JNLTech Invalidates HongickHIM's Battery Plate Transfer Patent

Court Sides with J&LTech, Invalidating Conveyor System Patent for Battery Manufacturing

(Source: https://www.hongick.co.kr/CASTING-ROLLING-SYSTEM)

J&LTech has emerged victorious in its long-running battle against competitor HongickHIM, successfully invalidating a crucial patent related to a battery plate transfer device. 

The disputed patent, KR0541226, titled "Cell Stacks Escape Unit of Conveyor System for Storage Battery Cell," pertains to HongickHIM's technology for safely and efficiently transporting battery cell plates during the manufacturing process. 

The legal dispute between the two companies began in 2019 when HongickHIM filed a patent scope confirmation trial against J&LTech. Although the Korean Intellectual Property Trial and Appeal Board (KIPTAB) dismissed the petition in 2020, the Patent Court ruled in favor of HongickHIM in 2021. The Supreme Court of Korea upheld the decision in January 2022, leading the KIPTAB to issue a ruling in April 2022 confirming that the scope of HongickHIM's patent extended to the technology used by J&LTech.

At the same time HongickHIM initiated the patent scope trial in 2019, J&LTech filed an invalidation trial to challenge the validity of the patent. This effort was initially unsuccessful, with the KIPTAB dismissing the claim in August 2020. With the 2022 Supreme Court ruling against J&LTech, the company appeared to be at a disadvantage, as its technology was confirmed to fall within the scope of HongickHIM's patent claims.

However, J&LTech persisted, filing another invalidation trial in 2021. Despite another dismissal from the KIPTAB in 2022, the Patent Court reversed the decision in November 2023, ruling in favor of J&LTech. The Supreme Court affirmed this ruling in March 2024, and by July 2024, the KIPTAB formally concluded that the patent was invalid, marking the end of the dispute in J&LTech's favor.

The now-invalid patent, filed in 2002 and granted in 2005, described an automated transfer system for battery plates made from lead or lead oxide, aiming to improve worker safety and efficiency in battery manufacturing. 

A figure from the patent titled "Cell Stacks Escape Unit of Conveyor System for Storage Battery Cell"(KR0541226) owned by HongickHIM (Source: KIPRIS)