . . . 12. An antenna enhancer comprising: an antenna enhancer element formed of a conductive particle based material, the antenna enhancer element being disposed at an area of an inner side of a housing of a wireless device that is adjacent to at least one of an internal radiating or receiving antenna, wherein the housing of the device is formed of a conductive material, wherein a non-conductive material is disposed between the antenna enhancer element and the at least one of the radiating or receiving antenna, and wherein the conductive particle based material comprises conductive particles dispersed in a binder so that at least a majority of the conductive particles are adjacent to, but do not touch, one another.13

Apple contends a limitation should be imposed on Claim 12 based on arguments nCAP made to the Patent Office during patent prosecution.14 In essence, Apple invokes the doctrine of prosecution history disclaimer.15 nCAP disagrees that prosecution history disclaimer applies, and rejects any proposed limitation on Claim 12.16 Before resolving the dispute over prosecution history disclaimer, the court will first recite the law governing the dispute.

12 See, e.g., Dkts. 129 at 8–12; 131 at 11–15. 13 Appx. 00023 at 22:1–14 (emphasis added). 14 See Dkt. 131 at 11–15. 15 See id. 16 See Dkt. 129 at 5–12. 3 LEGAL STANDARD Analysis of patent infringement is a two-step process.17 First, a court construes the meaning of a patent’s contested claim terms as a matter of law.18 This initial claim construction is necessary because claims define the invention to which the patentee owns the right to exclude.19 Second, a factfinder compares the claims to the allegedly infringing device to

determine, as a matter of fact, whether all of the limitations of at least one claim are present, either literally or by a substantial equivalent in the accused device.20 Currently at issue is the first step: claim construction. Claim terms generally embrace their “ordinary and customary meaning, which is the meaning they would have to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention.”21 The person of ordinary skill is deemed to read claim terms in view of the entire patent, including extrinsic and intrinsic evidence.22 Extrinsic evidence consists of expert reports, inventor testimony, dictionaries, learned treatises, and other evidence concerning relevant scientific principles, the meaning of technical terms, and the state of the art.23 For many reasons, extrinsic

17 Tinnus Enterprises, LLC v. Telebrands Corp., 846 F.3d 1190, 1203 (Fed. Cir. 2017); Teleflex, Inc. v. Ficosa N. Am. Corp., 299 F.3d 1313, 1323 (Fed. Cir. 2002). 18 Markman v. Westview Instruments, Inc., 517 U.S. 370, 387 (1996); Teleflex, 299 F.3d at 1323. 19 See Phillips v. AWH Corp., 415 F.3d 1303, 1312 (Fed. Cir. 2005) (en banc). 20 Teleflex, 299 F.3d at 1323. 21 Poly-America, L.P. v. API Indus., Inc., 839 F.3d 1131, 1137 (Fed. Cir. 2016) (citing Phillips, 415 F.3d at 1312– 13). 22 Phillips, 415 F.3d at 1313. 23 Id. at 1314, 1317. 4 evidence is generally less reliable than intrinsic evidence.24 But a court in its sound discretion may admit and rely on extrinsic evidence.25 Intrinsic evidence consists of the terms of the claims themselves, the remainder of the specification, and the prosecution history.26 Although the claim terms themselves and specification frequently serve as the Rosetta Stones of claim construction,27 prosecution history

may inform claim meaning.28 Prosecution history may, for example, demonstrate estoppel or disclaimer.29 For prosecution history disclaimer to attach, a patentee must clearly and unmistakably disavow the full scope of a claim term.30 “A patentee could do so, for example, by clearly characterizing the invention in a way to try to overcome rejections based on prior art.”31 “The

24 Id. at 1318–19. 25 Id.

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nCap Licensing v. Apple, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ncap-licensing-v-apple-utd-2019.