Oyster Optics, LLC v. Ciena Corporation, AT&T, Inc.

District Court, N.D. California·Decided July 11, 2022·No. 4:20-cv-02354·Unknown

Opinion

1 2 3 4 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 5 NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 6 7 OYSTER OPTICS, LLC, Case No. 20-cv-02354-JSW

8 Plaintiff, CLAIMS CONSTRUCTION ORDER v. 9 Re: Dkt. Nos. 113, 116, 120 10 CIENA CORPORATION, Defendant. 11

12 13 The Court has been presented with a technology tutorial and briefing leading up to a 14 hearing pursuant to Markman v. Westview Instruments, Inc., 517 U.S. 370 (1996). This Order 15 construes three of the disputed claim terms selected by the parties, which appear in the patent at 16 issue in this case, United States Patent No. 6,665,500 (the “’500 Patent”): (1) phase modulate (and 17 variants); (2) amplitude modulate (and variants); and (3) interferometer. The Court will issue a 18 supplemental order construing the term “mode” after the supplemental briefing on that term is 19 closed. The Court will set the date for a further case management conference in that supplemental 20 order. 21 BACKGROUND 22 A. Procedural History. 23 Plaintiff, Oyster Optics, LLC (“Oyster”) originally alleged that Defendant, Ciena 24 Corporation (“Ciena”), infringed U.S. Patent No. 6,665,500 (the “’500 Patent”) and U.S. Patent 25 No. 10,554,297 (the “’297 Patent”).1 However, after the parties filed their Markman briefs, Ciena 26

27 1 This is one of three related cases before this Court, in which Oyster alleges Ciena infringes its patents. On August 10, 2020, the Court issued a claim construction order in the first case, 1 moved to stay pending inter partes reviews (“IPR”) of both patents. The Court granted that 2 motion on April 22, 2021. (Dkt. No. 65.) On August 27, 2021, the parties stipulated to dismiss 3 claims and counterclaims relating to the ’297 Patent. The parties also stipulated that they would 4 jointly move to terminate the IPR proceedings on that patent. (Dkt. No. 71.) 5 On September 10, 2021, the parties filed a joint status report and advised the Court that the 6 Patent Trial and Appeal Board (“PTAB”) issued a final written decision with respect to the first 7 IPR relating to the ’500 Patent and found claims 1, 2, 4, 6-9, and 17-19 invalid. The PTAB 8 concluded that the petitioner in that IPR did not prove that dependent claim 5 was invalid. The 9 parties filed cross-appeals of that decision with the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal 10 Circuit. The PTAB denied, on procedural grounds, a second IPR which challenged independent 11 claim 16. Oyster then moved to lift the stay and represented it would limit its claims to Claims 5 12 and 16. The Court granted that motion over Ciena’s objection. (Dkt. No. 84.) 13 B. The Technology At Issue and Claims of the ’500 Patent. 14 The ’500 Patent pertains to a “dual-mode optic telecommunications system and method” 15 and relates to “transmitters and receivers for fiber optic networks.” (Mirzaie Decl., ¶ 6, Ex. E 16 (’500 Patent Title, 1:9-10).)2 In general, 17 18 asserted in U.S. Patent Nos. 7,620,327 and 8,374,511, including two of the terms at issue here: 19 “phase modulate” and “phase modulator.” (Dkt. No. 113-1, Declaration of Reza Mirzaie (“Mirzaie Decl.”), ¶ 2, Ex. A (“Oyster I Markman” at 18:3-20:25).) The parties stipulated to dismiss the 20 third case, Oyster Optics v. Ciena Corp., 21-cv-2241-JSW, on February 4, 2022.

21 In addition to this action, Oyster has two actions pending in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas asserting infringement of the ’500 Patent against (1) 22 Infinera Corporation, Coriant (USA) Inc,, Coriant North America, LLC, and Coriant Operations, Inc. (“Infinera”) and (2) Cisco Systems, Inc. (“Cisco”). On July 23, 2022, the Infinera court 23 issued a claim construction order construing the term “phase modulate”, and its variants, as used in Claims 1 and 16 of the ’500 Patent. (Mirzaie Decl., ¶ 3, Ex. B (“Infinera Order” at 16.) 24

On May 4, 2021, the Cisco court issued a claim construction order in which it construed 25 the terms “phase-modulated” (and its variants), “amplitude-modulated” (and its variants), “amplitude-modulated signals”, “phase-modulated signals,” and “mode.” (Id. ¶ 9, Ex. G (“Cisco 26 Markman” at 27).) The parties stipulated to dismiss the Cisco case on February 24, 2022. (Id. ¶ 10, Ex. K.) The Court will address those opinions in the analysis. 27 1 optical communications system[s] communicate[] data by modulating light, which is a form of electromagnetic wave. A 2 continuous light wave is defined by certain characteristics, including its amplitude, frequency, and phase. … Modulation is the process of 3 encoding the data that is to be communicated in the light wave, by changing one or more of the characteristics of the light wave as a 4 representative of data,” including phase or amplitude. 5 (Declaration of Michael Lebby, Ph.D., D. Eng., ¶¶ 24-25) 3; see also Oyster I Markman at 1:24- 6 2:2.) 7 In current4 fiber optic networks, an electronic data stream is fed to a laser amplitude modulator. The laser amplitude modulator typically 8 pulses or alters the laser output to create an amplitude-modulated optical signal representative of the electronic data stream. The laser 9 amplitude modulator and laser thus define a transmitter for transmitting the optical signal over an optical fiber, which is then 10 received by a receiver. The receiver for the amplitude-modulated optical signals of the optical data typically includes a photodiode to 11 convert the optical signals back into the electronic data stream. 12 The reading of the amplitude-modulated optical data signals using a photodiode is straightforward: the optical signals either produce an 13 electric output at the photodiode or they do not. As a result, an output electronic data stream of zeroes and ones is generated. 14 15 (’500 Patent at 1:12-27.) 16 However, amplitude-modulated signals can be tapped easily; therefore, they are not always 17 secure. (Id. at 1:28-37.) In contrast, phase-modulated signals are more secure: “any tap to obtain 18 enough light to read the phase-modulated signal is easily detectable.” (Id. at 5:45-48.) According 19 to the patentee, although phase-modulation was more secure, prior art “phase-modulated based 20 systems” were not “compatible with existing receivers.” (Id. at 2:21-23.) 21 The patentee then explained that an object of the ’500 Patent was to provide transmitters 22 and receivers for transmitting and receiving “either phase-modulated or amplitude modulated 23 optical signals.” (Id. at 2:26-31 (emphasis added).) The ’500 Patent also provides for a “dual 24

25 3 The Lebby Declaration is located at Dkt. No. 116-3, ECF pp. 103-133, as Exhibit F to the 26 Supplemental Declaration of Daniel Blumenthal. Dr. Lebby was addressing the term phase modulate and its variants in the U.S. Patent 6,594,055 (“the ’055 Patent”) Patent in connection 27 with Oyster III. 1 mode-optical transmission system” and a method for transporting optical data in two modes. (Id. 2 at 4:4-26; see also id. at 2:41-46, 3:46-51.) 3 Claim 1 of the ’500 Patent, from which asserted claim 5 depends, recites: 4 1. An optical data transmitter comprising: 5 a laser; 6 a phase modulator for phase modulating light from the light source; and 7 a controller having an input for receiving an electronic data stream, 8 the controller in a first mode controlling the phase modulator so as to create phase-modulated optical signals in the light from the laser 9 as a function of the electronic data stream and the controller in a second alternate mode amplitude-modulating the light from the laser 10 as a function of the electronic data stream, the first mode and the second mode occurring at different times. 11 12 (Id.

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Oyster Optics, LLC v. Ciena Corporation, AT&T, Inc., (N.D. Cal. 2022).

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